Aja Kim | |
|---|---|
 Aja Kim performing as Bruce 'LEE' Chickinson | |
| Background information | |
| Genres | Heavy Metal Hard rock Rock Blues R&B/Soul Tribute |
| Occupation(s) | Vocalist Songwriter Musician |
| Years active | 1990s—Present |
| Website | www.ajakim.net |
Aja Kim is an American singer and songwriter.
Born in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania [1] Aja Kim first came to public attention when she collaborated with rock and roll saxophonist, Clarence Clemons (who was best known as a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band) on the 1995 Japan-only CD release Aja and the Big Man - Get It On . Three songs she co-wrote were her solo vocal contributions to the CD, along with a duet with Clarence of the Ike & Tina Turner classic "Baby, Get It On." She was prominently featured alongside Mr. Clemons on the cover of the release. [2]
In early 2004, Kim joined the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens, who had been holding auditions for a new lead vocalist following the departure of member Jenny Warren. She made her onstage debut with the Maidens at the Galaxy Theater in Santa Ana, CA, on May 28, 2004. [3] In addition, she surprised the band, management and fans by recording all of her lead and background vocal tracks for the Maidens' self-titled debut album in a span of less than three days. [4]
On July 1, 2008, Kim announced in her fan newsletter, Adventures in Ajaland, her departure from the Iron Maidens to resume her solo recording and writing career. This was subsequently reported, along with news of her songwriting collaboration with Motörhead guitarist, Phil Campbell, on Blabbermouth.net. [5]
Aja Kim has been featured as a solo artist, with Clarence Clemons and with The Iron Maidens, in the Los Angeles Times , [8] Guitar World , Metal Hammer , Hammerworld (Hungary), [9] Metal Edge , Kerrang , The Japan Times , [2] Gibson Lifestyle , FHM , Maxim , Music Connection Magazine , Japan's Burn Magazine , Korea's Hot Music Magazine , The OC Register , Salt Lake City Weekly , Phoenix New Times , Houston Press , Spokane 7 , Fairbanks Daily News , Anchorage Daily News , as well as on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno , KCAL's 9 on the Town (L.A.), [10] KDBC 4 News (El Paso, TX) and 97.1 KLSX's The Two Media Whores w/ David Adelson & Conway and Whitman (L.A.). [11]
Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. Although fluid in the early years of the band, the line-up for most of the band's history has consisted of Harris, lead vocalist Bruce Dickinson, drummer Nicko McBrain, and guitarists Dave Murray, Adrian Smith and Janick Gers. As pioneers of the new wave of British heavy metal movement, Iron Maiden released a series of UK and US Platinum and Gold albums, including 1980's debut album, 1981's Killers, and 1982's The Number of the Beast – its first album with Bruce Dickinson, who replaced Paul Di'Anno as lead singer. The addition of Dickinson was a turning point in their career, establishing them as one of heavy metal's most important artists. The Number of the Beast is among the most popular heavy metal albums of all time, having sold almost 20 million copies worldwide.
Clarence Anicholas Clemons Jr., also known as The Big Man, was an American saxophonist. From 1972 until his death in 2011, he was the saxophonist for Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band.
Paul Bruce Dickinson is a British singer, best known as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Iron Maiden. Dickinson has performed in the band across two stints, from 1981 to 1993 and from 1999 to the present day. He is known for his wide-ranging operatic vocal style and energetic stage presence.
Ozzfest is an annual music festival tour of the United States and sometimes Europe and later Japan, featuring performances by many heavy metal and hard rock musical groups. It was founded by Sharon Osbourne and her husband Ozzy Osbourne, both of whom also organised each yearly tour with their son Jack Osbourne, and was held almost annually between 1996 and 2018. The Ozzfest tour featured bands of a variety of genres within heavy metal and hard rock, including alternative metal, thrash metal, industrial metal, metalcore, hardcore punk, deathcore, nu metal, death metal, post-hardcore, gothic metal and black metal. Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath played the tour several times over the years.
Michael Henry "Nicko" McBrain is an English musician, best known as the drummer of the heavy metal band Iron Maiden since 1982. Having played in small pub bands since 1966 from the age of 14, McBrain paid his bills after graduating from school with session work before he joined a variety of artists, such as Streetwalkers in 1975, Pat Travers, and the French political band, Trust. He joined Iron Maiden, in time to debut on their fourth album Piece of Mind (1983), and has remained with them since, contributing to a total of fourteen studio releases, as well as being the third-longest serving member of the band.
Brave New World is the twelfth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released on 29 May 2000. It was their first studio release since the return of longtime lead singer Bruce Dickinson and guitarist Adrian Smith in 1999, as well as the band's first studio recording as a six-piece, as Janick Gers, who replaced Smith in 1990, remained with the band.
Blaze Bayley is an English heavy metal singer. He was the lead singer of Wolfsbane from 1984 to 1994. He was also the lead singer of Iron Maiden during Bruce Dickinson's absence from 1994 to 1999. Since then, he has pursued a solo career and has released ten studio albums. Blaze was voted no.67 in Sweden Rock magazine’s Top One Hundred singers of all time.
Roy Z is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer, best known for his work with Bruce Dickinson, Halford, and Judas Priest. He also is the founder of Tribe of Gypsies, a Latin-influenced hard rock band. Roy also helped write and produce the band Life After Death in 1996.
"Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" is the second song on Bruce Springsteen's breakthrough album Born to Run, released in 1975.
Phantom Blue was an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, formed in 1987. Phantom Blue were the first and only female artists to be signed to Mike Varney's Shrapnel Records, only three months after forming.
The E Street Band is an American rock band, and has been musician Bruce Springsteen's primary backing band since 1972. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014. For the bulk of Springsteen's recording and performing career, the band consisted of: guitarists Steven Van Zandt, Nils Lofgren, and Patti Scialfa, keyboardists Danny Federici and Roy Bittan, bassist Garry Tallent, drummer Max Weinberg, and saxophonist Clarence Clemons.
Girlschool are a British rock band that formed in the new wave of British heavy metal scene in 1978. Frequently associated with contemporaries Motörhead, they are the longest-running all-female rock band, still active after more than 40 years. Formed from a school band called Painted Lady, Girlschool enjoyed strong media exposure and commercial success in the UK in the early 1980s with three albums of 'punk-tinged metal' and a few singles, but lost their momentum in the following years.
The Iron Maidens are an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, formed in 2001 as an all-female tribute act to English heavy metal band Iron Maiden. The band currently consists of drummer Linda McDonald, bassist Wanda Ortiz, lead vocalist Kirsten Rosenberg and guitarists Courtney Cox and Nikki Stringfield.
The Iron Maidens: World's Only Female Tribute to Iron Maiden is the debut album by American all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens. The album features selected tracks originally performed by British heavy metal band Iron Maiden. Michael Kenney, keyboardist for Iron Maiden, appears as a guest musician on the Japanese import version.
Route 666 is the second album by the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens and the first under their Japanese label Powerslave Records. It is also the first release featuring guitarist Heather Baker. Produced by Bob Kulick and Brett Chassen, Route 666 is a CD/DVD package, with the DVD featuring the band's live performance at the Galaxy Theatre in Santa Ana, CA, on March 12, 2005. Most notable are the guest appearances of Motörhead guitarist Phil Campbell and Iron Maiden keyboardist Michael Kenney.
The Root of All Evil is a Japan-only EP release by the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens. It includes three new cover recordings of Iron Maiden songs and a dance remix of "The Trooper." This was the band's last recording to feature lead vocalist Aja Kim and guitarists Sara Marsh and Heather Baker, who left the band.
Bruce Dickinson, a British heavy metal singer, has released six studio albums, two live albums, one compilation, ten singles, three video albums, fourteen music videos, and one box set. In 1979, after playing in local groups, Dickinson joined hard rock band Samson. He departed after two years to become Iron Maiden's lead vocalist. His debut with this band is considered a "masterpiece", which was followed with a series of top-ten releases. In 1989, while Iron Maiden were taking a year off, Dickinson and former Gillan guitarist, Janick Gers, composed a song for a film soundtrack. His solo debut, Tattooed Millionaire (1990), was an effort that favoured a hard rock/pop metal approach, different from what fans assumed would be an aggressive, Iron Maiden-like album. Four songs—the title track, "Dive! Dive! Dive!", "Born in '58", and a cover version of David Bowie's "All the Young Dudes"—were released as singles. Dickinson returned to Iron Maiden, accompanied by Gers as the new guitarist, and the project went on hiatus. Dive! Dive! Live! was a live video recorded from a concert in Los Angeles, California, in August 1990, and released in July 1991.
Jenny Warren is an American singer, best known as the co-founder of the all-female tribute band the Iron Maidens.
Debbie Obarski is an American female singer, best known as the frontwoman of the Ozzy Osbourne tribute bands The Little Dolls and Diary of a Madwoman, as well as a short stint with The Iron Maidens.
Courtney Cox is an American guitarist and former member of the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens and currently a live lead guitarist for heavy metal band Burning Witches.