Divine Brown (born September 9, 1974), previously known as Divine Earth Essence, is a Canadian

Juno Award The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall of ...

-winning R&B and

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...

singer and theatre performer.

Early life

Brown was born in Toronto, Ontario to Jamaican parents. She first began her singing career singing in local nightclubs. A single mother, she has one daughter.

Career

Brown is known for her 2005 Canadian radio hit " Old Skool Love". The single and video whet the appetites of U.S. Soul music fans, and a Reggae remix version secured the attention of Riddim junkies in Jamaica fueling Divine to reach for something more. The single earned Brown a SOCAN No. 1 Song Award. Even without an album prior to 2005, she was invited to perform at various musical festivals around the world. Her debut album ''

Divine Brown Divine Brown (born September 9, 1974), previously known as Divine Earth Essence, is a Canadian Juno Award-winning R&B and soul singer and theatre performer. Early life Brown was born in Toronto, Ontario to Jamaican parents. She first began h ...

'' was an underground hit and was fairly successful in the mainstream market. The album was released on the independent Blacksmith label, created by Toronto-based manager Chris Smith. Said Brown to Billboard Magazine, "I spent six years trying to get a label deal... utA&R people felt my sound was too mature." She has a five-octave vocal range. Her second album, '' The Love Chronicles'', was released on August 19, 2008 and won a

Juno award The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall of ...

for best R&B/Soul album of the year in 2009. To date, three singles have been released from the album: "Lay It On the Line", "Meet Me At the Roxy", and "Sunglasses". Brown grew up in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, Ontario. She toured with the

Backstreet Boys Backstreet Boys (often abbreviated as BSB) are an American vocal group consisting of Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, AJ McLean, and cousins Brian Littrell and Kevin Richardson. Lou Pearlman formed the group in 1993 in Orlando, Florida. The gr ...

for their Unbreakable Tour in North America in 2008. In 2009 Divine Brown took part in an interactive documentary series called ''

City Sonic ''City Sonic'' is a documentary series about Toronto-based musicians and the places that influenced their music.http://radio3.cbc.ca/blogs/2009/8/Watch-This-City-Sonic-Film-Series The first five ''City Sonic'' films were previewed at Toronto's 20 ...

''. The series, which featured 20 Toronto artists, had Divine perform at Toronto's Rex Hotel. Earlier in 2009 Brown was a headliner at the Keeping the Dream Alive Dr. Martin Luther King Jr tribute concert. In January 2011, Brown recorded a tribute to Dennis Brown, "Sitting & Watching". Brown's third album ''Something Fresh'' is set to be released in Fall 2013 under Universal Canada. After a three-year hiatus, Divine Brown marks her return to the spotlight with a collection of brand new music for her fans. Executive Produced by Divine and her manager Stephane Lecuyer, "Something Fresh" continues her commitment to the hearty soul music of yore with a bright, contemporary spin courtesy of noted songwriter/producers The Rezza Brothers of Toronto (Obie Trice, DMC, The Commodores). Divine offers that the new album possesses an "old school vibe with a new school twist" and as such, "Something Fresh" draws upon the blueprint of her first two hit albums displaying her retro sensibilities while fully representing today through its lyrical content, musical arrangements and hip-hop inspired production values to be a decidedly fresh contemporary Soul/R&B offering.First single "Gone" is set to release early summer. "Gone" produced and co-written by the Rezza Brothers. In 2016, Brown performed with Gowan as backup vocalist on a small string of shows in the Toronto area. In October 2016 Divine Brown announced on social media a brand new single is set to drop titled "Love Alibi" a collaboration with Universal Music Publishing & Songwriting duo 80 Empire. Release date November 1, 2016.

Influences

Brown was influenced heavily by R&B/Soul singers such as

Chaka Khan Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan (), is an American singer. Her career has spanned more than five decades, beginning in the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the funk band Rufus. Known as the " Qu ...

Patti LaBelle Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American R&B singer, actress and businesswoman. LaBelle is referred to as the " Godmother of Soul". She began her career in the early 1960s as lead singe ...

and

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...

Discography

*2005: ''

'' *2008: '' The Love Chronicles'' *2013: ''Something Fresh''

Singles

Awards

References

External links

Divine Brown's website
* * *
Profile and videos
on the website of

MuchMusic Much (an abbreviation for its full name MuchMusic) is a Canadian English language specialty channel owned by BCE Inc. through its Bell Media subsidiary that airs programming aimed at teenagers and young adults. MuchMusic launched on August 31 ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Divine 1974 births Actresses from Toronto Black Canadian actresses 21st-century Black Canadian women singers Canadian people of Jamaican descent Canadian contemporary R&B singers Canadian soul singers Canadian stage actresses Juno Award for R&B/Soul Recording of the Year winners Living people Musicians from Toronto Neo soul singers