Lillie Arlene Nicole Jade McCloud (born December 7, 1958 in

Rochester, New York Rochester () is a city in the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Monroe County, and the fourth-most populous in the state after New York City, Buffalo, and Yonkers, with a population of 211,328 at the 2020 United States census. Located i ...

), commonly known by her former stage name Nicole McCloud, or Nicole J. McCloud is an American dance and R&B singer. She has recorded five studio albums, ''

What About Me What About Me may refer to: * ''What About Me'' (film), a 1993 film featuring Richard Hell Albums * ''What About Me?'' (1 Giant Leap album), 2009 * ''What About Me'' (Anne Murray album), 1968 * ''What About Me?'' (Kenny Rogers album), 1984 * ''What ...

'' (1986), ''Jam Packed'' (1988) (aka ''Rock the House''), ''Love Town'' (1998), ''So What?'' (2002), "Red Apples" (2015), . Her single "

Don't You Want My Love "Don't You Want My Love" is a 1985/1986 hit song by Nicole McCloud under her mononym Nicole. The song was written by Aldo Nova and became a hit in several European countries and charted on the ''Billboard'' dance chart (#10) and R&B chart (#66) ...

" became an international hit. Other US singles include "Runnin' Away", "Search'n", "One Good Reason", "Rock the House", and the "Alabaster Box" cover. In the late 1990s, she was also part of a house music project Voices of Freedom. In 2013, she competed in season 3 of the American singing competition '' The X Factor''. She was eliminated in the 5th week, placing 8th overall.

Career

Solo as Nicole

McCloud first appeared on the '' Billboard'' US R&B charts as 'Nicole' in 1985 with "Always and Forever". Her single "Don't You Want My Love" in 1986 reached Top 10 in the US Dance charts, in addition to charting in Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden. Ten of McCloud's singles landed the US ''Billboard'' specialized R&B and dance charts. , her biggest hit has been the 1994 single "Runnin’ Away", which peaked at No. 3 on US Dance charts. In 2002 as Nicole J. McCloud, McCloud returned to the Top 10 with "Search’n", peaking at No. 5 on the US Dance charts. That same year she received a nomination for the International Dance Music Awards, along Craig David and

Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977), professionally known by the mononym Shakira, is a Colombian singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Barranquilla, she has been referred to as the " Queen of Latin Music" and is ...

. She has recorded hits with

Timmy Thomas Timothy Earle Thomas (November 13, 1944 – March 11, 2022) was an American R&B singer, keyboardist, songwriter, and record producer, best known for the hit song, "Why Can't We Live Together". Life and career Thomas was born in Evansville, ...

, U.S.U.R.A. and The Source and has performed with

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, pop, sou ...

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

, the group Kool & The Gang,

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...

, and other artists.

In Voices of Freedom

In the late 1990s, McCloud joined the American house project Voices of Freedom. The trio also included Angel Williams and Simone Böhlhoff. The trio was featured in a number of recordings, notably in E-Smoove & Ni-Che's 1999 single "Lift Your Hands Up" that featured the vocals of Voices of Freedom. The recording was made available through Finger Printz label. The trio was also featured in a 2002 recording by

DJ Pope José David Rivera, known as DJ Pope or Pope, has been the partner and DJ of J Balvin for more than 15 years. He is involved with the reggaeton scene in Medellin, which is sometimes called the "Capital of Reggaeton" in Colombia Colombia ...

titled "America at War (Freedom)" on the Yellorange label.

Life in Slovakia

In the mid-2000s, McCloud moved to

Košice Košice ( , ; german: Kaschau ; hu, Kassa ; pl, Коszyce) is the largest city in eastern Slovakia. It is situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains, near the border with Hungary. With a population of a ...

, a city in

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the ...

. Her first Slovak performance took place at the prestigious Košice International Jazz Festival 2006, where she performed with jazz legend Peter Lipa. In 2010, McCloud provided the title song for ''Česko Slovensko má talent'', the joint Czech/Slovak version of '' Got Talent'' series. It was broadcast on TV JOJ in Slovakia and on TV Prima in the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. Th ...

''The X Factor''

In 2013, McCloud made a comeback taking part in season 3 of the American singing competition '' The X Factor'' identified as Lillie McCloud, her birth name. At the time of applying to ''The X Factor'', she was 54 years old with three children (a son and two daughters) and seven grandchildren. Her audition was broadcast on September 12, 2013. She received a standing ovation and four "yes" votes from judges

Simon Cowell Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality, entrepreneur and record executive. He is the creator of '' The X Factor'' and '' Got Talent'' franchises which have been sold around the world. He has judged on ...

, Demi Lovato,

Paulina Rubio Paulina Susana Rubio Dosamantes (; born 17 June 1971) is a Mexican singer. Referred to as " The Golden Girl" and " Queen of Latin Pop", she first achieved recognition as a member of the successful pop group Timbiriche from 1982 through 1991. A ...

and

Kelly Rowland Kelendria Trene Rowland (born February 11, 1981) is an American singer, actress, and television personality. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as a member of Destiny's Child, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time. During the g ...

for her rendition of CeCe Winans' "Alabaster Box". She was selected by the judges to progress to the Final 40 and subsequently competed successfully in the Four Chair Challenge, securing her position in the Final 16. As part of the Final Four "Over 25s", she was mentored by Kelly Rowland. She made it as far as the Top 8 but was eliminated on November 28, 2013. Her performances on ''The X Factor'' were:

After ''X Factor''

Red Apples

In 2014, McCloud signed with the Spectra Music Group and released a single entitled "What About The Beautiful Children" and later "The Other Part of Me". Her upcoming album, "Red Apples" is to be released on May 27, 2015 under Monarchy Records, a subsidy of Spectra. On the week ending September 13, 2015, Red Apples debuted at #16 on the UK Soul Charts.

Discography

Albums

Singles

;Others *2010: "Got Talent" - theme for Slovak ''Česko Slovensko má talent'' *2014: "What About the Beautiful Children" *2014: "The Other Part of Me"

Featured in / Appearances

;as Nicole *1994: " I Love Music" / "

" / "Conga" ( O'Jays / Nicole / Miami Sound Machine) *2011: "Dance" (Guest singer on Takin'Off album ''Eleven'')Takin'Off Bandcamp - ''Eleven'' album page - "Dance"
/ref> ;as part of Voices of Freedom *1999: "Lift Your Hands Up" ( E-Smoove & Ni-Che featuring Voices Of Freedom) *2002: "America at War (Freedom)" (DJ Pope featuring Voices of Freedom)

Videography

*2013: "The X Factor USA" (contestant, finished 8th place) *2014: "The Good Life" (herself, performer)

References

External links

Lillie McCloud
on

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin ...

Lillie Nicole McCloud
on Soulinterviews.com {{DEFAULTSORT:McCloud, Lillie 1958 births 20th-century African-American women singers American expatriates in Slovakia 21st-century American singers 20th-century American singers American contemporary R&B singers Living people Musicians from Rochester, New York The X Factor (American TV series) contestants 20th-century American women singers 21st-century American women singers 21st-century African-American women singers