Aiden Leslie (born April 3, 1977) is an American pop singer and songwriter. He received widespread recognition and acclaim after writing, recording, and performing "World's Away" in 2011. The song, featuring Farrah Burns, has been featured on

VH-1 VH1 (originally an initialism of Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network based in New York City and owned by Paramount Global. It was created by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, at the time a division of Warner Communic ...

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

Early life

Leslie was born in

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, where he attended the

School for Creative and Performing Arts The School for Creative and Performing Arts (SCPA) is a magnet arts school in Cincinnati in the US state of Ohio, and part of the Cincinnati Public Schools (CPS). SCPA was founded in 1973 as one of the first magnet schools in Cincinnati and becam ...

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

. Shortly after graduating, he moved to New York City to pursue his music career. There he was cast in an off-Broadway play, during which he was introduced to an underground music scene he didn't know existed. It wasn't long before he became a fixture in the New York nightlife circuit, frequenting clubs like Palladium, Tunnel, Twilo, Roxy, and Jackie 60 to listen and dance to after-hour DJ's Junior Vasquez and Danny Tenaglia. He found that dance as well as music lacked the presence of strong male vocalists. "A lot of DJ's are simply not likely to play male artists on their dance floors. I think it’s time that has changed. I want to be a part of the movement to bring more guys to the dance floor". He currently resides in New York City, living a private life.

Career

Leslie released the first

white label A white label record is a vinyl record with white labels attached. There are several variations each with a different purpose. Variations include test pressings, white label promos, and plain white labels. Test pressings Test pressings, usua ...

cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

Erasure Erasure () is an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1985, consisting of lead vocalist and songwriter Andy Bell with songwriter, producer and keyboardist Vince Clarke, previously known as co-founder of the band Depeche Mode and a membe ...

's "

Love to Hate You "Love to Hate You" is a 1991 song by English synth-pop duo Erasure. It was released as the second single from their fifth studio album, ''Chorus'' (1991). Written by band members Vince Clarke and Andy Bell, it is an electronic dance track insp ...

" in 2005 on JVM Music, remixed by Junior Vasquez. As a songwriter, Leslie has become known for using his songs as personal diary entries. "Worlds Away" examines the aftermath of struggle and how people eventually reach the light at the end of the tunnel and grow from adversity. "Trying to Leave Now" looked at fighting feelings of the heart, leaving a love that the mind knows is not right. "Diamond Dreams" reflected on Aiden's story of coming to New York City six days after his high school graduation and how he grew from a boy to a man, navigating his way through the tough city streets, and seeking his dreams to become the performer he is today. This has become a reality as he has been steadily touring the country the last three years, playing to huge crowds in cities such as Chicago, Miami, New York City, Atlanta, Albany, and Columbus, opening for acts such as Wilson Phillips, 10,000 Maniacs, Debbie Gibson, Aaron Carter, and Kristine W to name just a few. "My fans are always my priority and meeting them makes it all worth it" says Leslie. His newest track, "Nobody Said", continues his journey in search of life's ideal. It tackles a desire many (including Aiden Leslie) feel is even more out of reach: finding ultimate love. Aiden Leslie's next release of ''Please'' on HMSP Music in 2006 met with favorable reviews. Leslie released his breakout single "World's Away" in February 2011. "World's Away" rose to No. 1 on Masterbeat and No. 1 on

Logo TV Logo TV (often shortened to Logo, and stylized as Logo.) is an American basic cable channel owned by Paramount Media Networks, a division of Paramount Global. Launched in 2005, Logo was originally dedicated to lifestyle and entertainment progra ...

"Click List" for four consecutive weeks, and was broadcast in video rotation on

, VH1 and was released on

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

and

Amazon.com Amazon.com, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational technology company focusing on e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. It has been referred to as "one of the most influential economi ...

shortly after. 2011 saw the launch of Leslie's own record label, Ashea Records, which released his next single in July of that year. The pop anthem "Trying to Leave Now", charted number 1 on several pop/dance charts across the globe. Leslie's next single "Diamond Dreams" was released in August 2012. Leslie's release for 2013 was "Nobody Said" issued in November of that year. In 2015, during an interview with BWW Interviews he mentioned he was going to do New York City Parade and "Live Out Loud", a benefit helping LGBT teens connect with inspirational role models. He is vocal about LGBTQ+ issues and often shares his own experiences as a gay man. That year, he also released a music video, titled "I Just Go", a song about love, life, and mortality. In the same year, during the interview with Advocate, he mentioned his music influences, at a time, were Madonna,

Pink Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...

, Taylor Clarkson,

Sam Smith Samuel Frederick Smith (born 19 May 1992) is an English singer and songwriter. After rising to prominence in October 2012 by featuring on Disclosure's breakthrough single "Latch", which peaked at number eleven on the UK Singles Chart, they ...

, and Taylor Swift.

Awards

In 2012, Leslie was awarded ''Odyssey'' Magazine's Nightlife Best Male Vocalist. He was also nominated for the 2012 Odyssey Magazine's Nightlife Award – Best Male Performer as well as the Glam Award for Best Nightlife Performer.

Discography

Singles

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leslie, Aiden 1977 births American dance musicians American male singer-songwriters American gay musicians American LGBT singers American LGBT songwriters Living people Singers from Cincinnati Singer-songwriters from Ohio Gay singers Gay songwriters 21st-century American male singers 21st-century American singer-songwriters 20th-century American LGBT people 21st-century American LGBT people