Jamelia Niela Davis (born 11 January 1981), best known mononymously
as Jamelia, is a English singer-songwriter, model, entertainer,
television presenter and actress. She is most famous for her use
of a cappella and prolific work in the R&B genre. She has released
three studio albums, each of which has reached the Top 40 in her
native UK, which collectively have spawned eight UK top ten singles.
In addition, Jamelia has won four MOBO Awards, a Q Award and has
received nine BRIT Award nominations. Jamelia is one of Britain's
most successful black female entertainers. Her career has spanned
over ten years after being signed straight out of school at 15
to one of the biggest major record companies in the world.
Her professional music career began in 1999, when she released her
debut single, "So High", followed by a more successful
single, "I Do". She then release her debut full-length
studio album, Drama in June 2000. Jamelia went onto release further
successful singles, including "Superstar" and "Thank
You" which charted at number three and number two on the UK
Singles Charts respectively, with "Superstar" charting
at number one in Australia and becoming platinum certified in Australia.
She went onto further release another two studio albums, Thank You
(2003) and Walk with Me (2006), before leaving Parlophone following
a dispute with executives over the release of "No More",
the third offering from Walk With Me.
Jamelia's ten year-successful career span has led her to becoming
a judge on shows such as Move Like Michael Jackson in 2009.[4] Her
filmography also includes her own TV documentaries, including Jamelia:
Who's Hair Is It Anyway (2008), her own edition of the popular Channel
4 show, The House That Made Me and in 2011, her own BBC Three documentary,
Jamelia: Shame About Single Mums. In 2010 she signed a new record
deal with All Around the World Productions who also represent artists
such as Lisa Maffia, Dannii Minogue, Inna, Agnes, Cascada & N-Dubz.
She is scheduled to release her fourth studio album, Rebel, in 2012.[5]
Contents
[show]
[edit] Early life
Jamelia was born in Hockley, Birmingham in the West Midlands, to
British-born Jamaican parents.[6]
[edit] Music career
[edit] 1997-2001: Early career and Drama
Jamelia was signed to Capitol Records at 15 after record producers
heard recordings of her self-written a cappella songs that she had
made on a karaoke machine. In late 1999, Jamelia recorded the single
So High, a collaboration with fellow R&B vocalist Rosita Lynch.
The single failed to chart in both the UK and mainland Europe, and
did not appear on any of Jamelia's subsequent albums. Following the
poor sales of the single, Jamelia left Capitol Records, but was quickly
signed up with record company Parlophone, a branch of EMI.
Taking some time to record her début album, Drama, Jamelia
returned to the music scene in early 2000 with the single I Do, which
became her first commercially successful single in the UK and mainland
Europe, making the UK Top 40 and holding Top 20 positions in France
and Sweden. The single's mediocre chart success, however, led to
the delay of the release of Drama. Jamelia's third single, Money
(featuring rapper Beenie Man and co-written by UK The X Factor finalist
Daniel De Bourg), was released in February 2000. The single was the
singer's breakthrough in the UK, peaking at number five and spending
nine weeks in the UK Top 75; it later won a MOBO Award for Best Video
in 2000. Despite the success of Money, Drama did not make a major
chart impression in the UK, where it peaked at number 39. The third
single from the album, Call Me, reached number 11, and the fourth
single, Boy Next Door, peaked at number 42. Recognition for the singer's
early success came in late 2000 and 2001 at the BRIT Awards. Jamelia
was nominated for Best British Newcomer, Best British Video and Best
British Female.[2]
[edit] 2003-05: Thank You and mainstream breakthrough
Jamelia recorded her second studio album, Thank You, in 2002 and
early 2003 following the birth of her daughter Teja in 2001. The
first single lifted from Thank You was the R&B-influenced "Bout",
on which she collaborated with American rap star Rah Digga; it debuted
at number 37 in the UK. The second single, the much poppier "Superstar",
became Jamelia's highest peaking at the time when it peaked at number
three, and earned the spot of the 26th best-selling of 2003 in the
UK. It remains Jamelia's only single to receive a BPI certification.[7]
Parent album Thank You, released shortly after "Superstar",
was widely expected to replicate the single's success, but entered
the UK chart at number 65. Subsequently, a number of record producers
worked with Jamelia on a re-release of the album that features new
artwork and track listing, including two new songs: her collaboration
with Coldplay's Chris Martin and DJ K Staveley, "See It in a
Boy's Eyes", and "DJ".
Promoting the re-release, title track "Thank You" was
issued shortly before. Known to be Jamelia's favourite of her releases,
the song became her highest charting single to date in the UK, where
it peaked at number two and received the 2004 MOBO Award for Best
Single and a BRIT Award nomination in the same category. The fourth
single "See it in a Boy's Eyes" was released in mid-2004
and became Jamelia's third consecutive top five hit, winning a MOBO
Award for Best Video and a Q Award for Best Single. The success of
Thank You resulted in five BRIT Award nominations for Jamelia in
2004 and 2005 for Best British Female, Best British Single, Best
Female Solo Act, and Best British Urban Act.[2] The album became
the 36th best-selling of 2004[8] and has been certified double platinum
by the BPI in recognition of 600,000 copies shipped to retailers.[7]
Jamelia also contributed a cover version of Kool and the Gang's "Straight
Ahead" for their Remix/Covers album The Hits: Reloaded.
In mid-2004, she collaborated with Italian singer Tiziano Ferro
on "Universal Prayer" for the 2004 Olympic Games soundtrack.
It became her first Number 1 single in Italy and Spain and was added
to non-UK editions of Thank You. In late 2004, Jamelia was asked
to contribute to the Band Aid 20 charity single "Do They Know
It's Christmas?", on which she sang with Will Young. The single
topped the UK Singles Chart and was certified platinum. Around the
same time, Jamelia released the lead single from the soundtrack of
the film Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, a cover of Sam Brown's
1988 single "Stop!"; it was released as double A-side in
the UK with the aforementioned "DJ", and peaked at number
nine.
[edit] 2006-07: Walk With Me and departure from Parlophone
Jamelia performing in the Royal Albert Hall, London in November 2009
Following the birth of her second daughter, Tiani, in 2005, Jamelia
began recording her third album, Walk With Me. Its lead single, "Something
About You", was released in late 2006 and described as "less
R&B, more experimental", with Popjustice hailing it as "an
incredible pop single".[9] The single became Jamelia's first
to enter the charts solely on download sales alone, debuting at number
28, rising to number nine almost a month later following the physical
release. Walk with Me was released shortly after and drew critical
praise, with many critics claiming that it marked a significant turn
in the singer's career as she moved from R&B to pop/rock.
The album did not emulate the chart success of Thank You, managing
to début only at number 20 on the UK Albums Chart. The second
single, "Beware of the Dog", features a sample from Depeche
Mode's 1989 song "Personal Jesus" and was heavily praised
as being Jamelia's best single to date, with BBC Radio 1's "Chart
Blog" stating that it "might just be one of the best pop
songs ever made" and "the best pop song of the year",
receiving a five-star rating.[10] The single became the second consecutive
Top 10 effort from the singer's third album, reaching number 10 in
the UK. The final single to be released from the album was "No
More", which samples The Stranglers' 1981 single "Golden
Brown". It made the A-list on BBC Radio 2, but failed to garner
much sales success, debuting at number 43.
Walk With Me became the singer's second album to receive a BPI certification.
After four months of release, it sold more than 100,000 copies and
was awarded a Gold disk.[7] However, despite producing two Top 10
singles and garnering mostly positive reviews, Walk With Me had disappointing
sales compared to her second album, Thank You, which went on to become
certified double platinum.
In an interview with Digital Spy in December 2009, Jamelia said
that she wasn't surprised that the album did not sell well. "I
probably wasn't in the right frame of mind with Walk With Me... I
love all the songs individually, but I don't feel it flows very well
as an album, which makes it harder to relate to. It sold well over
100,000 copies - but I want double-platinum every time!" [11]
Jamelia performing live on stage in 2007
In late 2007, the singer released a singles collection entitled
Superstar - The Hits. The compilation album features 11 of her 14
releases, omitting the 1999 single "So High", Drama singles "I
Do" and "Boy Next Door" and the non-UK 2004 release "Universal
Prayer". The collection, which only managed to début
at number 55 on the UK Album Charts, was criticised for its hastiness,
brevity and lack of new tracks or artwork.[12] This proved to be
her final album for Parlophone, which she left weeks after the collection's
release amid rumours that the sales performance of Walk With Me had
been a factor in the decision of the artist and label to part ways,
and to release the singles collection.[13]
[edit] 2008—present: New record deal and Rebel
Jamelia has been scheduled to release a new album titled "Rebel" which
is due for release in 2012. The album will be the first to be released
by the singer since parting ways with Parlophone. On 7 April 2008,
she confirmed that she had been in the studio with producers Shea
Taylor, (Rihanna, Beyoncé, Janet Jackson) and Syience (Jay-Z,
John Legend, Mary J Blige Kerry S). On 8 July 2008, it was reported
that hip hop producer Pharrell Williams wants to work with Jamelia
on her upcoming album. Rhian Prosser Burns has been quoted as saying
she is interested in writing for the singer[citation needed].
In an interview with entertainment website Digital Spy in December
2009, the singer commented on being a rumoured replacement for Keisha
Buchanan, in the girl-group Sugababes and spoke about work with her
ongoing album, which was going "absolutely amazing". She
stated that she was working with producers who have previously worked
with Lady Gaga and Beyonce, and that the album returned her sound
to 2004's Thank You. She also vowed to come back with a "really
exciting" album.[11]
On 26 July 2010, Jamelia signed a record deal with an unknown label
live on video streaming website Ustream.tv.[14] On 29 July The Sun
confirmed the record label to be All Around the World.[15]
[edit] Other projects
In spring 2004, Jamelia was signed by the prestigious agency, ICM.
Just a week later she was signed as the face and legs of Pretty Polly
in a high profile advertising campaign and shortly afterwards was
featured in a poster campaign for Reebok. Since pursuing work in
modelling, Jamelia has also endorsed Listerine Softmint Sensation,
Jaguar Cars and BMW, was the brand ambassador for the maternity wear
line Seraphine, has appeared in print advertising for Oxfam and on
the front cover of magazines such as Cosmopolitan, Company, Elle
and Harpers & Queen. On 9 November 2006, Jamelia joined Feeder
on stage for the encore of Feeder's WAR Child gig at 'The Coronet'
in London. They performed a cover of R.E.M.'s "Everybody Hurts" as
well as "Beware Of The Dog".
In January 2007, Jamelia launched a new fragrance as part of a campaign
to increase awareness of HIV and AIDS. Proceeds from the sale of
every bottle of The Body Shop's Rougeberry will be donated to MTV's
Staying Alive Foundation. Jamelia appeared on the 4 March 2007 episode
of Top Gear, where Richard Hammond drove her to Earl's Court Exhibition
Centre for a Brit Awards show in his homemade stretch limousine.
On 27 May 2007, it was announced that Jamelia had signed a £100,000
contract to launch a new range of products for Boots. On 31 July
2007, it was announced that Jamelia, along with Erin O'Connor and
Helena Christensen, had teamed up with hairdressing/hair product
company Toni & Guy to promote Model.Me - a hair product created
for women with ethnic hair. Jamelia said, "I think it's about
time that there was a haircare range specifically designed for ethnic
hair available on every high street."
On 18 September 2007, Jamelia co-hosted the MOBO Awards in 2007
with Shaggy and on 20 September she was on the catwalk in Naomi Campbell's
Fashion for Relief event at the Natural History Museum in London.
Jamelia appeared on ITV's Saturday Night Divas to mark the end of
Breast Cancer Awareness Month. She shared the stage with Jennifer
Lopez, Girls Aloud, Celine Dion and Alicia Keys, amongst others and
performed a cover version of Outkast's hit single Hey Ya. On 1 December
2007, Jamelia was invited to perform on stage for Nelson Mandela's
World Aids Day concert. She performed the hit singles "Something
About You", "See It In A Boy's Eyes" and "Superstar".
On 19 December 2007, Jamelia played Cinderella in Channel 4's The
Paul O'Grady Show's Christmas Pantomime.
In late January 2008, it was announced that Jamelia had signed a
book publishing deal with Orion. Her autobiography, Stronger has
yet to be published. In February 2008, Jamelia announced in a podcast
on her personal website that she had "completed her first official
acting role".[16] It was also mentioned that she had landed
a TV presenting job. In July 2008 she appeared in a documentary about
the international Hair extensions trade Jamelia: Whose Hair is it
Anyway? for BBC Three travelling to India and Russia with Tatiana
Karelina and guest presented a week of episodes of Big Brother's
Big Mouth for E4. On 7 September 2008, she guest presented an episode
of Something for the Weekend with Tim Lovejoy. A more recent project
is The Really Good School Dinner. Jamelia is supporting the initiative
which will see children and young people in England pledging to have
a school meal and make a donation to provide some of the world’s
poorest children with a nutritious meal.[17]
Jamelia starred in an episode of Gordon Ramsay's The F Word, where
she and Gordon took part in a cook off competition. She was a guest
judge for BBC's Let's Dance for Comic Relief, and she has appeared
on the Disney channel show Under Cover Coach, in which she coached
a girl called Amy in singing. Jamelia presents the The National Lottery
some Wednesday evenings, which she has been doing since April 2008.
Jamelia featured in a Channel 4 documentary series, produced by Nutopia
(Production Company), in 2010, called The House That Made Me, which
took her back to her childhood home, and reintroduced her to the
people she had known in her youth.
Jamelia walks the catwalk every year since 2007 for her UK model
counterpart, Naomi Campbell and her Fashion for Relief show. Jamelia
is also very active in working with ActionAid, Princes Trust and
the Food Aid branch of the UN, the World Food programme which has
seen her visit Kenya, Uganda and India. In 2008 Jamelia earned the
coveted role of appearing along side two of the world biggest supermodels
(Helena Christensen and Erin O'Conor) fronting her own ethnic haircare
range 'Model Me' in conjunction with 'Toni and Guy' and was stocked
nationwide in Boots stores. 2009 saw Jamelia take on various tv roles
including authoring her own documentary for BBC3 on ethical hair
extensions which saw her travel to Russia and India. Plus she was
one of the judges on BBC3's 'Move Like Michael Jackson'. Jamelia
has also in her career been lucky enough to meet Nelson Mandela and
perform for him for both his 46664 concert in Johannesburg and his
90th birthday celebrations in Hyde Park.[3]
[edit] Acting career
It has been announced that Jamelia would star in two upcoming movies.
Jericho's Walls Are Falling is a film based on a true story about
a young man who contracts HIV/AIDS and how it affects not only him,
but the people closest to him. Jamelia will play the character of
Nicca, and will star alongside Gideon Turner, Bernard Hill and Jason
Flemyng. Magic Boys, to be directed by Róbert Koltai is a
comedy feature which will star Michael Madsen who plays "an
American bad boy who gets entangled in a big scheme business fraud.
Just by pure chance, two Hungarian factory workers get mixed in and
before they know it they find themselves in a London Chippendale
show". Jamelia will play the character of Cherry Valentine,
which is likely the stripper character that she has mentioned in
the past. As of April 2011. neither film has been released.
[edit] Personal life
In August 2007 Jamelia split from boyfriend Darren Byfield. The
couple are parents to daughter Tiani (born 21 October 2005). Jamelia
also has another child, Teja (born 18 March 2001), from a previous
relationship. The couple was reconciled a couple of months later,
and in October 2007 they announced their engagement. On 15 June 2008
it was reported the couple wed on the previous day in West Sussex.
On 3 November 2009 it was announced that the couple were filing for
divorce.[18] The couple were reconciled again, and in December 2009
they announced their engagement, but later split up.
She participated at the Peta's campaign "Would Rather Go Naked
Than Wear Fur".[19][20]
Jamelia stands at 5 feet 7 inches.[4]
[edit] Discography
Main article: Jamelia discography
Studio albums
Drama (2000)
Thank You (2003)
Walk with Me (2006)
Rebel (2012)[21]
Compilation albums
Superstar - The Hits (2007)
Jamelia - The Collection (2009)
DVD Releases
Thank You – Live (2004)
DJ (2004)
Something about You (2006)
Beware of the Dog (2006)
[edit] Filmography
Jamelia: Who's Hair Is it Anyway? (2008) - Herself[4]
Gok's Fashion Fix (2008) - Herself[4]
The House That Made Me Documentary (2010) - Herself[22]
Move Like Michael Jackson (2009–present) - Herself/Judge[4]
Jamelia: Shame About Single Mums (2011) - Herself/host[23]
Magic Boys (2011; post-production) - Cherry Valentine[24]
[edit] Awards and nominations
Year Institution Award
Won
2000 MOBO Awards Best Video - "Money"
2004 TMF Awards (Belgium) Meest Belovend
2004 Q Awards Best Single - "See It In a Boy's Eyes"
2004 MOBO Awards Best British Female
2004 MOBO Awards Best Single - "Thank You"
2004 MOBO Awards Best Video - "See It In a Boy's Eyes"
2004 Q Awards Best Single - "See It In a Boy's Eyes"
2005 Urban Music Awards Best R&B Act
2007 Eska Awards Best Foreign Singer
2007 Urban Music Awards Best R&B Act
Nominated
2001 Brit Awards Best British Video - "Money"
2001 Brit Awards Best British Female
2004 Brit Awards Best British Female
2004 Brit Awards Best British Single - "Superstar"
2004 Mercury Music Prize Thank You
2005 Brit Awards Best British Female
2005 Brit Awards Best British Urban Act
2005 Brit Awards Best British Single - "Thank You"
2007 Brit Awards Best British Female
2007 Popjustice £20 Music Prize "Beware of the Dog"
2007 MOBO Awards Best British Female
[edit] Tour history
2004 Thank You Tour
Jamelia has also opened shows for artists such as Justin Timberlake
and Mis Teeq.