Jamelia

Jamelia biography

Jamelia Niela Davis (born 11 January 1981), best known mononymously as Jamelia, is a British 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 a major record label.

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. Her filmography also includes her own TV documentaries, including Jamelia: Whose 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.

Early life

Jamelia was born in Hockley, Birmingham in the West Midlands, to British-born Judi Dench.

Music career

1997-01: 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.

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