Calvin Harris

Calvin Harris biography

Calvin Harris (born Adam Richard Wiles; 17 January 1984) is a Scottish DJ, singer, songwriter, and record producer. His gold-selling debut album, I Created Disco, was released in 2007 and contained the top ten singles "Acceptable in the 80s" and "The Girls". His second studio album, Ready for the Weekend (2009), reached number one in the UK Album Chart and includes the chart-topper "I'm Not Alone", the UK top five hit "Ready for the Weekend", and the singles "Flashback" and "You Used to Hold Me".

A remix album titled L.E.D. Festival was released in July 2010 as a free album in the August issue of Mixmag. Harris is currently working on his third studio album-due for release in Summer 2012-which has produced the singles "Awooga", "Bounce" and "Feel So Close". He has written and produced records for other recording artists including Kylie Minogue, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Dizzee Rascal, and Rihanna (on the international chart topper "We Found Love"). He has also collaborated with Ne-Yo on the song "Let's Go."

Biography

Early life and career

Harris was born in Dumfries, Scotland. He states that his childhood hero was football star Steve McManaman, but because he could not play the game nor have McManaman's 'curly hair', music was the next best option for a career. He was first attracted to electronic music in his teens and was recording bedroom demos by 1999. According to an interview with News of the World, all the while he created music, he started becoming an antisocial person, which affected his personality. His earliest success was when he was 21: the songs "Da Bongos" and "Brighter Days" were released as a 12" club single and CD-EP by the Prima Facie label in early 2002 under the name Stouffer. He released one song in 2004, "Let Me Know", with artist Ayah Marar. The song appears on The Unabombers' Electric Soul 2.

thumb Harris signed contracts with EMI (publishing) and Sony BMG (recording) in 2006 after he had been discovered by Tommie Sunshine on the social networking website MySpace and his music was released on Sunshine's label Xylophone Jones Recordings previous to his album on Sony BMG. Harris had recently moved back from London to his hometown of Dumfries because he was unable to find a job. Later in 2006, Harris produced a remix of All Saints' hit single "Rock Steady".

Harris' first album, I Created Disco, was released in June 2007. The album contains uptempo electroclash songs that were influenced by music from the 1980s. To promote I Created Disco, Harris embarked on a tour of the UK, supporting Faithless and Groove Armada. I Created Disco has been certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry for sales of 100,000 copies in the UK, where it reached number eight on the UK Albums Chart.

The first single, "Vegas", was issued on limited edition vinyl; the first wide-release single from the album was "Acceptable in the 80s", a tribute to the style and culture of the decade. The song reached the top ten on the UK Singles Chart, remaining on the chart for fifteen weeks. "The Girls", the album's third single, peaked at number three in the UK, although the fourth release, "Merrymaking at My Place", reached only number forty-three. The fifth and final single, "Colours", was featured in television advertisements for DFS sofas and Kia Motors. In October 2008, Harris was featured on BBC Radio 1's Essential Mix with a two-hour set.

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