Beverley KnightMBE (born Beverley Anne Smith, 22 March 1973) is an English singer, songwriter, actress and radio personality. She released her first album, The B-Funk, in 1995. Heavily influenced by American soul music icons such as Sam Cooke and Aretha Franklin, Knight has released nine studio albums. Widely regarded as one of Britain's greatest soul singers,[1] Knight is best known for her hit singles "Greatest Day", "Get Up!", "Shoulda Woulda Coulda", "Come as You Are" and "Keep This Fire Burning".
In 2006, Knight solidified her transition into the mainstream by starring in the BBC music TV series Just the Two of Us, a role she reprised in 2007. After releasing a platinum-selling compilation album in 2006, Knight went on to tour the UK with a reformed Take That. She has also hosted the BBC Radio 2 show, Beverley's Gospel Nights, which explored the origins and impact of gospel music. The show ran for six seasons until 2009[2] and included interviews with stars such as Michelle Williams and Shirley Caesar.
In February 2008, Knight was flown to Los Angeles by Prince to perform at his prestigious post-Oscars party, at the singer's purple home, in front of and with A-list stars including Stevie Wonder, she received a standing ovation from stars that included Quincy Jones, particularly for her rendition of "Rock Steady".[5][6][7]
Knight sang at the London 2012 Paralympic Opening Ceremony. The performance was praised, and a recorded version by Knight reached No. 101 on iTunes, her first charting single since "Soul Survivor" and highest since "Beautiful Night" in 2010 and 2009, respectively. In 2016, Knight released her eighth studio album, Soulsville. In 2019, Knight celebrated 25 years in music with the release of the live album BK25 which was recorded with the Leo Green Orchestra. Knight's ninth studio album, The Fifth Chapter, was released in October 2023.[8][9]
Knight attended Woodfield Infant and Junior Schools,[11] and Highfields School in Wolverhampton. She was born to Jamaican parents and grew up in a strict Pentecostal household where church attendance was an important element in the life of the family. It was here that she began her singing career. "The first time I heard music would have been in church. My mum was often called upon: 'Come on sister Dolores. Lead us in song!' Singing was the most natural thing in the world. I thought, doesn't everybody's mum lead the congregation at church in song?" Knight sang in her local church throughout her childhood, and her musical education was continued at home where she was often exposed to gospel music. Because of her parents' religious beliefs, secular music was largely frowned upon, but artists such as Sam Cooke and Aretha Franklin played a big part in her childhood.[12]
Knight began writing her own songs at the age of 13; however, it was not until she turned 17 that she began to take songwriting and performing seriously. She began performing the songs she had written on stage in local clubs in her home town. At the age of 19, she performed on the demo songs of Wolverhampton songwriter Westley Jones, who was signed to Dome publishing in London. Peter Robinson, the managing director of the company, impressed with her vocals, asked Westley Jones to introduce her. Robinson and Jones – who had discovered Knight through demo recordings – also came up with the stage name of Beverley Knight (from Smith) as Peter had also signed another demo vocalist of Jones' from Birmingham, calling her Fiona Day. She was adamant that her education should come first and that she should have something to fall back on, and so went to Cheltenham and Gloucester College of Higher Education (now the University of Gloucestershire) to study theology and philosophy.[13]
1994–2000: Early success
In late 1994, Knight signed a record deal with Dome Records, a small, independent label. Shortly after, she went into a studio to write and record her first album. The backbone of the project was produced by the London production trio 2B3, with additional beats provided by Don E (Knight's cousin), Ethnic Boyz and the hip-hop act Blak Twang. Klarmann/Weber, the German songwriter/producer team (Chaka Khan, Randy Crawford), also contributed two songs. The result was the album The B-Funk, – hailed by her record label as "the best British soul album ever"[14] when it was released in November 1995. Knight went on to win two Black Music Awards in 1996 ("Best R&B Artist" and "Best Producer" for 2B3) and was named Best R&B Act by Blues and Soul magazine, beating a number of American stars. However, the album only peaked at number 145 on the UK album chart. Several singles were released from the project, the biggest being "Flavour of the Old School", which peaked at number 33 in March 1996 when it was re-released.
In February 1997, Knight left Dome Records after disagreements, and signed a new four-album deal with EMI-controlled Parlophone. After returning to the studio with 2B3 and Don E and teaming up with new producers Dj Dodge and Carl McIntosh, Knight released her second album, Prodigal Sista, in August 1998. Peaking at number 42 in Britain, the commercial success of the album proved to be much greater than her first. The album sold 150,000 copies in Britain[15] and was certified Gold in 1999.[16] It contained five top-40 hits, the biggest of which were "Greatest Day", peaking at number 14, and the Dj Dodge-produced "Made It Back" featuring the US rap star Redman, which peaked at number 21.
Prodigal Sista was a big step forward in Knight's career. Q magazine called the album "a triumph not only of Knight's musical vision but also of the strength in her character",[17] while The Times remarked, "Prodigal Sista is a joy to hear – her vocal and intricate self-devised and performed harmonies can make you catch your breath in wonderment."[citation needed] The album won three MOBO (Music of Black Origin) Awards, with "Made It Back" and "Greatest Day" winning Best R&B Act in 1998 and 1999 respectively, and Prodigal Sista winning the Best Album Award.[18]
2001–2005: Mainstream breakthrough
Throughout 2001 Knight returned to the recording studio to write and record her third studio album. She was accompanied by an array of writers and producers handpicked largely by Kevin and Bev from Britain and the United States, which included James Poyser, Che Guevara, Derrick Joshua & Derrick Martin, D'Influence, Mike Spencer and Colin Emmanuel. The result was Who I Am, released in March 2002. It was preceded by two singles, "Get Up!" and "Shoulda Woulda Coulda" – a first in that it introduced Knight to the world of Nashville and one of its most famous sons, Craig Wiseman, a giant in the country music business. This partnership became Knight's most successful single up to that point, peaking at number 10 on the UK Singles Chart.[19] The success of the singles propelled the album to number seven on the album chart,[19] making Who I Am her most commercially successful album to date. It was re-released with new versions of the singles "Gold" and "Shape of You (Reshaped)" and has sold 215,000 copies in Britain,[15] earning a Gold sales certificate.[20]
The critical response to Who I Am was largely positive, with The Guardian stating that "every song bubbles with the kind of expensive, polished confidence that often eludes British contenders, and she sings with the poise of an artist at the height of her powers",[21] while the BBC remarked: "Who I Am marks a significant change in direction for this tenacious 28-year-old singer, signifying her own personal growth as a true artist and developing songwriter....on this her most personal work to date, she takes us on an intimate journey where she bares her soul with such raw honesty that you get the distinct impression a healing process is taking place".[22] The album earned her two Brit Award nominations ("Best Female", "Best Urban Act")[23] and was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize in 2002.[24]
After touring Britain in 2002, Knight set about creating her fourth album and entered the studio in the summer of 2003. Without the architect of her most successful song in her camp her new A&R team attempted to appeal to a larger mainstream audience, enlisting the help of pop producers such as Guy Chambers and Peter-John Vettese as well as collaborating with R&B producers such as DJ Munro. The result was Affirmation, which was released on Parlophone in June 2004. The album entered the charts at number 11[19] and was preceded by the single "Come as You Are" – a rock/pop orientated song written with and produced by Chambers. The song marked a more mainstream pop sound that alienated Knight's largely urban fan base and the song was not well received by urban radio stations. Nevertheless, it became her biggest hit to date, peaking at number nine on the singles chart.[19] The song was followed by two more singles, "Not Too Late for Love" and "Keep This Fire Burning", which helped boost album sales and resulted in the album being awarded a Gold sales certificate in December 2004.[25]
Knight performing in 2005
The themes running throughout the album, which were influenced by the events she had witnessed over the previous two years, marked a milestone in Knight's career as a lyricist. The main essence of the project was centred on Knight's relationship with Tyrone Jamison – a gay man whom she described as her "soulmate"[26] and who died of an AIDS-related disease in 2003. Throughout the album, lyrics on tracks such as "Remember Me" ("One day we will be reunited, least I hope that is our destiny, so while you chill in the arms of angels, remember me, remember me") and "No One Ever Loves in Vain" clearly point to her close relationship with Tyrone and rank as her most personal work to date.
Compared to the praise of her previous albums, the critical response to Affirmation was mixed. The mainstream press such as The Guardian praised her for branching out, while the black music press such as The Voice and Blues and Soul accused Knight of selling out and being manipulated away from urban music by her record label, a claim she flatly denies: "Everything I've done musically has been completely me. I write my own songs so I'm not just a vocalist who can easily be dictated to."[27]
2006–2008: Consolidating success
In February 2006 Knight consolidated her move into the mainstream audience by appearing on BBC1 music show, Just the Two of Us. The show, featuring celebrities who duet with established singers, ran for two weeks and proved to be a relative disappointment in terms of audience figures – averaging between 15 and 25 percent audience shares.[28] Nevertheless, it provided a platform for Knight to reach out to a bigger audience and demonstrate her talent by performing a different array of songs than she would otherwise be known for. Reaching out to new audiences was also a driving force behind Knight's decision to join Take That on their reunion arena tour. "Take That – The Ultimate Tour 06", which ran from April to July 2006, sold 270,000 tickets in less than four hours on sale at the box office and featured Knight as a support act.[29]
In March 2006 Knight released her fifth album, a compilation set featuring the majority of her top forty UK singles entitled Voice – The Best of Beverley Knight. The album, which was certified Gold less than a month after its release,[30] became her second highest charting of her career when it entered the UK albums chart at number ten and rose to number nine a month later. It was preceded by the single "Piece of My Heart" – a cover of the Erma Franklin classic made famous by Janis Joplin and entered the singles chart at number 16, spending 11 weeks inside the UK top 75 singles chart and becoming her longest-running chart single to date.
In October 2006, Knight recorded her fifth studio album, Music City Soul, in Nashville. Completed in less than five days, the album was released on 7 May 2007 and features collaborations with musicians such as Ronnie Wood and Scotty Moore. It spawned three singles, "No Man's Land", released on 16 April 2007, "After You", released on 2 July 2007, and "The Queen of Starting Over", released on 15 October 2007. This turned out to be her final album for Parlophone.
Between August and September 2007, Knight supported Prince during his residency at the O2 Arena and also performed at the concert after parties. As a result of this, she was also flown to perform at his Oscars party in front of A-list stars and got a standing ovation from stars such as Quincy Jones.
2009–2010: Going independent and 100%
On 23 March 2009, Knight announced via her official web site that she had left Parlophone records after 11 years and would be releasing new material through her own label, Hurricane Records. Knight also announced that her sixth studio album would be released in summer 2009, having a more contemporary feel in comparison to previous retro soul album Music City Soul. New songwriters and producers associated with the project include Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis (whose previous credits include Janet Jackson, Usher and Mariah Carey) and The Rural, along with previous collaborators Guy Chambers and DJ Munro.[31]
On 31 March 2009, Knight confirmed that she would be releasing her sixth studio album in September through her own record label, Hurricane Records. In a video blog on her website she said that "for the past year, I've been writing for the record. I've been working with some new names and some old names for the album."[citation needed] She also confirmed that she is expecting to go on tour in support of the album later this year.
The album is called 100%. The first finished track revealed from the album was Knight's collaboration with US producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, titled "Every Step". The lead single from the album was "Beautiful Night", co-written with Amanda Ghost and produced by The Rural. The album was released the same week on 7 September 2009 and entered the UK Albums Chart at number 17. The second single, "In Your Shoes", premiered on BBC 1Xtra on 5 October. The radio remix features UK rapper Chipmunk.
In 2010, Knight made six guest appearances as a panellist on ITVs flagship show Loose Women.
2011–2016: Theatre, Soul UK, and Soulsville
Knight, 2011
In March 2011, Knight announced in that she would be releasing her seventh studio album later that year and that it would be a collection of British soul covers. She also announced a one-off gig to be held at Porchester Hall, London, which would be filmed for her first live DVD, to be included with the album release. Knight confirmed the album would be entitled Soul UK at the Porchester Hall show.
In 2013, Knight appeared on the 2013 album from The Overtones, entitled Saturday Night at the Movies, which reached the UK albums chart top 5. Knight featured on the song "Hit the Road, Jack".
On 21 February 2014, it was confirmed that Knight would star in the new West End production of Memphis at the Shaftesbury Theatre, opening on 23 October 2014, following previews from 9 October 2014.[38] In January 2015 producers announced that Knight would extend her performing in Memphis until July 2015.[39]
In 2015, it was announced that she would play Grizabella in the 2015 revival of Cats at the London Palladium.[40] She performed a song from Cats as part of the 2015 Royal Variety Performance.
On 8 November 2019, Knight released a live album, BK25 which was recorded in May 2019[49] at the Royal Festival Hall in London with the Leo Green Orchestra. The albums celebrates Knight's 25 years of music.[49] On 13 November 2020, Knight performed as part of BBCChildren in Need 2020 singing Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here".[50] Knight performed a concert with a small audience at the London Palladium in Summer 2021, which aimed test new measures limiting the spread of COVID-19 in theatres. From February 2022, Knight was part of the judging panel on ITV's Starstruck, a revived and reformatted version of Stars in Their Eyes.
In June 2023, Knight announced the release of a new studio album, titled The Fifth Chapter, scheduled for release in September 2023.[54] The album's lead single, "Last One On My Mind", was released 9 June 2023.[55] The album's second single, "Systematic Overload", was released on 17 August 2023.[56] On 16 September 2023, Knight performed the single, among her previous hits, on stage at the Radio 2 in the Park, which was held at Victoria Park, Leicester.[57][58]The Fifth Chapter was released to positive reviews on 29 September 2023,[59][60][61] and charted at number 39 on the UK Albums Chart.[62]
Creativity and influences
As Knight grew up in a Pentecostal environment of Jamaican descent, music – especially gospel music – became a staple part of her childhood. She entered the gospel choir of her local church at just four years of age and eventually became the musical director before she left in her late teens. Her musical education continued at home, where her family would often sing together around the piano and listen to music from their favourite gospel and soul artists such as Sam Cooke.
In 2005, Knight revisited her childhood when she hosted Beverley's Gospel Nights, a BBC Radio 2 series exploring gospel music. Featuring interviews with artists such as Shirley Caesar, Percy Sledge and Destiny's Child stars Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams, the six-part series explored the roots of gospel music and the impact it had upon the black community. Such was the success of the show that a second six-part series was commissioned and began in March 2006 and featured new interviews with artists such as Candi Staton, David McAlmont and Marvin Winans. Knight's interview technique and her ability to get her guests to open up and discuss issues in their personal lives such as domestic violence and depression received favourable reviews and led the Radio Times to comment "Knight's passion for the music is obvious – but so is her warmth, which makes her a rarity among interviewers."[63]
The first artist to make an impact upon Knight was one of the true founders of contemporary gospel and soul music, Sam Cooke. Despite his untimely death in 1964, his music endured and became a staple part of Knight's childhood:
My mother played Sam Cooke and he was the first voice I ever heard on record. His was the first voice that directly had a big impact on me, vocally. He still makes me cry. He'd take the very simple Bible stories that I grew up with and just make them into a two-and-a-half-minute song and yet with an intensity and a passion that the world had never heard before. He really was a major influence on my life.[64]
The impact of Cooke can be seen throughout Knight's career as she has often performed and recorded Cooke classics, the most notable of which is "A Change Is Gonna Come". The track, which came to exemplify the civil rights movement in the 1960s, has featured in many of Knight's live performances (usually with the aid of the London Community Gospel Choir) and she even recorded a studio version with musician Jools Holland, which featured on his Small World, Big Band Volume 2 album.
Another major influence in Knight's childhood was Aretha Franklin. Besides leading a tribute to Franklin at the BBC's Music of the Millennium concert in 1999, Knight has recorded several of Franklin's tracks, most notably "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man" and "Think", both of which were released as B-sides on Knight's singles "Rewind (Find a Way)" and "Made It Back 99" respectively. It was Franklin's vocal delivery that has most had an impact upon Knight:
Aretha taught me my phrasing and the way I carry emotion. She makes me cry and then she brings me into the throes of musical ecstasy – with the same voice! I Never Loved A Man hurts, and the Amazing Grace album, which is the epitome of my childhood, will stay with me for ever."[65]
In addition to the pioneering soul and gospel artists of the mid-20th century, modern artists such as Mary J. Blige and D'Angelo have also played a role in shaping Knight's musical outlook. The most significant of her contemporary peers comes in the form of Prince, a man she describes as one of her heroes: "Prince goes back to me listening to preachers when I was a child, who tell a story to illustrate a point...the first song I heard by him was 'Little Red Corvette', when I was nine. Of course, I didn't have a clue about what he was singing about; the sexuality is implicit and I love that."[65] The influence of Prince, whom Knight even mentions on her Prodigal Sista and Who I Am album sleeves, can be seen throughout her back catalogue with songs such as "Get Up!", "Hurricane Jane" and "Supersonic" being compared to Prince due to their mix of funk and soul.
Throughout her childhood, Knight's musical exposure developed as she got older. Gospel led to soul, which led to funk which led to R&B[66] – but growing up in the Midlands meant that she was exposed to many other influences: "It wasn't a case that there was a huge black community who all stuck together and only listened to reggae or R&B or strictly black music. I find that London is a bit more segregated. In Wolverhampton, black people weren't so segregated and I think that had a massive impact on my musical influences."[27] This diversity is illustrated best by Knight's fourth studio album, Affirmation. After working with Guy Chambers, the album had a more mainstream flavour compared to her previous albums and was led by the rock guitar driven single "Come as You Are". Although the song became her highest charting single to date, Knight was largely criticised by urban radio and media for moving too far away from her urban sound. Nevertheless, the song illustrated Knight's determined effort not to become boxed in and "ghettoised".
Knight appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire in the 2006 Birthday Honours for services to music.[67] The award was bestowed by Queen Elizabeth II at a ceremony at Buckingham Palace in February 2007. After the ceremony Knight remarked that the recognition "reflects not only on my whole career but the work I do for charities, which is immensely important to me. I do not do that to be awarded for it, I just do it because it's in my heart, but to be recognised for it, hopefully will put the magnifying glass on to them as well".[68]
In September 2005 Knight was presented with an honorary degree from the University of Wolverhampton "in recognition of her outstanding contribution to music and the local community, and in recognition of her extensive charity work."[3] Upon being made a Doctor of Music, she stated she was proud to be black, female, and British, adding: "it is still all me, I have not forgotten my roots."[69]
On 7 January 2010 Knight won an edition of the BBC's television quiz series Celebrity Mastermind, answering questions on "The Life and Times of Prince". Knight's chosen charity for the show was the Terrence Higgins Trust. She performed "I Am What I Am" on Wednesday 29 August 2012 at the Paralympics Opening Ceremony.[70][71]
On 16 May 2018, Knight was presented with the Freedom of the City of Wolverhampton. Knight said "this personal award which I'm able to share with the whole city is beautiful. I was born and raised in Wolverhampton and to have such an accolade given to me is seismic". On Twitter the following day, Knight continued "I am now an honorary Freeman of the City of Wolverhampton. There are only around 30 in the city's history. Disclaimer: My eye[sic] are red from tears of joy".[72]
Freedom of the City is the highest honour we can bestow and it is only granted very rarely to exceptional individuals. Beverley Knight has achieved outstanding international success as a recording artist, performer, West End star and charity ambassador. She deserves this honour not only for her achievements, but also for the positive and exemplary manner in which she conducts herself, she has never forgotten her roots and is passionate about Wolverhampton and its people.
—Mayor of the City of Wolverhampton, Cllr. Phil Page.[73]
Beverley Knight is a keen supporter of home city football club Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. Knight married her boyfriend, James O'Keefe, on 8 September 2012.[75]
"Queen B" An in-depth interview with Knight by Pete Lewis, featured in July 2009 in Blues & Soul. Knight discusses her forthcoming album 100%, the launch of her new cosmetics range "K By Beverley Knight", and the UK female soul movement
"Knight on the town" An interview with Knight by Andrew Losowsky, published in December 2002 and featured in The Big Issue. The interview touches on Knight's career, religion, morality and global poverty
"Beverley Knight: The soul survivor"[dead link]In depth article written by Knight detailing her close relationship with friend Tyrone Jamison, who died of an AIDS-related illness in 2003. The article, featured in The Independent newspaper, was published on 20 June 2004.
"We're Jammin': Beverley Knight" An interview with Knight conducted by Pascal Wyse for The Guardian newspaper and published on 17 March 2006. The interview features in depth discussions about Knight's musical education and the artists that have shaped her outlook.
Related Research Articles
Fantasia Monique Barrino-Taylor, known professionally by her mononym Fantasia, is an American singer and actress. She rose to prominence in 2004 for her performance of the Porgy and Bess standard "Summertime" during the third season of American Idol, and eventually became that season's winner. Following her victory, Barrino became the second woman to have her first single debut at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, following Lauryn Hill, when her debut single "I Believe", launched atop the chart. Her accolades include two Billboard Music Awards and a Grammy Award, along with nominations for a Golden Globe Award, a BAFTA Award, and three American Music Awards.
Joscelyn Eve Stoker, known professionally as Joss Stone, is an English singer, songwriter and actress. She rose to prominence in late 2003 with her multi-platinum debut album, The Soul Sessions, which made the 2004 Mercury Prize shortlist. Her second album, Mind Body & Soul (2004), topped the UK Albums Chart and spawned the top-ten single "You Had Me", Stone's most successful single on the UK Singles Chart to date. Both the album and single received one nomination at the 2005 Grammy Awards, while Stone herself was nominated for Best New Artist, and in an annual BBC poll of music critics, Sound of 2004, was ranked fifth as a predicted breakthrough act of 2004. She became the youngest British female singer to top the UK Albums Chart. Stone's third album, Introducing Joss Stone, released in March 2007, achieved gold record status by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and yielded the second-ever highest debut for a British female solo artist on the Billboard 200, and became Stone's first top-five album in the US.
Lemar Obika, known as Lemar, is an English singer, songwriter and record producer. Initially rising to fame after finishing third on the first series of British talent show Fame Academy, he was later signed to Sony BMG, where he has gone on to release five studio albums, three of which are certified platinum or double platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).
June Deniece Williams is an American singer. She has been described as "one of the great soul voices" by the BBC. She is best known for the songs "Free", "Silly", "It's Gonna Take a Miracle" and two Billboard Hot 100 No.1 singles "Let's Hear It for the Boy" and "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late". Williams has won four Grammys with twelve nominations altogether. She is also known for recording “Without Us”, the theme song of Family Ties.
Angela Laverne Brown known professionally as Angie Stone, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. She rose to fame in the late 1970s as member of the hip hop trio The Sequence. In the early 1990s, she became a member of the R&B trio Vertical Hold. Stone would later release her solo debut Black Diamond (1999) on Arista Records, which was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America and spawned the single "No More Rain ".
Tenitra Michelle Williams is an American singer and actress. She rose to fame in the early 2000s as a member of R&B girl group Destiny's Child, one of the best-selling female groups of all time with over 100 million records, of which more than 60 million copies sold with the trio lineup that included Williams. During her time in the group she earned several accolades including a Grammy Award and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Canzetta Maria "Candi" Staton is an American singer–songwriter, best known in the United States for her 1970 cover of Tammy Wynette's "Stand by Your Man" and her 1976 disco chart-topper "Young Hearts Run Free". In Europe, Staton's biggest selling record is the anthemic "You Got the Love" from 1986, released in collaboration with the Source. Staton was inducted into the Christian Music Hall of Fame and is a four-time Grammy Award nominee.
"One More Try" is a song recorded by English singer and songwriter George Michael from his debut solo studio album, Faith (1987). It was released on 11 April 1988 as the album's fourth single by Columbia Records. The song hit number one on all of the US Billboard Hot 100, the Hot Black Singles and the Hot Adult Contemporary charts. Its music video was directed by Tony Scott and filmed in Australia.
Francella Ruby Turner MBE is a British Jamaican R&B and soul singer, songwriter, and actress.
Beverley Craven is a British singer-songwriter best known for her 1991 UK hit single "Promise Me". Her album Change of Heart was released in 2014 and Mixed Emotions in 1999.
"Piece of My Heart" is a romantic soul song written by Jerry Ragovoy and Bert Berns, originally recorded by Erma Franklin in 1967. Franklin's single peaked in December 1967 at number 10 on the Billboard Hot Rhythm & Blues Singles chart in the United States.
'"Flavour of the Old School"' is a song by British R&B recording artist Beverley Knight, released as her debut single from her first album, The B-Funk (1995). The track, which peaked at number fifty on the UK Singles Chart when it was released in March 1995, was accompanied by a low budget music video that saw Knight in the recording studio singing directly into the camera. It was re-released however in October 1995, supported by a new video and strong support from urban radio. The song went on to become Knight's first top 40 single, peaking at number thirty-three in the official UK Singles Chart. The song later reappeared on the b-side of Knight's 1999 single "Made it Back". The video is frequently shown in rotation on MTV Base.
Music City Soul is the fifth studio album by British singer-songwriter Beverley Knight. It was released on Parlophone Records on 7 May 2007 in the United Kingdom. The album contains the singles "No Man's Land", "After You" and "The Queen of Starting Over", and features Ronnie Wood on a number of tracks. The album became Knight's second highest charting album in the UK, peaking at number eight.
100% is the sixth studio album by English singer-songwriter Beverley Knight. It was released on 7 September 2009 through Knight's own record label Hurricane Record, following her departure from Parlophone. The lead single from the album, "Beautiful Night" was released as a download-only on the same day as the album. A radio only first single, "Every Step", produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis was added to BBC Radio 2's B-list on 17 June 2009. It was released as a free download on 6 July 2009 for two weeks. A remix album, titled 100% – The Remixes was released exclusively on digital download via Beatport on 29 January 2012. It features remixes of three of the 100% album singles, "Beautiful Night", "In Your Shoes" and "Soul Survivor".
"Soul Survivor" is the third single release from British singer-songwriter Beverley Knight's sixth studio album, 100%. The song is a duet with soul singer Chaka Khan. The song received a full digital download single release on 8 March 2010. There are two versions of the song, the album version and the radio edit, which halves verse one of the song.
Sarah Joyce, better known by her stage name, Rumer, is a Pakistan-born British singer-songwriter. Supported by leading music industry figures including Burt Bacharach, Elton John, Carly Simon, and Jools Holland, Rumer was nominated for two Brit awards on 13 January 2011. Her debut album, Seasons of My Soul, released in 2010, peaked on the UK Charts at #3, was certified platinum in 2013 having sold over one million copies, and was listed at #26 in the Official Top 40 Biggest Debut Albums of the Decade in 2019. Rumer's voice has been described by The Guardian and many others as being reminiscent of Karen Carpenter. Her stage name was inspired by the author Rumer Godden. Boys Don't Cry, released in 2012, peaked on the UK Charts at #3. She has performed at several festivals such as Glastonbury Festival. Her album This Girl's in Love was released in November 2016. In August 2020, she released her fifth album, Nashville Tears .
Soul UK is the seventh studio album by English singer-songwriter Beverley Knight. The album was released on 4 July 2011, and features covers of British soul songs that inspired her whilst growing up. The album includes a live DVD of the tracks, filmed on 7 April at the Porchester Hall in London.
"Cuddly Toy" is a song by British band Roachford. It was the second single taken from their self-titled debut studio album, and was their first chart hit single. It was recorded at CBS Recording Studios, Whitfield Street, London over a three-day period between Saturday 19 March and Monday 21 March 1988. The drums were recorded in Studio 1, with the rest of the instruments recorded in Studio 2. The studio engineer was Richard Hollywood. The song was produced by Michael H. Brauer, Andrew Roachford and Fayney. It was mixed at a later date by Michael H. Brauer.
The Leading Ladies was a British-American girl group/supergroup formed in London, England in 2017. The group consists of three leading women from the London West End stage; American singer and actress Amber Riley, who starred in Dreamgirls, British soul singer Beverley Knight, who featured in The Bodyguard, Memphis and Cats and British theatre star Cassidy Janson, who took the leading role in Beautiful: The Carole King Musical.
The Fifth Chapter is the ninth studio album by English singer Beverley Knight. It was released by Tag8 Music and BMG Rights Management on 29 September 2023, being both her first album in seven years and her first collection of original material in fourteen years. The album celebrates Knight's 50th birthday, and she explained: "I feel as though I am about to step into a whole new level of wonder because I have come into my power. My career is not a big shiny billboard poster that gets replaced with the next star in waiting. Mine is a novel, and I just entered the Fifth and most exciting chapter of it."
1 2 "Beverley Knight – BK25 (Review)". 9 November 2019. Retrieved 16 November 2020. Beverley Knight is a joy to experience live. Her milestone concert at the Royal Festival Hall back in May – preserved on this album alongside three studio tracks – was a breathtaking display of vocal stamina as she surveyed her 25 years in music.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
