Jamie-Lee Kriewitz (; born 18 March 1998), better known by the mononym Jamie-Lee, is a German singer and activist. Born and raised in
Bennigsen,
Hanover
Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...
, she performed as a member of the German children choir Joyful Noise before auditioning for the
fifth season of ''
The Voice of Germany
''The Voice of Germany'' is a German reality talent show created by John de Mol, based on the concept ''The Voice of Holland'' and its international series. It began airing on ProSieben and Sat.1 on 24 November 2011.
There are five differen ...
'' in 2015.
She competed as one of the seventeen composing members of
Team Michi & Smudo and later emerged as the winner after garnering 38% of the public vote. Kriewitz's debut and winner's single, "
Ghost", peaked at number 11 on the
GfK Entertainment Charts
The GfK Entertainment charts are the official music charts in Germany and are gathered and published by GfK Entertainment (formerly Media Control and Media Control GfK International), a subsidiary of GfK, on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindust ...
, number 65 in the
Ö3 Austria Top 40
Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Tuesdays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as ...
and number 26 on the
Swiss Hitparade
The Swiss Hitparade (german: link=no, Schweizer Hitparade) is Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.
The Swiss charts include:
* Singles Top ...
.
She subsequently signed a recording contract with
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...
; her debut studio album ''Berlin'' was released on 29 April 2016 and peaked at number 18 on the GfK Entertainment Charts.
Following
Xavier Naidoo
Xavier Kurt Naidoo (German: kseːviɐ naɪˈduː born 2 October 1971) is a German soul and R&B singer, songwriter and record producer. He is a founding member of German band Söhne Mannheims, and started two record labels, Beats Around the ...
's disqualification, Kriewitz was announced as one of the ten finalists for ''
Unser Lied für Stockholm
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "Ghost" written by Thomas Burchia, Anna Leyne and Conrad Hensel. The song was performed by Jamie-Lee. The German entry for the 2016 contest in Stockholm, Sweden was selected ...
'', Germany's preliminary decision for their representative at the
Eurovision Song Contest 2016, in 2016.
She competed with her debut and winner's single "Ghost" and later emerged as the winner after garnering 44.5% of the public vote.
Kriewitz then represented
Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "Ghost" written by Thomas Burchia, Anna Leyne and Conrad Hensel. The song was performed by Jamie-Lee Kriewitz, Jamie-Lee. The German entry for the 2016 contest in Stockholm, Sw ...
, where she placed twenty-sixth in the final, scoring 11 points: 10 points from the televoting and 1 point from the juries.
Her placement became Germany's second consecutive time at last place since
Lena
Lena or LENA may refer to:
Places
* Léna Department, a department of Houet Province in Burkina Faso
* Lena, Manitoba, an unincorporated community located in Killarney-Turtle Mountain municipality in Manitoba, Canada
* Lena, Norway, a village in ...
's win with her song "
Satellite
A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioisotope ...
" in 2010, the first being
Ann Sophie
Ann-Sophie Dürmeyer (born 1 September 1990), better known as simply Ann Sophie, is a German singer and songwriter. She represented Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song " Black Smoke". Her latest single "Phantom Pain" was rel ...
with her song "
Black Smoke", whom placed twenty-seventh and scored null points in 2015.
Life and career
1998–2015: Early life and career
![WP2016 AykeWitt FFM](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/WP2016_AykeWitt_FFM.jpg)
Jamie-Lee Kriewitz was born in
Bennigsen,
Hanover
Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...
on 18 March 1998 to Michael Kriewitz, a former drummer for the German punk rock band 3Zylinder, and Nicole Kriewitz. She has an older brother named Joey. At the age of 12, Kriewitz became a member of the German children choir Joyful Noise.
At the age of 14, she became a
vegan
Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal product—particularly in diet—and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. An individual who follows the diet or philosophy is known as a vegan. ...
.
Kriewitz originally intended to pursue a degree in Korean studies before deciding to pursue a career as a musician.
In 2015, Kriewitz successfully auditioned for the
fifth season of ''
The Voice of Germany
''The Voice of Germany'' is a German reality talent show created by John de Mol, based on the concept ''The Voice of Holland'' and its international series. It began airing on ProSieben and Sat.1 on 24 November 2011.
There are five differen ...
'', singing "
The Hanging Tree" by
James Newton Howard
James Newton Howard (born June 9, 1951) is an American film composer, music producer and keyboardist. He has scored over 100 films and is the recipient of a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, and nine nominations for Academy Awards. His film scores ...
and
Jennifer Lawrence. She persuaded all four coaches to turn their chairs and chose to compete as one of the 17 composing members of
Team Michi & Smudo. Kriewitz progressed to the battle rounds and was paired against Meike Rosendahl, singing "
Royals" by
Lorde and was saved by her coach. She made it to the knockout rounds, where she sang "
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
" by
RY X and was saved by her coach once again. During the live rounds, Kriewitz sang "Lights Will Guide Me" by
Fahrenhaidt
Fahrenhaidt is a German band, with the main composers, producers, and band members being Erik Macholl and Andreas John. Its music is described as "modern nature-Pop".
Career
The duo produced for many artists before they banded together, includin ...
and was saved by her coach for the third consecutive time. On 2 December, the music video for her winner's single, "
Ghost", premiered on the Digster On Stage's official YouTube channel. For the semi-final, Kriewitz sang "
Warriors
A warrior is a person specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracies, class, or caste.
History
Warriors seem to have be ...
" by
Imagine Dragons and was saved by the public vote. During the grand final, she was required to perform three songs – a duet with her coaches ("Name drauf"), a duet with a singer ("
Take Me Home") and the winner's single ("Ghost"). Kriewitz was later announced as the winner after garnering 38% of the public vote.
After emerging as the winner of the fifth season of ''The Voice of Germany'', Kriewitz's debut and winner's single, "Ghost", peaked at number 11 on the
GfK Entertainment Charts
The GfK Entertainment charts are the official music charts in Germany and are gathered and published by GfK Entertainment (formerly Media Control and Media Control GfK International), a subsidiary of GfK, on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindust ...
, number 65 in the
Ö3 Austria Top 40
Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Tuesdays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as ...
and number 26 on the
Swiss Hitparade
The Swiss Hitparade (german: link=no, Schweizer Hitparade) is Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.
The Swiss charts include:
* Singles Top ...
.
She subsequently signed a recording contract with
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...
. Kriewitz then embarked on The Voice of Germany: Live in Concert concert tour with 8 other finalists, which ran from 27 December 2015 in
Hof, Bavaria
Hof () is a town on the banks of the Saale in the northeastern corner of the Germany, German state of Bavaria, in the Franconian region, at the Czech Republic, Czech border and the forested Fichtelgebirge and Frankenwald upland regions.
The town h ...
to 13 January 2016 in
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
, timezone1_DST = Central (CEST)
, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
, Germany.
Performances on ''The Voice of Germany''
denotes a performance that entered the charts
denotes winner
2016–present: Eurovision Song Contest and ''Berlin''
![ESC2016 Grand Final Opening Act 07](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7c/ESC2016_Grand_Final_Opening_Act_07.jpg)
2016 for Kriewitz began with an announcement which presented "
Ghost" (2015), previously released as her debut and winner's single, as one of the ten finalists of ''
Unser Lied für Stockholm
Germany participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "Ghost" written by Thomas Burchia, Anna Leyne and Conrad Hensel. The song was performed by Jamie-Lee. The German entry for the 2016 contest in Stockholm, Sweden was selected ...
'', the German national competition held in search for their representative in the
sixty-first edition of the
Eurovision Song Contest
The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...
.
Prior to the competition,
Xavier Naidoo
Xavier Kurt Naidoo (German: kseːviɐ naɪˈduː born 2 October 1971) is a German soul and R&B singer, songwriter and record producer. He is a founding member of German band Söhne Mannheims, and started two record labels, Beats Around the ...
was originally intended to be their representative after an internal selection, although numerous controversies which involved him ultimately resulted in his withdrawal. "Ghost" was drawn as the ninth performance of the first round, later advancing to the subsequent round after accumulating 28.78 percent of the public vote. It ultimately achieved the winning title after accumulating the highest number of votes with 44.5 percent from the public.
The compilation album of the sixty-first edition of the competition titled ''
Eurovision Song Contest: Stockholm 2016'', released on 15 and 22 April digitally and physically respectively, featured "Ghost" on its first disk.
Kriewitz's debut studio album titled ''
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
'', released on 29 April, peaked at number eighteen on the
GfK Entertainment Charts
The GfK Entertainment charts are the official music charts in Germany and are gathered and published by GfK Entertainment (formerly Media Control and Media Control GfK International), a subsidiary of GfK, on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindust ...
.
It produced two singles; "Ghost" was previously released in December 2015, which served as her winner's and debut single following her emergence as the winner of the fifth season of ''The Voice of Germany''. It went on to peak at number eleven on the GfK Entertainment Charts and has made a notable appearance on the
Ö3 Austria Top 40
Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Tuesdays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as ...
and the
Swiss Hitparade
The Swiss Hitparade (german: link=no, Schweizer Hitparade) is Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.
The Swiss charts include:
* Singles Top ...
at number sixty-four and twenty-six respectively.
"Wild One" was released in September 2016, however it failed to match the success of its predecessor. She then embarked on her second headlining tour in order to further promote ''Berlin'', which ran from 19 October through 20 April 2017.
In the Eurovision Song Contest, Kriewitz automatically advanced to the final since Germany was among the countries included in the "
Big Five" rule. "Ghost" was drawn as the tenth performance of the final, where it later finished last after accumulating eleven points; it received one point from the national jury and ten points from the televoting. In an interview with
Barbara Schöneberger
Barbara von Schierstädt (; born 5 March 1974) is a German television presenter, actress and singer.
Early life
Schöneberger is the only child of clarinet player Hans Schöneberger and his wife Annemarie. She studied sociology, art history and ...
, who previously presented ''Unser Lied für Stockholm'', she told her: "Well, of course I'm a little sad that it actually happened and I finished last. But I personally don't think it's my fault and I was really satisfied with my performance." Kriewitz was then selected as the cover girl of the ''Welt Vegan'' magazine for their June 2016 issue, where it held a raffle for a copy of ''Berlin'' for five winners. Later that month, she served as a member of the national jury for ''
2016 KWF Audition In Berlin'', a German national competition in search for their representative in the
sixth edition of the
K-Pop World Festival
The K-POP World Festival is an annual K-pop talent competition organized by South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs with the support of numerous government agencies. After going through a few preliminary rounds, fans of K-pop are invited by the ...
.
2017 saw the release of "Jetzt erst recht!", a collaboration between Kriewitz and Fargo.
It served as the opening theme of the Song Contest Eineweltsong.
Activism
Kriewitz is an animal rights activist. She collaborated with the
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA; , stylized as PeTA) is an American animal rights nonprofit organization based in Norfolk, Virginia, and led by Ingrid Newkirk, its international president. PETA reports that PETA entities hav ...
for their "Vegan life is the best life" project, where her Japanese decora kei-inspired outfit and an autographed poster was auctioned.
During an interview with PETA, Kriewitz explained her perspective on equality of all living things by saying: "The difference between the dog and pork is simply not for me - it is inhumane, animals that cannot defend themselves to abuse. I take my responsibility for all animals too seriously and would also say 'no' to leather, wool and animal experiments."
Discography
* ''
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
'' (2016)
Concert tours
Headlining
*The Voice of Germany: Live in Concert (2016)
*Berlin Tour (2016)
Awards and nominations
References
External links
*
Jamie-Lee Kriewitzon the
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...
website.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kriewitz, Jamie-Lee
1998 births
Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 2016
Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Germany
German women pop singers
Living people
Musicians from Hanover
The Voice (franchise) winners
Winner05
German veganism activists
German child singers
English-language singers from Germany
21st-century German women singers