Nadine Petra Katarina Shah (born 16 January 1986) is a British singer, songwriter and musician.

Background

Shah was born in

Whitburn, South Tyneside Whitburn is a village in South Tyneside in the metropolitan county of Tyne and Wear on the coast of North East England. It is located north of the city of Sunderland and south of the town of South Shields. Historically, Whitburn was a part of ...

, to an English mother from

South Shields South Shields () is a coastal town in South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the south bank of the mouth of the River Tyne. Historically, it was known in Roman times as Arbeia, and as Caer Urfa by Early Middle Ages. According to the 20 ...

of part

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

ancestry and a Pakistani father. She moved to

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

at the age of 17 to start her career as a jazz singer. Shortly after moving, she became close friends with

Amy Winehouse Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer and songwriter. She was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres, including soul, rhythm and blues and jazz. A membe ...

Career

Her debut album, the

Ben Hillier Ben Hillier is an English songwriter and pop-rock record producer who is part of the creative team 140 dB. He produced the notable albums ''Playing the Angel'', ''Sounds of the Universe'' and ''Delta Machine'' by Depeche Mode, ''Think Tank' ...

-produced '' Love Your Dum and Mad'', was largely inspired by the tragic deaths of two young men. "There are two boys that this album is predominantly about," she continues. "During the period of time these songs were written two very close friends took their own lives." Shah is a keen speaker on the subject of social stigmas towards those suffering from mental health illnesses. Shah and Hillier released their second record titled ''Fast Food'' in April 2015. She also made a guest appearance on two tracks of

Ghostpoet Obaro Ejimiwe (born 18 January 1983) is a British singer, songwriter and musician better known by his stage name Ghostpoet. His first album, '' Peanut Butter Blues & Melancholy Jam'', was shortlisted for the 2011 Mercury Prize. His 2015 album '' ...

's album, ''Shedding Skin'', which was released in March 2015. In February 2016, Hillier and Shah scored the music to the

Northern Stage Northern Stage is a regional non-profit LORT (League of Resident Theatres)-D professional theater company located in White River Junction, VT White River Junction is an unincorporated village and census-designated place (CDP) in the town of H ...

production of ''

Get Carter ''Get Carter'' is a 1971 British crime film Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detecti ...

''. This included original pieces and the re-imagining of music by North East band

The Animals The Animals (also billed as Eric Burdon and the Animals) are an English rock band, formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in the early 1960s. The band moved to London upon finding fame in 1964. The Animals were known for their gritty, bluesy sound and ...

. Her album '' Holiday Destination'' was released in August 2017. It was again produced by Hillier, who also plays drums in Shah's live band. The album was nominated for a

Mercury Prize The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album released in the United Kingdom by a British or Irish act. It was created by Jon Webster and Robert Chandler in association with the ...

in 2018. The fourth studio album '' Kitchen Sink'' came out on 26 June 2020 and found much acclaim of critics. In some of the lyrics she considers what it means to be a thirtysomething woman today. Shah provided testimony to the UK government's Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee as part of an ongoing probe into the economics of music streaming in November 2020, citing a lack of transparency regarding musicians' royalty payments.

Artistry

Shah has been compared to other female artists such as

PJ Harvey Polly Jean Harvey (born 9 October 1969) is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments. Harvey began her career in 1988 when she joined loca ...

and

Siouxsie and the Banshees Siouxsie and the Banshees were a British rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. They have been widely influential, both over their contemporaries and with later acts. ''Q'' magazine ...

, and is noted for the theatricality of her voice.

Personal life

An interview by John Freeman for ''

The Quietus ''The Quietus'' is a British online music and pop culture magazine founded by John Doran and Luke Turner. The site is an editorially independent publication led by Doran with a group of freelance journalists and critics. Content ''The Quietu ...

'' highlighted that "Mental health is a hugely important issue for Shah." Shah suffers from

endometriosis Endometriosis is a disease of the female reproductive system in which cells similar to those in the endometrium, the layer of tissue that normally covers the inside of the uterus, grow outside the uterus. Most often this is on the ovaries, fa ...

. She identifies as a

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

, and of her career in music, she said " fit inspires any young Muslim women to pick up a guitar and play a song, that’s brilliant". She is married to filmmaker Matthew Cummins. The couple live in Ramsgate, Kent.

Political views

In November 2019, along with 34 other musicians, Shah signed a letter endorsing the Labour Party leader

Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Bernard Corbyn (; born 26 May 1949) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party from 2015 to 2020. On the political left of the Labour Party, Corbyn describes himself as a socialis ...

in the

2019 UK general election The 2019 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday, 12 December 2019. It resulted in the Conservative Party receiving a landslide majority of 80 seats. The Conservatives made a net gain of 48 seats and won 43.6% of the popular vote ...

with a call to end austerity. In 2020, she voiced her support for the newly-elected Labour Party leader

Keir Starmer Sir Keir Rodney Starmer (; born 2 September 1962) is a British politician and barrister who has served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party since 2020. He has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Holborn and St Pancras s ...

Discography

Albums * '' Love Your Dum and Mad'' (July 2013) * ''Fast Food'' (April 2015) * '' Holiday Destination'' (August 2017) * '' Kitchen Sink'' (June 2020, Infectious Music/BMG/Warner) Extended plays * ''Aching Bones'' (November 2012) * ''Dreary Town'' (April 2013)

References

External links

* * *
Nadine Shah
a
AllMusic
* 1986 births Living people English songwriters English people of Norwegian descent English people of Pakistani descent People from Whitburn, Tyne and Wear Musicians from Tyne and Wear British musicians of Pakistani descent 21st-century English women singers 21st-century English singers Infectious Music artists English Muslims {{UK-singer-stub