Estelle (musician)
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| Estelle | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Fanta Estelle Swaray |
| Born | 18 January 1980 |
| Origin | West London, England |
| Genre(s) | R&B, hip hop, soul, pop |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, rapper, songwriter, producer |
| Years active | 2003-present |
| Label(s) | Stellarents, V2 Records, Home School, Black Jays, Atlantic,Ill Flava Records |
| Associated acts | Kanye West, JayD, John Legend, Will.I.Am, Karl Hinds |
| Website | estellemusic.com |
Fanta Estelle Swaray (born 18 January 1980), most widely known as Estelle, and formerly as Est'elle is an English R&B singer, rapper and producer.[1]
She has received the MOBO for “Best Newcomer” and received three consecutive “Best Female Artist” trophies from the UK Hip-Hop Awards.
Contents |
[edit] Life and music
Estelle was born in West London in 1980 (after which her autobiographical first single was named). She is one of eight children, born to a Senegalese mother and a father from Grenada. Estelle runs her own record label, Stellar Ents, and has released her own material through this - including the two "Da Heat" mixtapes Part 1 and 2, the album The 18th Day and the singles "1980", "Free" and "Go Gone". She featured on Natasha Bedingfield's song "Drop Me In The Middle" for Natasha's U.S. release of Unwritten. She also did a memorable rap verse on a 2006 Omar song, "Lay it down".
Estelle was originally on the Ill Flava Records.[2] label owned by Hip Hop award winner Karl Hinds, who together with Estelle and Joni Rewind re-released the well known Althia & Donna - 1978 track, 'Uptown Top Rankin'. Estelle also worked on various other tracks and videos with Karl Hinds and Ill Flava Records.
In 2005 Estelle revealed on the Sky Sports show Soccer AM that her birth name is actually "Fanta"[citation needed]and her favourite drink is Ribena.
In 2006, Estelle appeared at the London School Harris City Technology College for a Post 16 Year Of Achievement Night, and she could also be seen in the video for John Legend's single "Save Room". Also in 2006, Estelle joined rapper Kardinal Offishall's Black Jays International, and was eventually signed to singer John Legend's Homeschool Records through Atlantic Records.[3]
According to her official Blogspot, she had a photo-shoot on the week of July 2, 2007, for her new album.[4] Estelle has been critical of the music industry's perceived double standards of preferring white women over black women.[1]
The forthcoming album will feature production from the likes of Will.I.Am, Wyclef Jean, Mark Ronson, Cee-Lo, Swizz Beatz, and John Legend.
Kanye West also features on the album, on a track called "American Boy" which reached number one in the UK singles chart on March 23, 2008.[5] Estelle will be touring with Wyclef Jean with the tour dates soon to be announced.[6]
Recently she has got into controversy claiming racist attitudes in the U.K. music industry promote white artists over black artists performing the same style of music.[7]
In April 2008 Estelle announced a short UK tour, calling at the Manchester Ritz on the 8th June, Glasgow ABC on the 9th June, Birmingham Custard Factory on the 10th June and the Shepherds Bush Empire on the 12th June.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
| Year | Title | Chart peak positions | Sales | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | US | US R&b | |||
| 2004 | The 18th Day
|
35 | — | — | |
| 2008 | Shine
|
6 | 38 | 6 |
|
[edit] Mixtapes
[edit] Singles
[edit] Solo
| Year | Title | Chart peak positions | Album | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | AUS | SWE | BEL | IRL | US | US R&B | ||||||||||||||||||
| 2004 | 1980 | 14 | 36 | 36 | — | — | — | — | The 18th Day | |||||||||||||||
| "Free" | 15 | 49 | — | — | 50 | — | — | |||||||||||||||||
| 2005 | "Go Gone" | 32 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||||
| "Dance with Me" (remix) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||||||||||||
| 2007 | "Wait a Minute (Just a Touch)" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Shine | |||||||||||||||
| 2008 | "American Boy" | 1 | 3 | 43 | 1 | 2 | 52 | 55 | ||||||||||||||||
| "No Substitute Love" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||||||||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
[edit] Collaborations
| Year | Title | Chart peak positions | Album | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | AUS | SWE | IRL | US | US R&B | |||
| 2002 | "Trixstar" (Blak Twang featuring Estelle) | 54 | — | — | — | — | — | Kik Off |
| "Touch Me, Tease Me" (3SL featuring Estelle) | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
[edit] Awards/Nominations
- BET Awards
- 2008, Best New Artist (Nominated)
[edit] References
- ^ llll ll ll lll URBNET.COM lll ll llll ll ... street.knowledge
- ^ http://www.illflavarecords.com
- ^ http://www.allhiphop.com/Alternatives/?ID=422
- ^ http://divadahhlings.blogspot.com/
- ^ BBC - Radio 1 - Chart Show - The UK Top 40 Singles
- ^ Base News | Estelle Returns! | MTV UK
- ^ Estelle attacks 'blindness to black talent' | News | guardian.co.uk Music
[edit] External links
- Official Website
- Official MySpace
- Estelle single's & album's Charts
- Unofficial Homeschool Records Website
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