Lady Sovereign
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| Lady Sovereign
<tr style="text-align: center;"><td colspan="3">Image:LadySovereign.jpg </td></tr> | ||
|---|---|---|
| Background information
<tr><td>Birth name</td><td colspan="2">Louise Amanda Harman</td></tr><tr><td>Born</td><td colspan="2">December 19,1985</td></tr><tr><td>Origin</td><td colspan="2">Wembley, London, UK</td></tr><tr><td>Genre(s)</td><td colspan="2">Grime, Hip Hop, Rap</td></tr><tr><td>Years active</td><td colspan="2">2004 - present</td></tr><tr><td style="padding-right: 1em;">Label(s)</td><td colspan="2">Casual Records |
Lady Sovereign (born 19 December 1985 as Louise Amanda Harman in Wembley, London) is a British grime<ref name=Beale1>Steve Beale, "Lady Across the Water", Guardian Guide in The Guardian 26 August 2006.</ref> MC.
Contents |
Biography
Early life
Born on December 19, 1985, she was raised on the Chalk Hill estate in Wembley, NW London. Though she was kicked out of school when she was only 16, she became one of the UK's few white female MCs. She has been cited often as part of the rising British grime scene.[citation needed] Lady Sovereign cites Ms. Dynamite as an influence and has supported The Streets, Obie Trice, Dizzee Rascal and Basement Jaxx on tour.
Lady Sovereign signed to Island Def Jam Music Group in 2005, after auditioning for Def Jam Recordings president and CEO, Jay-Z and The Island Def Jam Music Group chairman, Antonio "L.A." Reid. She released a studio album, entitled Public Warning on 31 October 2006.
Lady Sovereign first received attention when she recorded "The Battle," a freestyle girls versus boys battle rap with Shystie, Suz Rock and Frost P. Each rapper who participated in the recording of "The Battle" has since been signed to a record deal.
Shortly afterwards, "Random" was released. This was followed by "9 to 5." "9 to 5" entered the UK Top 40 at number 33. The follow-up single, "Hoodie" - produced by dance act Basement Jaxx - failed to reach the top 40, peaking at number 44. Lady Sovereign has since recorded with AdRock from the American rap group the Beastie Boys and American producer Dr. Luke. Lady Sovereign now resides North London, England where she lives alone in a flat [citation needed].
When The Ordinary Boys released the single "Boys Will Be Boys", Lady Sovereign came back with her own reply remix, featuring the music and chorus of the original, but with mostly her own vocals to the tune of "girls will be girls". In May 2006, the favor was returned when she was featured on the Ordinary Boys single, "Nine2Five," a remixed version of her own "9 to 5," credited as "The Ordinary Boys vs Lady Sovereign." "Nine2Five" entered at number 38 in the UK top 40 singles on downloads only, and jumped to #6 upon availability as a CD and 7" vinyl single during the week commencing May 22, 2006. This was her highest chart position to date and has helped to increase the media attention garnered by Lady Sovereign.
Lady Sovereign is the first non-American female to appear on the Def Jam label. Her former lack of success in the UK may be due in part to her stigma as representative of chav culture. She was featured on a Sky One documentary on chavs produced by Julie Burchill, after having been the target of a barrage of abuse and ridicule on the internet forum ChavScum. However, she has a following in the United States and is co-headlining a tour with The Streets with whom she appeared in a remix for his song "Fit But You Know It." Lady Sovereign cult following was again boosted after she recorded an attack on singer Jentina with "Sad Ass Strippa," a play on words of Jentina's song "Bad Ass Strippa." Kitty Empire of The Guardian is known to be a fan of "Sad Ass Strippa" and mentioned it in an interview she wrote about Lady Sovereign.
Lady Sovereign recently served as the host and spokesperson Adult Swim and Chocolate Industries' Chocolate Swim.
On October 31, 2006, her debut album, Public Warning, was released, featuring "Random," "9 to 5," "Hoodie" and her new single, "Love Me or Hate Me," which was also released on the same day.<ref>Lady Sovereign official site.</ref><ref>Lady Sovereign's Warning, uk.news.launch.yahoo.com, July 17, 2006</ref>
On August 1, 2006, Lady Sovereign's new single, "Love Me or Hate Me," a collaboration with American producer Dr. Luke, was aired on the radio for the first time in North America on Flow 93.5 in Canada. The song explains how she is almost the exact inverse of typical female rappers that sell very well, and shows some disgruntlement in pop culture. She explains she doesn't have looks, she can't sing, and can't dance, so love her or hate her. The harmony featured in this song references the Genesis track I Can't Dance. She is also known for sometimes calling herself a midget, where she says: "This is officially the biggest midget in the game".<ref>Lady Sovereign. (2006). Love Me or Hate Me [MP3]. </ref>She began an American tour on October 23, 2006 and soon appeared live on CBS-TV's Late Show with David Letterman. On November 18, 2006, it was announced that Lady Sovereign had contracted a throat and chest infection, forcing postponement of her shows in Las Vegas.
As of late 2006, "Love Me or Hate Me," is played in a Verizon Wireless advertisement for the LG Chocolate. It also appears on the Need for Speed: Carbon soundtrack.
On October 17, 2006, "Love Me or Hate Me," became the first video by a British artist to reach #1 on the U.S. (and original) version of MTV's Total Request Live.
She has recorded a track for The O.C.'s new album, Music From The O.C. Mix 6, "Covering Our Tracks", where she sings The Sex Pistol's "Pretty Vacant"
Discography
Albums
| Year | Album | UK | US | CAN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | "Public Warning" | — | 48 | 43 |
EPs
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Vertically Challenged | U.S. only release - 8 audio tracks with bonus DVD. |
| 2006 | Blah Blah | UK only release - 4 audio tracks with bonus DVD. |
Singles
Full singles
| Year | Title | Chart Positions | Chart Positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.K. | U.S. | |||
| 2005 | "Random" | #73 | - | Vertically Challenged EP Public Warning |
| 2005 | "9 to 5" | #33 | - | Public Warning |
| 2005 | "Hoodie" | #44 | - | Public Warning |
| 2006 | "Nine2Five" (Vs. The Ordinary Boys) | #6 | - | - |
| 2006 | "Love Me or Hate Me" | TBR | #45 | Public Warning |
Promo singles
| Year | Title |
|---|---|
| 2004 | "Ch Ching (Cheque 1 2)" |
| 2006 | "Blah Blah" |
Notes and references
<references />
- "Lady Sovereign making splash across Atlantic" by Brian Garrity, Reuters UK, October 21, 2006, retrieved October 22, 2006.
