Information AboutBeverley Knight |
Beverley Knight is a critically acclaimed British . Retrieved March 20, 2006., Knight is best known for her hit singles "Greatest Day", "Shoulda Woulda Coulda" and "Come As You Are". After a decade in the industry, she was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Urban Music Awards in 2004. In 2006 Knight starred in BBC 1 music TV show, '' Just The Two Of Us '', and is the host of the Radio 2 show ''Beverley's Gospel Nights'', which explores the origins and impact of Gospel Music . Now in its second season, the show has featured interviews with stars such as Destiny's Child and Shirley Caesar . Knight is an ambassador for many charities such Christian Aid and has travelled to area's affected by disease and poverty to help raise awareness. She is an active campaigner for anti-Aids organisations such as the Stop AIDS Campaign and The Terrence Higgins Trust and is also a vocal campaigner against homophobic lyrics in urban music. BIOGRAPHY 1973–1993: Childhood Beverley Ann Smith was born on ''. Retrieved March 20, 2006.. Knight continued singing in her local church throughout her childhood, and her musical education was continued at home where she was often exposed to Gospel music. Due to her parent's religious beliefs, secular music was largely frown upon but artists such as soul legend Sam Cooke and Aretha Franklin played a big part in her childhood. Knight began writing her own songs – with varying degrees of success – at the age of thirteen. It was not until she turned seventeen, though, that she began to take her craft seriously. Beverley began performing the songs that she had written on stage in local clubs in her hometown. At the age of nineteen, Beverley was heard singing jingles on her local radio station by a record company executive and was offered a recording contract. She was adamant that her education should come first and that she should have something to fall back on, and so went to university to study Religious Theology and Philiosophy: "so I told them that they’d have to wait"Nathanson, Anna . Interview . ''3G Magazine''. Retrieved March 20, 2006.. 1994–2000: Early success '' was released in Britain in 1998.]] In late 1995 . Knight went on to win two Black Music Awards in 1996 ("Best RnB Artist" and "Best Producer" for 2B3) and was named Best RnB Act by ''Blues and Soul Magazine'', beating a host of American stars. However, the commercial success of the album failed to match its critical success and the album peaked on the UK album chart at number one-hundred-and-forty-five. Several singles were released from the project, the biggest being "Flavour Of The Old School", which peaked at number thirty-three in March 1996 when it was re-released. In . Retrieved March 20, 2006.. It contained five top forty hits – the biggest of which were "Greatest Day", peaking at number fourteen, and "Made It Back ’99" featuring US rap star Redman , which peaked at number nineteen. The commercial success of ''Prodigal Sista'' marked a big step forward in Beverley’s career and was reflected in the widespread critical acclaim of the project. ''. October 9, 1999.. 2001–2006: Mainstream breakthrough Throughout 2001 Beverley returned to the recording studio to write and record her third studio album. She was accompanied by a different array of writers and producers from Britain and the United States , which included James Poyser ( Lauryn Hill , Jill Scott , Erykah Badu ), Derrick Joshua & Derrick Martin, D’Influence and Colin Emmanuael. The result was '' Who I Am '', which was released in March 2002. It was preceded by two singles, "Get Up" and "Shoulda Woulda Coulda" – which became Beverley’s most successful single up to that point, peaking at number ten on the UK singles chart. The success of the singles, together with wide critical praise, propelled the album to number seven on the album chart making '' Who I Am '' Beverley’s most commercially successful album to date. It was re-released twice with new versions of the singles "Gold" and "Shape Of You (Re-Shaped)" and has sold 215,000 copies in Britain, earning it a Gold sales certificate. The critical response to ''. Retrieved March 24, 2006.. After touring Britain in 2002, Knight set about creating her fourth album and entered the studio in the summer of 2003. In an attempt to appeal to a larger mainstream audience, she enlisted the help of pop producers such as Guy Chambers ( Robbie Williams , Britney Spears ) and Peter-John Vettese ( Annie Lennox , Pet Shop Boys ) as well as collaborating with R&B producers such as DJ Munro. The result was '' Affirmation '', which was released on Parlophone Records in June 2004. The album entered the charts at number eleven and was preceded by the single "Come As You Are" – a rock/pop orientated song written with and produced by Chambers. The song marked a more mainstream pop sound that alienated Knight’s largely urban fan base and the song was not well received by urban radio stations. Nevertheless it became her biggest hit to date, peaking at number nine on the singles chart. The song was followed by two more singles, "Not Too Late For Love" and "Keep This Fire Burning", which helped boost album sales and resulted in the album being awarded a Gold sales certificate in December 2004. The themes running throughout the album, which were influenced by the events she had witnessed over the previous two years, marked a milestone in Knight’s career as a Lyricist . The main essence of the project was centred on Beverley’s relationship with Tyrone Jamison – a gay man whom she described as her "soul mate" and who died of an AIDS related disease in 2003. Throughout the album, lyrics on tracks such as "Remember Me" ("One day we will be reunited, least I hope that is our destiny, so while you chill in the arms of angels, remember me, remember me") and "No One Ever Loves In Vain" clearly point to Beverley’s close relationship with Tyrone and rank as her most personal work to date. Compared to the praise of her previous albums, the critical response to '' Affirmation '' was mixed.. The mainstream press such as '' The Guardian '' praised her for branching out, whilst the black music press such as ''The Voice'' and ''Blues and Soul'' accused Knight of selling out and being manipulated away from urban music by her record label, a claim she flatly denies: "Everything I’ve done musically has been completely me. I write my own songs so I’m not just a vocalist who can easily be dictated to."Morris, Davina. Interview . ''The Voice Magazine''. March 25, 2006. In February 2006 Knight consolidated her move into the mainstream audience by appearing on BBC1 music show, ''. December 12, 2005.. In March 2006 Beverley released her fifth album, a compilation set featuring the majority of her top forty UK singles entitled '' Voice - The Best Of Beverley Knight ''. The album, which was certified Gold less than a month after its release, became her second highest charting of her career when it entered the UK albums chart at number ten and rose to number nine a month later. It was preceded by the single "Piece Of My Heart" – a cover of the Erma Franklin classic made famous by Janis Joplin , and entered the singles chart number sixteen. INFLUENCES '' was the "epitome" of her childhood.]] Growing up in a . October 25, 2002.". Indeed the impact Sam Cooke can be seen throughout Beverley’s career as she has often performed and recorded Cooke classics – most notably the song "A Change Is Gonna Come", which she has recorded with Jools Holland on his ''Small World, Big Band Volume 2'' album. Strong and dominant female artists have also heavily influenced Knight’s career and this has manifest itself in not only the studio but also on stage where she has performed songs by some of her soul heroines such as '' hurts, and the '' Amazing Grace '' album, which is the epitome of my childhood, will stay with me for ever." Knight has recorded several of Franklin’s records, most notably "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man" and "Think", both of which have been released as B-sides and she even appeared in a tribute to the Queen of Soul with Spice Girl Melanie B and Jocelyn Brown at the BBC's Music Of The Millennium concert in 1999. Beverley Knight’s love affair with gospel and Soul Music dates back to her early childhood. Her parent’s strong religious beliefs meant that the church played a big part of her life, and this is where she first became exposed to gospel music. Her mother, Dolores, often led the gospel choir and encouraged her daughter to participate too. In 2005, Knight revisited her childhood when she hosted ''Beverley’s Gospel Nights'', a BBC Radio 2 series exploring gospel music. Featuring interviews with artists such as Shirley Caesar , Percy Sledge and Destiny’s Child stars Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams , the six-part series explored the roots of gospel music and the impact it had upon the black community. Such was the success of the show that a second six-part series was commissioned and began in March 2006 and featured new interviews with artists such as Candi Staton , David McAlmont and Marvin Winans. '', became a teen icon for Knight]] Heavily influenced by the likes of Franklin and Cooke, Beverley has also recorded songs from of other legendary artists such as '' album sleeve, can be seen throughout her back catalogue with songs such as "Get Up", "Hurricane Jane" and "Supersonic" being compared to Prince due to their mix of funk and soul. The classic soul and gospel artists of the mid twentieth century have obviously heavily influenced Knight’s musical breeding, but growing up in the or R&B or strictly black music. I find that London is a bit more segregated. In Wolverhampton , black people weren't so segregated and I think that had a massive impact on my musical influences." This diversity is illustrated best by Knight’s forth studio album, '' Affirmation ''. After working with Guy Chambers , the album had a more mainstream flavour compared to her previous albums and was led by the rock guitar driven single "Come As You Are". Although the song became her highest charting single to date, Knight was largely criticised by urban radio and media for moving too far away from her urban sound. Nevertheless the song illustrated Knight’s determined effort not to become boxed in and "ghettoised". Her musical diversity can also be found on stage, where she has covered songs by artists such as Coldplay ("Trouble"), The Beatles ("Let It Be"), Justin Timberlake ("Senorita", mixed with Luther Vandross ' "Never Too Much"), Kylie Minogue ("Cant Get You Out Of my Head") and Britney Spears ("I'm A Slave 4 U", which she mixed with Chaka Khan 's "I Feel For You"). Knight even included a live version of Robbie Williams ' signature hit " Angels " on her '' Voice - The Best Of Beverley Knight '' album. DISCOGRAPHY For detailed information, see the Beverley Knight Discography |
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| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/encyclopedia/entry/Prodigal_Sista" class="copylinks">Prodigal Sista ''''' <br>(17 August, 1998) |
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| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/encyclopedia/entry/Who_I_Am" class="copylinks">Who I Am ''''' <br>(11 March, 2002) |
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| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/encyclopedia/entry/Affirmation_(Beverley_Knight_album)" class="copylinks">Affirmation ''''' <br>(28 June, 2004) |
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| "http://wwwinformationdelightinfo/encyclopedia/entry/Voice_-_The_Best_Of_Beverley_Knight" class="copylinks">Voice - The Best Of Beverley Knight ''''' <br>(20 March, 2006) |
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