Eithne Pádraigín Ní Bhraonáin, known mononymously as Enya, is an Irish composer and singer-songwriter. The music of Enya is widely recognised for featuring multi-layers of her vocals, varied instrumentation, lengthened reverb, and subtle Celtic elements. Her career as a solo artist, now over four decades long, is notably an atypical path to success in the music industry. As the second-best-selling Irish music act overall, after rock band U2, Enya is the best-selling Irish solo artist; believed to have sold over 80 million albums worldwide.
A Day Without Rain is the fifth studio album by Irish singer-songwriter and musician Enya, released on 20 November 2000 by WEA in Europe and on 21 November 2000 by Reprise Records in the US. Following a promotional tour in support of her compilation albums Paint the Sky with Stars and A Box of Dreams in late 1997, Enya started work on a new studio album in mid-1998 with her longtime recording partners, producer and arranger Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. In a musical departure from her keyboard-oriented sound, Enya incorporates a string section in her songs.
Watermark is the second studio album by Irish singer, songwriter and musician Enya, released on 19 September 1988 by WEA. After the release of her previous album Enya (1987), she secured a recording contract with Warner following a chance meeting with chairman Rob Dickins, who had become a fan of her music. Her contract allowed her considerable artistic and creative freedom, with minimal interference from the label and no deadlines. Enya recorded Watermark in ten months with her long-time collaborators: manager, producer and arranger Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. It was initially recorded in Ireland in demo form before production relocated to London to re-record, mix, and master it digitally. Watermark features music in different styles, displaying Enya's sound of multi-tracked vocals with keyboards, percussion instruments, and elements of Celtic, ambient, and new-age music, though Enya believes her music does not belong in the latter genre.
Shepherd Moons is the third studio album by Irish singer, songwriter and musician Enya, released on 4 November 1991 by WEA. After the unexpected critical and commercial success of her previous album Watermark (1988), Enya embarked on a worldwide promotional tour to support it. At its conclusion, she wrote and rehearsed new material for her next album with her long time recording partners, manager, arranger and producer Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. The album was recorded in Ireland and London and continued to display Enya's sound of multi-tracked vocals with keyboards and elements of Celtic and new-age music.
The Memory of Trees is the fourth studio album by Irish singer, songwriter, and musician Enya, released on 20 November 1995 by WEA. After travelling worldwide to promote her previous album Shepherd Moons (1991), and contributing to film soundtracks, Enya took a short break before she started writing and recording a new album in 1993 with her longtime recording partners, arranger and producer Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. The album is Enya's first to be recorded entirely in Ireland, and covers themes that include Irish and Druid mythology, the idea of one's home, journeys, religion, dreams, and love. Enya continues to display her sound of multi-tracked vocals with keyboards and elements of Celtic and new age music, though Enya does not consider her music to be in the latter genre. She sings in English, Irish, Latin, and Spanish.
Paint the Sky with Stars: The Best of Enya is the first greatest hits album by Irish singer-songwriter Enya, released on 3 November 1997 by WEA. Following her worldwide promotional tour in support of her previous album The Memory of Trees (1995), Enya began selecting tracks for a compilation album in early 1997, as her recording contract with WEA permitted her to do so. The album contains songs from her debut album Enya (1987) to The Memory of Trees (1995) and two new tracks, "Paint the Sky with Stars" and "Only If...".
Enya is the debut studio album by Irish singer, songwriter, and musician Enya, released in March 1987 by BBC Records in the UK and by Atlantic Records in the US. It was renamed as The Celts for the 1992 international re-release of the album by WEA Records in Europe and by Reprise Records in the US. The album features a selection of music that she recorded for the soundtrack to The Celts, a BBC documentary series about the origins, growth, and influence of Celtic culture.
"Orinoco Flow", also released as "Orinoco Flow (Sail Away)", is a song by Irish singer-songwriter Enya from her second studio album, Watermark (1988). It was released on 3 October 1988 by WEA Records in the United Kingdom and by Geffen Records in the United States the following year. The song topped the UK Singles Chart for three weeks and received two Grammy Award nominations for Best Music Video and Best New Age Performance at the 32nd Annual Grammy Awards. The Guardian ranked "Orinoco Flow" at number 77 on its list of the 100 greatest UK number-one singles in 2020.
"Caribbean Blue" is a song by Irish musician Enya, included as the second track on her third studio album, Shepherd Moons (1991). It follows a waltz time signature, and mentions the Anemoi : Boreas, Afer Ventus (Africus), Eurus, and Zephyrus. The song was released as the lead single from the album on 7 October 1991 by WEA.
"Anywhere Is" is a song by Irish singer Enya, released on 6 November 1995 by WEA as the lead single from her fourth studio album, The Memory of Trees (1995). The lyrics of the song are in English, written by Roma Ryan and it was produced by Nicky Ryan. The song peaked at number seven on the UK Singles Chart and became a top-10 hit in Austria, Iceland, and Ireland. On the Eurochart Hot 100, the song peaked at number 36. Its music video was directed by David Scheinmann.
"Only If..." is a song by Irish singer Enya. It was released on 10 November 1997 as the first single from her first greatest hits compilation, Paint the Sky with Stars (1997). The song charted in several countries, and its accompanying music video was noted for its creative direction. Enya promoted the song with interviews and performances on The Rosie O'Donnell Show, Late Show with David Letterman and Royal Variety Performance.
"Only Time" is a song by Irish musician Enya. It was released in November 2000 as the lead single from her fifth studio album, A Day Without Rain (2000). The song reached number one in Canada, Germany, Poland and Switzerland, number two in Austria, and became Enya's only top-10 single as a solo artist in the United States, peaking at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100. It became an anthem for the victims of the 11 September attacks, with Enya donating to a fund for the victims' families.
"May It Be" is a song by the Irish recording artist Enya. She and Roma Ryan composed it for Peter Jackson's 2001 film The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. The song entered the German Singles Chart at number one in 2002, and Enya performed it at the 74th Academy Awards. "May It Be" was acclaimed by music critics and received nominations for the Academy Award for Best Original Song, the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song, and the Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media.
The discography of Irish singer-songwriter Enya consists of eight studio albums, two compilation albums, twenty-one singles as lead artist and a number of other appearances. Enya achieved a breakthrough in her career in 1988 with the album Watermark, containing the big hit song "Orinoco Flow" which topped the UK Singles Chart and the European Hot 100 Singles. Three years later, the similarly successful Shepherd Moons followed, which debuted at the top of the charts in the United Kingdom and featured the moderately successful singles "Caribbean Blue" and "Book of Days", the latter was the theme of the film Far and Away. In 1992, a re-mastered version of the 1987 Enya album was released as The Celts with the title track as a single.
Amarantine is the sixth studio album by Irish singer-songwriter and musician Enya, released on 21 November 2005 by Warner Bros. Records internationally and by Reprise Records in the United States the next day. Following the release of her 2002 compilation box set Only Time – The Collection, Enya took a short break before she started work on a new album in September 2003, her first since A Day Without Rain (2000). Amarantine was recorded in Ireland with her longtime recording partners, arranger and producer Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. It is Enya's first album not to include a song in Irish and her first to include songs sung in Japanese and Loxian, a fictional language created by Roma.
"I Don't Wanna Know" is a song by American R&B artist Mario Winans featuring rapper P. Diddy and Irish singer Enya. The song is based on a sample of the Fugees' song "Ready or Not", which in turn samples the synthesizer riff from Enya's song "Boadicea". The drums are sampled from the end of EPMD's "You're a Customer".
Only Time: The Collection is a box set from Irish singer, songwriter and musician Enya, released on 5 November 2002 in the United States and on 2 December 2002 in Europe. The set contains 51 tracks across four discs that spans her 1987 debut album Enya through her 2002 single "May It Be". A 48-page booklet with liner notes and lyrics by her longtime lyricist Roma Ryan is included. The video of "Oíche Chiúin " is also included on the fourth disc, the performance comes from the BBC programme Christmas Day in the Morning aired on 25 December 1996 and was recorded at Christ Church Cathedral in Dublin. In addition to this computer playable video, there is also a screensaver in the cover art motif and a slideshow of pictures from the booklet. This release was a limited worldwide release of 200,000, with US sales of over 60,000 copies. The selection of songs was made by Enya, Nicky and Roma.
And Winter Came... is the seventh studio album by Irish singer, songwriter, and musician Enya, released on 7 November 2008 by Warner Bros. Records internationally and by Reprise Records in the United States on 11 November 2008. After recording new Christmas songs for her fourth EP Sounds of the Season: The Enya Collection (2006), Enya started work on a Christmas album of traditional carols and original tracks, but the idea was changed to a collection of songs with a Christmas or winter theme as it better suited the style of the new material. It was recorded with her longtime collaborators, arranger and producer Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan.
The Very Best of Enya is the second greatest hits album by the Irish singer, songwriter and musician Enya, released on 23 November 2009 by Warner Bros. Records.
Dark Sky Island is the eighth studio album by Irish singer, songwriter, and musician Enya, released on 20 November 2015 by Warner Bros. Records. After the release of her previous album, And Winter Came... (2008), Enya was unsure of her next career move so she decided to take a break from music, which lasted three years. In the spring of 2012 she started to write and record new material for a new album with her longtime collaborators, producer and arranger Nicky Ryan and his wife, lyricist Roma Ryan. Enya gained inspiration for the title track and the album from the 2011 designation of Sark in the Channel Islands as a dark-sky preserve and a collection of Roma Ryan's poems on islands.
