Charlotte Kelly is a British singer-songwriter, composer, arranger, and record producer. Kelly rose to fame in the mid-1990s as one of the lead singers of British R&B group

Soul II Soul Soul II Soul are a British musical collective formed in London in 1988. They are best known for their two major hits; 1989's UK number five and US number eleven " Keep On Movin'", and its follow-up, the UK number one and US number four " Back to ...

, one of the London's best-selling groups of all time. She performed lead vocals on their single "I Care" for their fourth studio album ''Volume V: Believe'' (1995). She continued to record and perform with the group until the release of their final studio album ''Time for Change'' (1997). During their hiatus, Kelly released her debut solo album ''Just Another Girl'' (1998), which sold exclusively in Japan. She released her second album ''Charlotte'' (1999), which included number-one dance hit "Skin". Kelly reunited with the group in 2010 for their Reunion Tour. Following the conclusion of the tour, Kelly continued to perform with the group as the lead singer. In 2013, she left the group to pursue her solo career. Her work has earned her several awards and nominations, including three United Nations Music Aid Awards, a UK Songwriting Contest Award and Unisong International Song Award. Kelly has also received the

Heritage Award The PRS for Music Heritage Award is a ceremonial plaque installed in a public place to commemorate a link between a famous musician or music band and the location they performed their first live gig. The UK-wide plaque is awarded and funded by ...

from

Performing Right Society PRS for Music Limited (formerly The MCPS-PRS Alliance Limited) is a British music copyright collective, made up of two collection societies: the Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society (MCPS) and the Performing Right Society (PRS). It undertake ...

along with the members of Soul II Soul.Heritage Awards > Soul II Soul
PRS for Music. Retrieved on 30 June 2016

Early life

Charlotte Kelly was born in

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...

, England, to Michelle Kelly and Tony Kelly in either 1976 or 1977. Archived at The Free Library. Her parents were the former owners of a record store named "Moonshine" in Lower Ford Street, Hillfields, Coventry. She also has a two sisters and a brother. Kelly was born blind at birth with no sight at all in her left eye and virtually none in her right eye. At a young age, Kelly knew she wanted become a singer after listening to the music being played in her parents' record store.

Career

1992–93: Beginnings

Kelly started her career as a singer at the age of sixteen when she signed her first record contract with

Big Life Records Big Life was a record label established in 1987 by Jazz Summers and Tim Parry. It featured hundreds of releases from artists such as The Orb, Stare, Yazz, Junior Reid, Coldcut, De La Soul, and Damage. In 1999, the label was put into receiver ...

. In 1993, Kelly released her first single titled "Sugar Tree". The music video debuted on ITV Chart Show in October 1993. In 1994, she released two singles titled "Climb My Stairs" and "All of Your Love". Later that year, she was introduced to Jazzie B (of

) who would produce her next single titled "Queen of Hearts".Nielsen Business Media Inc. "Vol. 111, No. 6." ''Billboard''. 6 February 1995: 33. Print. The song featured background vocals from

Lamya Lamya Al-Mugheiry (30 October 1973 – 8 January 2009), better known as her mononym Lamya, was a Kenyan-born English singer-songwriter and record producer. She rose to fame in the early 1990s as one of the lead singers of R&B group Soul II Soul, ...

(of

1994–97: Soul II Soul and career breakthrough

After releasing this demo, Kelly toured as a background singer for

. She was later asked to become a full-time member and one of the lead vocalist of the group. In August 1995, Soul II Soul released their fourth studio album, entitled "Volume V: Believe". The album charted at number 13 on the UK Albums chart. The album's second single "I Care", which features lead vocals by Kelly, peaked at number 17 on the UK Singles chart. Kelly also sings lead vocals on songs "Don't You Dream" and "Pride". In 1997, Soul II Soul released their fifth studio album, entitled "Time for Change". Kelly performed lead vocals on the titled-track "Time for Change". Later that year, Kelly left Soul II Soul pursue her solo career. She signed a new recording contract with Parlophone Rhythm Series.

1998–2000: ''Just Another Girl'' and ''Charlotte''

In February 1998, Kelly released the single "Be Mine". The single charted at number 59 on the UK Singles chart. In November 1998, Charlotte released her first album ''Just Another Girl'' exclusive in Japan.Published by Nielsen Business Media, Inc. (6 February 1999). Clubland Eats Up Charlotte's 'Skin'. ''Billboard'', Volume 111: No. 6, Page 33. Retrieved from https://books.google.com In February 1999, "Skin" was released as the lead single from her upcoming second album. The song peaked at number 1 on '' Billboard'' Club Play chartCharlotte > Chart History
Billboard. Retrieved on 25 March 2017 and number 56 on the UK Singles chart, selling over 40,000 copies worldwide.Published by Nielsen Business Media, Inc. (25 December 1999). If Labels 'Believe' In Dance Acts, Success Will Follow. ''Billboard'', Volume 111: No. 52, Page 34. Retrieved from https://books.google.com In June 1999, the album's second single "Someday" peaked at number 74 on the UK Singles chart. Kelly's remix project "Remixed to Infinity" was also released exclusively to Japan. The album features a total of eight songs that were remixed from three original songs: "Skin", "Someday", and "Be Mine". In September 1999, Kelly released her self-titled second studio album "Charlotte". The album's final single "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" was released in 2000 and peaked at number 11 on Billboard's Dance chart.

2002–2010: Songwriting competitions and music production

In 2002, Kelly released a song "Golden Gate (Lovin' You)", which was featured on the WMC Allstars compilation album. In 2004, Kelly participated in the USA Songwriting Competition. She entered up to four songs and won first prize in the R&B category for her song "Cheeky". In 2006, she participated in UK Songwriting Competition and won first prize in R&B category. She also entered in the Pop category where she received second place. In the same year, Kelly also entered in the Music Aid Awards where she received first place in two categories: "Best UK Female Artist" and "Best UK Songwriter". In 2010 Charlotte co-wrote the topline to UK number 1 single " Good Times", performed by

Roll Deep Roll Deep (formerly Roll Deep Entourage) are a British grime crew. They were founded in 2001 by Wiley shortly before the disbandment of UK garage crew Pay As U Go Cartel. The group have had two UK No. 1 singles, "Good Times" and " Green Lig ...

. This earned Charlotte her first UK number 1.

2010–2013: Return to Soul II Soul

In 2010, the former members of Soul II Soul reunited for a reunion tour. Following the reunion tour, Kelly rejoined the group as the lead vocalist. The group performed the annual Rewind Festival in 2012. In June 2012, the members of Soul II Soul received the honorary PRS Heritage Plaque award. In November 2013, Kelly left the group again to focus on her solo career.

2013–present: Solo career

In 2013, Kelly released a single titled "Somebody's Baby". In 2014, Kelly released three singles: "Tell the Sun", "All Coming Back", and "Sonic Sex".

Personal life

She has two daughters named Iman and India, and a son named Soul. In 2013, Kelly married music producer Benjamin Bennett. In November 2015, the couple separated, and divorced later.

Discography

;Albums * ''Just Another Girl'' (1998) * ''Remixed to Infinity'' (1999) * ''Charlotte'' (1999) ;Singles

Awards and nominations

USA Songwriting competition

, - , rowspan="4", 2004 , "Cheeky" , rowspan="6", Best R&B Song , , - , "Symphony" , , - , "Raining in Heaven" , , - , "Spook" , , - , rowspan="2", 2005 , "I Need You That Way" , , - , "Come On" ,

UK Songwriting competition

, - , rowspan="4", 2006 , "I Need You That Way" , rowspan="2", Best R&B, Hip-Hop, Rap Song , , - , "Come On" , , - , "Raining in Heaven" , rowspan="2", Best Pop Song , , - , "Better With You" ,

United Nations Music Aid Awards

, - , rowspan="2", 2006 , rowspan="3", Charlotte Kelly , Best UK Female Artist , , - , Best UK Songwriter , , - , 2009 , Best Female Solo Artist ,

Unisong International Song Contest

Cached page of 11th Annual Unisong International Song Contest Winners
Unisong 11th Annual. Retrieved on 24 June 2016 , - , rowspan="2", 2007 , "I Need You That Way" , rowspan="2", Best R&B, Hip-Hop, Rap Song , , - , "Symphony" ,

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Charlotte British house musicians British dance musicians Blind musicians Blind singers English dance musicians 20th-century Black British women singers English people of Jamaican descent Living people Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century Black British women singers Soul II Soul members