Rachel Stevens on:  
[Wikipedia]  
[Google]  
[Amazon]
Rachel Lauren Stevens (born 9 April 1978) is an English singer, television personality, actress and businesswoman. She was a member of the pop group
S Club 7
S Club 7 were a British pop group from London, created by former Spice Girls manager Simon Fuller and consisting of members Bradley McIntosh, Hannah Spearritt, Jo O'Meara, Jon Lee, Paul Cattermole, Rachel Stevens and Tina Barrett. The group ...
between 1999 and 2003. She released her solo debut studio album ''
Funky Dory
''Funky Dory'' is the solo debut album by English singer Rachel Stevens. It was released by Polydor Records on 29 September 2003 in the United Kingdom. The album was produced by various record producers, including Bloodshy & Avant and Richard X. ...
'' in September 2003. The album reached number nine on the
UK album chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...
and the
British Phonographic Industry
British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with th ...
(BPI) awarded it with a
gold certification
Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...
in October 2003. Two singles, "
Sweet Dreams My LA Ex
"Sweet Dreams My LA Ex" is the debut single of English singer-songwriter Rachel Stevens. It was released on 15 September 2003 as the lead single from her debut solo album, ''Funky Dory''. Originally written for Britney Spears, the song was produc ...
" and "
Funky Dory
''Funky Dory'' is the solo debut album by English singer Rachel Stevens. It was released by Polydor Records on 29 September 2003 in the United Kingdom. The album was produced by various record producers, including Bloodshy & Avant and Richard X. ...
", were initially released from the album: "Sweet Dreams My LA Ex" peaked at number two in the UK and received a silver certification from the BPI.
In July 2004, Stevens released the single "
Some Girls
''Some Girls'' is the 14th UK and 16th US album by the English rock band the Rolling Stones, released on 9 June 1978 by Rolling Stones Records. It was recorded in sessions held between October 1977 and February 1978 at Pathé Marconi Studios in ...
" as a
charity record
A charity record or charity single is a song released by musicians with most or all proceeds raised going to a dedicated foundation or charity.
George Harrison's "Bangla Desh" single in 1971 is commonly acknowledged as the first ever purpose-made ...
for
Sport Relief
''Sport Relief'' was a biennial charity event from Comic Relief, in association with BBC Sport, established in 2002.
It was the idea of Kevin Cahill, CBE, who had joined Comic Relief in 1991 to establish a new department as Director of Educat ...
, and the single's success prompted Polydor to re-issue ''Funky Dory'' with three new songs. ''
Come and Get It'', her second studio album, was released in October 2005. It peaked at No. 28 in the UK, and two of its three singles reached the Top 10. Following the release, Rachel took an extended hiatus from her music career.
In 2008, she came second in the
sixth series of the
BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...
series ''
Strictly Come Dancing
''Strictly Come Dancing'' (informally known as ''Strictly'') is a British dance contest show in which celebrities partner with professional dancers to compete in mainly ballroom and Latin dance. Each couple is scored by a panel of usually 4 ...
'' with her dance partner
Vincent Simone
Vincent Simone (born 15 March 1979) is an Italian professional dancer, who has appeared as a professional dancer on '' Strictly Come Dancing'' from 2006 until 2012. He moved to Guildford, Surrey, United Kingdom when he was 17. Simone and prof ...
. On 16 November 2010, she gave birth to her first child, Amelie. In 2013, she was a mentor assistant on ''
The X Factor New Zealand''. In September 2013, Stevens announced she was pregnant with her second child and gave birth to Minnie on 1 April. Also in 2014, she was awarded ''FHMs sexiest woman of all time. Stevens became one of the coaches in the 4th season of RTE's ''
The Voice of Ireland
''The Voice of Ireland'' is the Irish edition of the international TV franchise '' The Voice'', a reality singing competition created by media tycoon John de Mol. The first series began airing from 8 January 2012 on RTÉ One. The coaches origin ...
''. Stevens' version of the song "
More, More, More
"More, More, More" is a song written by Gregg Diamond and recorded by American artist Andrea True (credited to her recording project Andrea True Connection). It was released in February 1976 as the first single from her debut album by same nam ...
" has been used in adverts for sofa retailer
ScS
ScS (Sofa Carpet Specialist), is a home furnishings retailer in the United Kingdom, specialising in sofas, carpets and flooring, dining and occasional furniture.
History
ScS was established in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear in 1894, as a family own ...
. In November 2014,
S Club 7
S Club 7 were a British pop group from London, created by former Spice Girls manager Simon Fuller and consisting of members Bradley McIntosh, Hannah Spearritt, Jo O'Meara, Jon Lee, Paul Cattermole, Rachel Stevens and Tina Barrett. The group ...
announced plans for an arena reunion tour, titled
Bring It All Back 2015, touring the UK in May 2015.
Early life
Born in
Southgate
Southgate or South Gate may refer to:
Places Australia
*Southgate, Sylvania
*Southgate Arts and Leisure Precinct, an area within Southbank, Victoria
Canada
*Southgate, Ontario, a township in Grey County
* Southgate, Middlesex County, Ontario
Ed ...
, London, to a
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
family, she had a Jewish upbringing and attended Osidge JMI School and
Ashmole School in London.
Her father is Michael Stevens and she has two brothers, Jason and Leigh.
In 1993, she first caught attention by winning a modelling contest sponsored by UK teen magazine ''Just 17'', beating 5,000 other competitors. Following her first modelling jobs, she decided to study at the
London College of Fashion
The London College of Fashion is a constituent college of the University of the Arts London, in London, England. It offers undergraduate, postgraduate, short courses, study abroad courses and business-training in fashion, make-up, beauty-therap ...
, where she achieved a diploma in
business
Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for pr ...
. During that time she also worked in a film company and later in
public relations
Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. P ...
, but began to lose interest and decided to pursue a career in singing instead.
Career
1999–2003: S Club 7
The group rose to fame by starring in their own
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
television series, ''
Miami 7
''Miami 7'' (known as ''S Club 7 in Miami'' in the U.S.) is a television series starring British pop group S Club 7. Thirteen episodes were produced and aired on CBBC from 8 April to 1 July 1999. During each episode, the members would perform on ...
'', in 1999. Over the five years they were together, S Club 7 had four UK No.1 singles, one UK No.1 album, a string of hits throughout Europe, including a top-ten single in the United States, Asia, Latin America and Africa. They recorded a total of four studio albums, released eleven singles and went on to sell over fourteen million albums worldwide. Their first album, ''
S Club
S Club 7 were a British pop group from London, created by former Spice Girls manager Simon Fuller and consisting of members Bradley McIntosh, Hannah Spearritt, Jo O'Meara, Jon Lee, Paul Cattermole, Rachel Stevens and Tina Barrett. The group ...
'', had a strong 1990s pop sound, similar to many artists of their time. However, through the course of their career, their musical approach changed to a more dance and
R&B sound which is heard mostly in their final album, ''
Seeing Double''.
The concept and brand of the group was created by Simon Fuller, also their manager through 19 Entertainment; they were signed to
Polydor Records
Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...
. Their television series went on to last four series, seeing the group travel across the United States and eventually ending up in
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
, Spain. It became popular in 100 different countries where the show was watched by over 90 million viewers.
The show, which was a
children's
A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger ...
sitcom, often mirrored real life events which had occurred in S Club, including the relationship of
Hannah Spearritt
Hannah Louise Spearritt (born 1 April 1981)Gregory, Andy (2002) ''International Who's Who in Popular Music 2002'', Europa, , p. 478 is an English actress and singer. She is an original member of the pop group S Club 7. Spearritt is also known fo ...
and
Paul Cattermole
Paul Gerald Cattermole (born 7 March 1977) is an English singer. He was a member of the group S Club 7, but left the group in 2002.
Early life
Cattermole was born in St Albans, Hertfordshire. He was a member of the National Youth Music Thea ...
, as well as the eventual departure from the group of the latter. As well as the popularity of their television series, S Club 7 won two
Brit Awards
The BRIT Awards (often simply called the BRITs) are the British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain", or "Britannia" (in the early days the awards were sponsored ...
—in 2000 for British breakthrough act and in 2002, for best British single. In 2001, the group earned the
Record of year. S Club's second to last single reached number-five in the UK charts and their final studio album failed to make the top ten. However, on 21 April 2003, during a live onstage performance, S Club announced that they were to disband.
2003–2004: ''Funky Dory''
In 2003, after S Club disbanded, Stevens signed a £1.5 million solo four-album deal with
Polydor Records
Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...
and re-signed with Fuller. She said that breaking out on her own after success with S Club was difficult: "I think we
Clubended up conforming to what people's perceptions were. This one was the ditzy one, this one was the singer, this one was the dancer. And to come out of that and be a whole person has been a real challenge for me. I didn't have my say, really, in the group. None of us did". Her first solo single, written by
Cathy Dennis
Catherine Roseanne Dennis (born 25 March 1969)Gregory, Andy (2002) ''International Who's Who in Popular Music 2002'', Europa; , p. 133 is a British singer, songwriter, record producer and actress. She was the vocalist for D Mob, which had the su ...
and produced by
Bloodshy & Avant
Bloodshy & Avant are a Swedish songwriting and production duo consisting of Christian "Bloodshy" Karlsson and Pontus "Avant" Winnberg. They have worked with many prominent artists, including Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, Ms. Dynamite, Madonna, ...
, "
Sweet Dreams My LA Ex
"Sweet Dreams My LA Ex" is the debut single of English singer-songwriter Rachel Stevens. It was released on 15 September 2003 as the lead single from her debut solo album, ''Funky Dory''. Originally written for Britney Spears, the song was produc ...
", was released in September 2003. Taking inspiration from
R&B and adult-style pop music, Stevens's debut solo album, ''
Funky Dory
''Funky Dory'' is the solo debut album by English singer Rachel Stevens. It was released by Polydor Records on 29 September 2003 in the United Kingdom. The album was produced by various record producers, including Bloodshy & Avant and Richard X. ...
'', was released later that month. The album was a hit, reaching number 9 on the UK albums chart and was certified gold. The album also gained praise from pop critics; Jamie Gill, in a review for ''
Yahoo!
Yahoo! (, styled yahoo''!'' in its logo) is an American web services provider. It is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and operated by the namesake company Yahoo Inc., which is 90% owned by investment funds managed by Apollo Global Man ...
Launch'', said that Stevens "eschews the cheap and cheerful approach of her old band for a slinky adult confidence and musical eclecticism." That December the album's title track "
Funky Dory
''Funky Dory'' is the solo debut album by English singer Rachel Stevens. It was released by Polydor Records on 29 September 2003 in the United Kingdom. The album was produced by various record producers, including Bloodshy & Avant and Richard X. ...
", featuring a sample of the
David Bowie
David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...
song "Andy Warhol" from his album ''
Hunky Dory
''Hunky Dory'' is the fourth studio album by English musician David Bowie, released on 17December 1971 through RCA Records. Following the release of his 1970 album, '' The Man Who Sold the World'', Bowie took time off from recording and tourin ...
'', was released as its second single and failed to match the success of "Sweet Dreams My LA Ex", peaking at number twenty-four.
MusicOMH
MusicOMH (stylized as musicOMH) is a London-based online music magazine which publishes independent reviews, features and interviews from across all genres including classical, metal, rock and R&B.
History
MusicOMH was founded and launched by ...
called it "musically better than "Sweet Dreams My LA Ex" with a hybrid of pop, Latin and even a hint of jazz infusion" but not a good single choice as a single as it lacked anything special and different. In July 2004, Stevens released the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...