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Billboard

The Billboard logo
Editor	Danyel Smith
Weekly
Circulation	16,327
First issue	1894
Company	Prometheus Global Media
Country	United States
Language	English
Website	www.billboard.com
ISSN	0006-2510

Billboard is an international newsweekly magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis. The two most notable charts are the Billboard Hot 100, which ranks the top 100 songs regardless of genre and is based on digital sales, radio airplay, and internet streaming data; and the Billboard 200, the corresponding chart for album sales.

History[link]

A Billboard issue in 1896.

Billboard was founded in Cincinnati on November 1, 1894, by William h. Donaldson and James Hennegan.^[1][2] Originally titled Billboard Advertising it was a trade paper for the bill posting industry, hence the magazine's name.^[1] Within a few years of its founding, it began to carry news of outdoor amusements, a major consumer of billboard space. Eventually Billboard became the paper of record for circuses, carnivals, amusement parks, fairs, vaudeville, minstrels, whale shows and other live entertainment. The magazine began coverage of motion pictures in 1909 and of radio in the 1920s.

With the development of the jukebox industry during the 1930s, The Billboard began publishing music charts. Originally, there were only three genre-specific charts: Pop, Rhythm & Blues, and Country & Western. In the 1950s it introduced a section covering the television industry, including ratings charts for programs. It continued to carry news of fairs, carnivals, theme parks and other outdoor entertainments until 1961 when these departments were spun off into a new weekly magazine called Amusement Business. By this time the television coverage had also been moved to another publication.

At the start of 1961, The Billboard was renamed Billboard Music Week. The publication was now devoted almost entirely to the music industry, with some coverage of coin-operated vending and entertainment machines on its jukebox pages. The title was changed to simply Billboard at the start of 1963. In 2005, the magazine and its web sites were repositioned to provide coverage of all forms of digital and mobile entertainment.

Amusement Business prospered for a few decades, but was struggling by the beginning of the 21st Century. Shortly after then its frequency of publication was reduced to monthly, and it finally ceased publication following its May 2006 issue.

Billboard charts[link]

On January 4, 1936 The Billboard published its first music hit parade, and on July 20, 1940 the first Music Popularity Chart was calculated. Since August 4, 1958, the Hot 100 has been published, combining single sales and radio airplay.

Billboard currently puts out over 100 charts each week, the most popular ones being Hot 100, Billboard 200, and Hot 100 Airplay.

Radio countdown programs[link]

For many years, the weekly syndicated radio program American Top 40, hosted by Casey Kasem (July 4, 1970 to August 6, 1988), and Shadoe Stevens (August 13, 1988 to January 28, 1995), played the top 40 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in reverse order; in late November 1991, it switched to using the top 40 portion of the Hot 100 Airplay chart. Later, in early 1993, it began using the Top 40 Mainstream chart until it temporarily went off the air in 1995. When the show returned in 1998, it no longer used Billboard charts as its source, instead relying on Mediabase charts based purely on radio airplay.

A country music version of American Top 40, called American Country Countdown, has been on the air since October 1973. The show is hosted each week by Kix Brooks of the country duo Brooks & Dunn, who replaced radio legend Bob Kingsley in January 2006. American Country Countdown used the top 40 songs of the Hot Country Songs chart until August 2009.

[edit] Billboard today

Billboard Publications became a major trade magazine publisher, acquiring The Hollywood Reporter, Kirkus Reviews, Adweek and Mediaweek. It was acquired by Dutch publisher VNU (later renamed the Nielsen Company) in 1993, but later sold in 2009 along with the other Nielsen Business Media properties to the new company e5 Global Media, which was renamed in 2010 to Prometheus Global Media.^[3]

Billboard is intended for music professionals, such as record label executives, artists, music retailers, and radio DJs. Although it is generally considered a business-to-business magazine, it can be found at many consumer bookstores and magazine stands, particularly in cities with a large music industry presence such as New York, Los Angeles, Nashville, and Miami. Editorial coverage and broader strategy are guided by its editorial director, Bill Werde.

Much of the magazine is available at Billboard's B2B site, Billboard.biz. Billboard.com is the consumer-centered site, and includes artist interviews, daily news and charts.

Billboard Books[link]

The group behind the billboard has an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group (itself a part of Random House) known as Billboard Reads, which bought the imprint from Nielsen in 2008. The publishing agency describes itself as "a leading publisher of music and entertainment titles".^[4]

See also[link]

• American Top 40
• Billboard Brasil (local Brazilian version of Billboard magazine)
• Billboard Touring Awards
• Billboard Türkiye (local Turkish version of Billboard magazine)
• Billboard Chile (local Chilean version of Billboard magazine)^[5]

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Durkee, Rob. American Top 40: The Countdown of the Century. Schriner Books, New York City, 1999.
• Battistini, Pete, American Top 40 with Casey Kasem The 1970s. Authorhouse.com, January 31, 2005. ISBN 1-4184-1070-5.

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Billboard magazine

• Official Billboard website
• Billboard archive on Google Books

Christina Perri
Christina Perri in an interview
Background information
Birth name	Christina Judith Perri
Born	(1986-08-19) August 19, 1986 (age 25)
Origin	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Genres	Pop rock, piano rock, alternative rock, soul
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, guitarist, pianist
Instruments	Vocals, piano, guitar
Years active	2010–present
Labels	Atlantic
Website	www.christinaperri.com

Christina Judith Perri (born August 19, 1986)^[1][2] is an American singer-songwriter and musician from Philadelphia. Her song "Jar of Hearts" charted in the United States after it was featured on the Fox television show So You Think You Can Dance in 2010. Rolling Stone named her the "Band of the Week" on October 26, 2010.^[3] On May 10, 2011, Perri's "Jar of Hearts" was featured on Glee (Season 2, Episode 20 "Prom Queen").^[4] Also, on June 27, 2011, Perri's "Jar of Hearts" was featured on Switched at Birth (Season 1, Episode 4 "Dance Amongst Daggers"). One of her songs, "A Thousand Years", has been in the Twilight saga movie Breaking Dawn.

Early life[link]

Perri grew up in Bensalem, Pennsylvania (a suburb of Philadelphia) with her older brother, Nick Perri, who formerly played guitar with Shinedown, Silvertide, Perry Farrell and Matt Sorum.^[5] Her father is from Italy.^[6] She attended Archbishop Ryan High School as a member of the class of 2004.^[7] She taught herself how to play guitar as a 16-year-old by watching a videotape of Shannon Hoon from the group Blind Melon performing on VH1.^[3]

Career[link]

Early career[link]

Perri moved to Los Angeles on her 21st birthday. Later that year she got married and began to produce music videos. She divorced 18 months later and moved back to Philadelphia by the end of 2009; during this time she wrote "Jar of Hearts". She moved back to Los Angeles, waitressing at the Melrose Cafe during the day and recording at night.^[3][8]

[edit] 2010–present: Lovestrong.

Perri's song "Jar of Hearts" was featured on So You Think You Can Dance during the June 30, 2010 show.^[9] It was featured in performance by Billy Bell and Kathryn McCormick.^[10] Perri's friend Keltie Colleen passed the song to show choreographer Stacey Tookey; Perri and Colleen watched the performance in the audience.^[9] Following its exposure on the show, "Jar of Hearts" sold 48,000 digital copies, debuting on the Billboard Hot 100 at #63 and reaching #28 on Billboard's Hot Digital Songs.^[10] Within a month, it sold more than 100,000 copies.^[8] Then, her music video for "Jar of Hearts" landed on the VH1 top 20 music video countdown.

Shortly after, Perri made her debut on national day time and prime time television, performing the song live on the July 10, 2010 episode of The Early Show on CBS as well as the July 15, 2010 episode of So You Think You Can Dance^[8] Perri signed a deal with Atlantic Records on July 21, 2010.^[11] Roadrunner Records continue to promote "Jar of Hearts" on the radio.^[12] Perri appeared on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno on July 29, 2010 and Conan on December 7, 2010 where she played "Jar of Hearts." In addition, "Jar of Hearts" was on the show Pretty Little Liars. "Arms" was also in the ABC Family movie Teen Spirit. Perri recorded an EP named The Ocean Way Sessions that was released on November 9, 2010.^[13]

Perri singing "Distance" (left) and "Jar of Hearts" (right) at the lovestrong. tour in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Perri's debut album is titled lovestrong. and was released on May 10, 2011. It follows the release of "Arms", its lead single, released on March 15. She appeared on Late Show with David Letterman, playing her song "Arms." "Arms" was used in the August 26, 2011 episode of The Bold and the Beautiful and has also been used in TV spots for the Fall 2011 season of Investigation Discovery's show "Disappeared."

Perri's single, "A Thousand Years," appeared on The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn's movie soundtrack.

On November 1, 2011 Perri appeared on ABC's Dancing With The Stars Results show to perform her song "Arms". On 13 November 2011, she also performed "Jar of Hearts" on the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing results show. On February 19, she performed "Jar of Hearts" in the pre-fight buildup to Vitali Klitschko vs. Derek Chisora World Heavyweight Championship boxing contest in Munich.

On 29th January 2012, Perri performed Jar of Hearts live on UK ITV's Dancing on Ice show, with Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean in a specially choreographed routine.

She will be joining Jason Mraz in his tour across continental North America in 2012. Perri also announced that she will be releasing her second studio album in Spring 2013.

On 22nd April 2012, Perri performed live on Australia's Dancing with the Stars.

Discography[link]

EP[link]

• The Ocean Way Sessions (2010)

Albums[link]

• Lovestrong (2011)

References[link]

Bruno Mars
Bruno Mars performing in Las Vegas, Nevada on September 19, 2010
Background information
Birth name	Peter Gene Hernandez
Born	(1985-10-08) October 8, 1985 (age 26)[1] Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
Genres	Reggae fusion, pop, soul, R&B
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, record producer, model, dancer
Instruments	Vocals, drums, guitar, keyboard, bass, piano, harmonica
Years active	2005–present
Labels	Atlantic, Elektra
Associated acts	The Smeezingtons
Website	www.brunomars.com

Peter Gene Hernandez (born October 8, 1985), better known by his stage name Bruno Mars, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. Raised in Honolulu, Hawaii by a family of musicians, Mars began making music at a young age. He performed in various musical venues in his hometown throughout his childhood. He graduated from high school and then moved to Los Angeles, California to pursue a musical career. Mars produced songs for other artists, joining production team The Smeezingtons.

Mars had an unsuccessful stint with Motown Records, but then signed with Atlantic Records in 2009. He became recognized as a solo artist after lending his vocals and co-writing the hooks for the songs "Nothin' on You" by B.o.B, and "Billionaire" by Travie McCoy. He also co-wrote the hits "Right Round" by Flo Rida featuring Ke$ha, and "Wavin' Flag" by K'naan. In October 2010, he released his debut album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans. Anchored by the worldwide number-one singles "Just the Way You Are" and "Grenade", the album peaked at number three on the Billboard 200.^[2] Mars was nominated for seven Grammys at the 53rd Grammy Awards, winning Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Just the Way You Are".

Mars' music is noted for displaying a wide variety of styles and influences, and contains elements of many musical genres. He has worked with an assortment of artists from various genres. Mars acknowledges the influences that his collaborations have had on his own music. As a child, he was highly influenced by artists such as Little Richard,^[3] Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson and would often impersonate these artists from a young age. Mars also incorporates reggae and Motown inspired sounds into his work. Jon Caramanica of The New York Times referred to Mars as "one of the most versatile and accessible singers in pop."^[4] Worldwide, Mars became the best-selling digital artist in 2011. He had three singles in the top ten, including first place with "Just The Way You Are," which sold 12.5 million copies.^[5] Mars won Best International Male Solo Artist at the BRIT Awards in 2012.^[6] Bruno Mars has sold 5 million albums and 36 million singles worldwide.^[7]

Early life[link]

Bruno Mars was born Peter Gene Hernandez on October 8th, 1985, and raised in the Waikiki neighborhood of Honolulu, Hawaii, by parents Pete Hernandez, of Puerto Rican descent, and Bernadette "Bernie," a Filipina.^{[8][9][10][11]} His mother emigrated to Hawaii from the Philippines as a child and his father moved to the island from Brooklyn, New York.^[12] Mars' parents met while performing in a show, where his mother was a hula dancer and his father played percussion.^[12] At the age of two, he was nicknamed "Bruno" by his father, because of his resemblance to legendary professional wrestler Bruno Sammartino.^[13]

Mars was one of six children and came from a musical family who exposed him to a diverse mix of reggae, rock, hip hop, and R&B.^[14][15] In addition to being a dancer, his mother was a singer and his father used his musical ability to perform Little Richard rock n roll music.^[3] Mars' uncle was an Elvis impersonator. By the age of three his uncle had Mars up on the stage performing. He also performed songs by artists such as Michael Jackson, The Isley Brothers, and The Temptations.^[10] At age four, Mars began performing five days a week with his family's band, The Love Notes, in which he became known on the island for his impersonation of Presley.^[16]

In 1990, Mars was featured in MidWeek as "Little Elvis", going on to have a cameo in the film Honeymoon in Vegas in 1992.^[10][17] He later reflected on the influence Presley had on his music: "I watch the best. I'm a big fan of Elvis. I'm a big fan of 1950s Elvis when he would go on stage and scare people because he was a force and girls would go nuts! You can say the same thing for Prince or The Police. It's just guys who know that people are here to see a show, so I watch those guys and I love studying them because I'm a fan."^[18] In 2010, he also acknowledged his Hawaiian roots and musical family as an influence, explaining, "Growing up in Hawaii made me the man I am. I used to do a lot of shows in Hawaii with my father's band. Everybody in my family sings, everyone plays instruments...I've just been surrounded by it."^[19] In 2003, shortly after graduating from President Theodore Roosevelt High School at the age of seventeen, Mars moved to Los Angeles, California, to pursue a musical career.^[10][17] He adopted his stage name from the nickname his father gave him, adding "Mars" at the end because "I felt like I didn't have [any] pizzazz, and a lot of girls say I’m out of this world, so I was like I guess I'm from Mars."^[20]

Career[link]

[edit] 2004–10: Career beginnings and It's Better If You Don't Understand

Bruno Mars performing in Houston, Texas in November 2010.

Shortly after moving to Los Angeles, Mars signed to Motown Records in 2004, in a deal that "went nowhere".^[21] However, Mars' experience with Motown proved to be beneficial to his career when he met songwriter and producer Philip Lawrence, who was also signed to the label. Mars, Lawrence, and engineer Ari Levine began writing songs together, and formed the production team The Smeezingtons.^[21] In 2006, Lawrence introduced Mars to his future manager at Atlantic Records, Aaron Bay-Schuck.^[22] After hearing him play a couple of songs on the guitar, Bay-Schuck wanted to sign him immediately, but it took about three years for Atlantic records to finally sign Mars to the label.^[22] In the meantime, Bay-Schuck hired Mars and the Smeezingtons to write and produce songs for the label's artists.^[22] According to Bay-Schuck in an interview with HitQuarters, Mars had stated that although his ultimate goal was to be a solo artist, he was willing to write and produce for other artists, both to help improve his songwriting and help him discover the type of artist he ultimately wanted to be.^[22] Bay-Schuck credits this as a period of "self-discovery" that contributed significantly to Mars' later success.^[22]

Before becoming a successful solo artist, Hernandez was an acknowledged music producer, writing songs for Alexandra Burke, Travie McCoy, Adam Levine, Brandy, Sean Kingston, and Flo Rida.^[14][23] He also co-wrote the Sugababes' hit song "Get Sexy" and provided backing vocals on their album Sweet 7.^[24][25] His first musical appearance as a singer was in Far East Movement's second studio album Animal, featured on the track "3D".^[26] He was also featured on pastor and hip hop artist Jaeson Ma's debut single "Love" in August 2009.^[27][28] He reached prominence as a solo artist after being featured on and co-writing B.o.B's "Nothin' on You" and Travie McCoy's "Billionaire"; both songs peaked within the top ten of many charts worldwide.^{[29][30][31][32]} He said of them, "I think those songs weren't meant to be full-sung songs. If I'd sung all of "Nothin' on You", it might've sounded like some '90s R&B." Following this success, Mars released his debut extended play (EP), titled It's Better If You Don't Understand, on May 11, 2010.^[33] The EP peaked at the 99th position on the Billboard 200 and produced one single, "The Other Side", featuring singers Cee Lo Green and B.o.B.^[34][35] Mars collaborated with Green once more in August 2010 by co-writing his single "Fuck You!". He performed a medley of "Nothin' on You" and "Airplanes" with B.o.B and Hayley Williams at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards on September 12, 2010.^[36]

[edit] 2010–present: Doo-Wops & Hooligans

Bruno Mars' debut album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans, was released digitally on October 4, and saw its physical release on October 5, 2010.^[37][38] The lead single, "Just the Way You Are", was released on July 19, 2010,^[39] and has reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 as well as several other charts worldwide.^[40][41] The music video was released on September 8, 2010.^[42] The second single, "Grenade", was released September 28, 2010, and has also seen successful international chart performance.^[43][44] In the United States, Doo-Wops & Hooligans debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 for the week of October 13, 2010, selling 55,000 copies.^[2] The album also received generally positive reviews from critics. Entertainment Weekly's Leah Greenblatt praised Mars for his "instant-access melodies" and "sly snatches of dance-floor swagger", but noted weaknesses in songs deviant from his conventional pop and soul genres.^[45] He opened for Maroon 5 on the fall leg of the Hands All Over Tour starting October 6, 2010 and co-headlined with McCoy on a European tour starting October 18, 2010.^[38]

On September 19, 2010, Mars was arrested in Las Vegas for possession of cocaine.^[46] When talking to a police officer, Mars reportedly stated that what he did was "foolish" and that "he has never used drugs before".^[47][48] Mars pled guilty to felony drug possession, and in return for his plea, he was told that the charges would be erased from his criminal record as long as he stayed out of trouble for a year, paid a $2,000 fine, did 200 hours of community service and completed a drug counseling course.^[49]

On February 13, 2011, Mars won his first Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, having received six nominations; Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for "Nothin' on You", Record of the Year for "Nothin' on You" and "Fuck You", Song of the Year for "Fuck You", and Producer of the Year, Non-Classical at the 53rd Grammy Awards.

On September 16, 2011, Bad Meets Evil released their single, "Lighters", which featured Mars in the song. The song was met with mixed reviews from critics and many criticized Mars for doing this type of song.^[50] On September 22, 2011, it was announced on Mars' website that his new song "It Will Rain" will appear on The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1 Original Motion Picture Soundtrack which was released on November 8.^[51] On October 30, 2011, Mars gave an exclusive performance of "Runaway Baby" on the results show of The X Factor UK, the same day that Mars received six nominations for a Grammy Award; Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album for Doo-Wops & Hooligans, Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance for "Grenade", and Producer of the Year, Non-Classical at the 54th Grammy Awards. During the ceremony, Mars performed "Runaway Baby" but he did not win any awards as Adele won in all the categories he was nominated in and also lost to Paul Epworth for Producer of the Year.

Mars has confirmed on Twitter that his work on his second album has begun.^[52] On March 22, 2012, it was announced that Mars had signed a worldwide publishing deal with BMG Chrysalis US.^[53]

Musical style[link]

Mars performing on November 24, 2010. Mars plays several instruments including piano, guitar, bass and congas.^[54]

Mars' music has been noted for displaying a wide variety of styles and influences, including pop,^[55] rock,^[55] reggae,^[55] R&B,^[56] soul,^[45] and hip hop.^[57] His co-producer Philip Lawrence says, "What people don't know is there's a darker underbelly to Bruno Mars." Mars himself says, "I blame that on me singing to girls back in high school."^[58] Jon Caramanica of The New York Times called him "one of the most versatile and accessible singers in pop, with a light, soul-influenced voice that’s an easy fit in a range of styles, a universal donor."^[4] Mars was initially influenced by R&B artists such as Keith Sweat, Jodeci and R. Kelly, as well as 1950s rock 'n' roll and Motown.^[59] In high school, he began listening to classic rock groups such as The Police, Led Zeppelin, and the Beatles.^[59] All of these genres of music have influenced Mars' musical style; he observed that "It’s not easy to [create] songs with that mixture of rock and soul and hip-hop, and there’s only a handful of them."^[59] Mars also stated that he is a fan of Alicia Keys, Jessie J, Jack White and The Saturdays.^[60]

In addition, Mars claims that his work with other artists influenced his musical style, saying that "'Nothin' on You' had a Motown vibe, 'Billionaire' was a reggae acoustic guitar-driven song, though one of my favorites is the Cee-Lo [Green] song ['Fuck You']. I don't think anyone else could've sung that song. And there's 'Just the Way You Are.' If you know my story, you know I love all different genres of music."^[61] He cites doo-wop as a major influence on his music, referring to the genre as "just straightforward love songs – so charming and simple and romantic."^[61] In addition, Mars states that growing up in Hawaii influenced his music, giving the songs a reggae sound. He explains that "In Hawaii some of the biggest radio stations are reggae. The local bands are heavily influenced by Bob Marley. That music brings people together. It's not urban music or pop music. It's just songs. That's what makes it cross over so well. The song comes first."^[12] Lyrically, many of Mars' songs have been described as "feel-good", carefree, and optimistic,^[62] however, darker subjects are addressed in songs such as "Grenade", "Liquor Store Blues", and "Talking to the Moon", which detail failed relationships and self-destructive behavior.^[45][63]

Discography[link]

• Doo-Wops & Hooligans (2010)
• TBA (2012)

Tours[link]

• Doo-Wops & Hooligans tour (2010–2011)

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Bruno Mars

• Official website
• Bruno Mars on Twitter
• Bruno Mars at the Internet Movie Database

Melanie Fiona
Melanie Fiona in 2011.
Background information
Birth name	Melanie Fiona Hallim
Also known as	Syren
Born	(1983-07-04) July 4, 1983 (age 28) Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Genres	R&B, soul, jazz, reggae
Occupations	Singer
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	2002–present
Labels	SRC, Universal Motown, Universal Republic, Roc Nation
Website	melaniefiona.com

Melanie Fiona Hallim (born July 4, 1983) is a Canadian R&B recording artist. She was born and raised in Toronto.^[1]

Fiona's debut album The Bridge was released in 2009, having collaborated with Future Cut, Vada Nobles, Stereotypes, J. Phoenix and Peter Wade Keusch. The debut single "Give It to Me Right" was sent to radio stations on February 28, 2009, and peaked at number 20 on the Canadian Hot 100 chart and number 41 on the UK Singles Chart.^[2] The second single, "It Kills Me", became her breakout song on the Billboard Hot 100 where it entered the Top 50, along with topping the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The song earned Fiona a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. The Bridge also earned her a NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding New Artist. In 2012 Fiona won two Grammy Awards for Best Traditional R&B Performance for the song "Fool for You" with Cee Lo Green.

Life and career[link]

1983–2005: Early life and career beginnings[link]

Melanie Fiona Hallim was born on July 4, 1983, in Toronto, Canada.^[3][4] She is the daughter and second child of Guyanese immigrant parents, who immigrated to Canada in the late 1970s.^[3][5] Her parents are of African, Indian, and Portuguese descent.^[1] Her father was a janitor before working in finance, and her mother worked in banking.^[3] Hallim began writing songs at age 16.^[6] Living in a music filled household, Hallim says she always knew music was her passion. Her father was a guitarist in a band and would allow her to sit on the stage when she was younger as he practiced, and remembers her mother playing music at home; from The Ronettes to Whitney Houston.

In 2002, Hallim was briefly involved with girl group X-Quisite.^[7] She was also in a group called The Renaissance with rapper Drake. Early in her career, she would perform at nightclubs in Toronto.^[8] In 2005, Hallim traveled to Los Angeles, in search of a recording contract. According to Hallim, record labels "loved" the way she looked and sung, but she "knew that the minute I worked with them or would have signed with them, they would have tried to change me into someone else completely different. That was something that I didn't want to do."^[7] She went on to co-write songs for recording artists Rihanna and Kardinal Offishall.^[7] Hallim also recorded the reggae song "Somebody Come Get Me" under the stage name Syren Hall, which was included in the Reggae Gold 2008 compilation album.^[9][10]

[edit] 2007–2010: The Bridge

Fiona performs in Bern, Switzerland at the club Bierhübeli in 2009.

Entrepreneur Steve Rifkind discovered and signed Hallim to SRC Records and Universal Motown through Title 9 in 2007.^[3][7] She went on to tour with Kanye West in his Glow in the Dark Tour^[9] Prior to completing her debut album, Hallim met with recording artist Jay-Z and his friend Tyty. She played them some of her music and was then signed to be managed by Roc Nation.^[11] She released her debut album, The Bridge, in June 2009, which has sold 248,000 copies in the United States.^[9] Beyond Race Magazine ranked Hallim among "50 Emerging Artists" of 2009.^[12] Several singles were released from the album, including "It Kills Me", which topped the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for 10 weeks and earned her a Grammy Award nomination at the 52nd Grammy Awards for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.^[7][8] Other singles that were released were "Sad Songs" was released in April 2009 in the UK only as a digital download, with the reggae-tinged songs "Somebody Come Get Me" and "Island Boy" as B-sides. "Sad Songs" did not chart in the UK. "Give It to Me Right" was the first official single from The Bridge. The song peaked at #41 in the UK but failed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US. It did, however, reach #57 on the U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and at #41.

"Monday Morning" charted in Switzerland and Poland at number 1[13][14] and in Austria at number 5. It was released as the third U.S. single, however, "Bang Bang (Melanie Fiona song)"[1] was sent to radio as the second Canadian single for Canadian top 40 & hot AC play, but due to "Priceless" not being released in Canada, "Monday Morning" will serve as the fifth single in Canada due to hot adult contemporary radio station CKZZ-FM (Virgin Radio 953) in Vancouver having the song on its playlist. "Ay Yo" was released as the fourth official single from The Bridge, according to Hallim's website and Twitter. The music video premiered on April 12, 2010. "Priceless" will be the fifth U.S. single due to airplay on urban adult contemporary stations. Due to "Priceless" not being released in Canada, "Monday Morning" will be serviced to Canadian stations as the fifth single, even though "Monday Morning" was released as the third American single.

Hallim participated in "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" to benefit after the 2010 Haiti earthquake. She began touring with Alicia Keys as an opening act on The Freedom Tour in 2010.^[13] The album spawned six singles with one being "It Kills Me" which reached the top spot on US R&B chart.

[edit] 2011–present: The MF Life

In 2011, Hallim began recording her second studio album. The lead single was entitled "Gone and Never Coming Back." The single peaked at 37 on US R&B chart becoming her second highest peaking song on the R&B chart so far. Later on that year Fiona released her second single, "4 AM" was sent to urban stations on August 30, 2011.^[14] 4am peaked on the US R&B chart at #8, the song was about a lover who had gone out and was cheating on her. The album was released on March 20, 2012.^[15][16][17]

On January 2, 2012, she performed "O Canada" at the NHL Winter Classic between the New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers at Citizens Bank Park.^[18]

Artistry[link]

Musical style and influences[link]

Hallim cites Whitney Houston, Sam Cooke, Sade, Amy Winehouse, India.Arie, Patsy Cline and Bob Marley as her musical influences.^[5][6][10] She also cited Janet Jackson's career as inspirational, who she called an icon.^[19] She called Lauryn Hill's The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill the album that changed her perspective, calling it an "amazing body of work".^[6] She attributes her parents for her vintage sound. Her father was a guitarist in a band, while her mother would sing around the house. She explained that "[m]y parents were big music lovers and played soul music all the time", who would play The Supremes, The Ronettes and Cooke, as well as Caribbean music like soca, calypso and reggae.^[3][20]