- published: 26 Jul 2015
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Hayley Dee Westenra (born 10 April 1987) is a New Zealand soprano, classical crossover artist, songwriter and UNICEF Ambassador. Her first internationally released album, Pure, reached No. 1 on the UK classical charts in 2003 and has sold more than two million copies worldwide. Pure is the fastest-selling international début classical album to date, having made Westenra an international star at age 16. In August 2006, she joined the Irish group Celtic Woman, was featured on their Celtic Woman: A New Journey CD and DVD, toured with them on their 2007 Spring Tour, and also was featured on their DVD, The Greatest Journey: Essential Collection, released in 2008.
Across classical music to easy listening, folk and pop style songs, Westenra has performed songs in English, Irish, Welsh, Italian, German, French, Portuguese, Latin, Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, Taiwanese and Māori from west to east, north to south all around the world.
Westenra has performed for dignitaries around the world. She is the second youngest UNICEF Ambassador to date and has contributed to charities around the world.
Against Me! is an American punk rock band formed in Naples, Florida in 1997 by singer and guitarist Tom Gabel. Since 2002 the band's lineup has also included guitarist James Bowman and bassist Andrew Seward; current drummer Jay Weinberg joined in 2010. After releasing three studio albums through independent record labels, Against Me! moved to Sire Records for 2007's New Wave, which reached no. 57 on the Billboard 200. Their fifth and most recent album, 2010's White Crosses, was their most successful, reaching no. 34. In 2011 the band launched their own record label, Total Treble Music, through which they plan to release future albums. In 2012 Gabel publicly came out as transgender, with plans to begin a medical process to live as a woman and eventually take the name Laura Jane Grace while continuing to front Against Me!. The first album expected to feature Laura Jane Grace as frontwoman is Transgender Dysphoria Blues.
Against Me! was formed in 1997 by singer/guitarist Tom Gabel as a solo act, occasionally performing with backing musicians. The first Against Me! release was an eponymously-titled 1997 cassette demo. With the addition of drummer Kevin Mahon, a second demo, Vivida Vis! (1998), was released in limited numbers by Misanthrope Records. The band's first EP, Against Me!, was released in 2000 through Crasshole Records. Their first widely-distributed release was the EP Crime as Forgiven by Against Me! (2001), released by Plan-It-X Records and Gabel's own Sabot Productions. A third EP, an eponymously-titled acoustic recording by Gabel and bassist Dustin Fridkin, was released later that year.