Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien, known professionally as Dusty Springfield, was an English singer whose career spanned over five decades. With her distinctive mezzo-soprano sound, she was a significant singer of blue-eyed soul, pop and dramatic ballads, with French chanson, country, and jazz also in her repertoire. During her 1960s peak, she ranked among the most successful British female performers on both sides of the Atlantic. Her image – marked by a peroxide blonde bouffant/beehive hairstyle, heavy makeup and evening gowns, as well as stylised, gestural performances – made her an icon of the Swinging Sixties.
Kim Bendix Petersen, better known by his stage name King Diamond, is a Danish rock musician. As a vocalist, he is known for his powerful and wide-ranging singing voice, in particular his far-reaching falsetto screams. He is the lead vocalist and lyricist for both Mercyful Fate and the eponymous King Diamond. He also plays keyboards and guitars on studio recordings but uses live shows to focus solely on his vocal performance. Diamond is renowned for his dark lyrical content and his story concepts. He is also known for his distinctive shock stage persona. He has been an influence for other rock and metal artists, including Metallica, Slayer and Cradle of Filth.
Michelle Lynn Johnson, better known as Meshell Ndegeocello, is a German-born American singer-songwriter, rapper, and bassist. She has gone by the name Meshell Suhaila Bashir-Shakur which is used as a writing credit on some of her later work. Her music incorporates a wide variety of influences, including funk, soul, jazz, hip hop, reggae and rock. She has received significant critical acclaim throughout her career, being nominated for eleven Grammy Awards, and winning one. She also has been credited for helping to "spark the neo-soul movement".
Mary Christine Brockert, known professionally as Teena Marie, was an American singer-songwriter, musician, composer, arranger, and producer. She was known by her childhood nickname Tina before taking the stage name Teena Marie and later acquired the nickname Lady T, given to her by her collaborator and friend, Rick James.
Louise Gabrielle Bobb, known professionally as Gabrielle, is a British singer and songwriter. Bobb was born in Hackney, London. She released her debut single "Dreams" in 1993 and it topped the UK Singles Chart the same year. Her other singles include "Going Nowhere", "Give Me a Little More Time", "Walk On By" and "If You Ever" – a duet with East 17.
Bessie Regina Norris, better known by her stage name Betty Wright, was an American soul and R&B singer, songwriter and background vocalist. Beginning her professional career in the late 1960s as a teenager, Wright rose to fame in the 1970s with hits such as "Clean Up Woman" and "Tonight Is the Night". Wright was also prominent in her use of whistle register.
Nicole Monique Wray, also known as Lady Wray, is an American singer and songwriter. Her 1998 debut single "Make It Hot" was certified gold.
The Graveyard is the seventh studio album by Danish heavy metal band King Diamond, released in 1996. It was the first album by King Diamond on the Massacre Records label and the last to feature drummer Darrin Anthony. The Graveyard is one of the most successful King Diamond's albums, peaking at No. 23 in the Finnish Charts and remaining for two weeks in the Top 40.
The Eye is the fifth studio album by Danish heavy metal band King Diamond, released in 1990. It continues to feature a major storyline like other King Diamond albums, though it is told differently. The Eye is the only album to feature drummer Snowy Shaw and the last to feature guitarist Pete Blakk and bassist Hal Patino, until the latter's return on Abigail II: The Revenge.
King Diamond is a Danish heavy metal band formed in 1985 by vocalist King Diamond, guitarists Andy LaRocque and Michael Denner, bassist Timi Hansen and drummer Mikkey Dee. King, Denner and Hansen had recently departed the group Mercyful Fate, and decided to form a new band under the King Diamond moniker, as it was already known from the Mercyful Fate days. Since the band's inception, there have been over fifteen musicians in and out of King Diamond, with the only two mainstays being Diamond and LaRocque. Their current lineup consists of King, LaRocque, guitarist Mike Wead, drummer Matt Thompson, and bassist Pontus Egberg.
Joshua Otis Turner is an American country and gospel singer and actor. In 2003, he signed to MCA Nashville Records. That same year, his debut album's title track, "Long Black Train", was his breakthrough single release. His second album, Your Man (2006) accounted for his first two number-one hits: "Your Man" and "Would You Go with Me", while 2007's Everything Is Fine included a No. 2 in "Firecracker". Haywire, released in 2010, produced his biggest hit, the four week No. 1 "Why Don't We Just Dance" and another number one in "All Over Me". It was followed by Punching Bag (2012), whose lead-off single "Time Is Love" was the biggest country hit of 2012 according to Billboard Year-End.
"Army of Me" is a song recorded by Icelandic musician Björk for her second studio album Post (1995). It was released on 24 April 1995 by One Little Indian as the lead single from the album. The song was written and produced by Björk and Graham Massey, who helped her in producing and writing the majority of her third album. Lyrically, the industrial rock and techno-pop song was inspired by the damaging behavior of Björk's brother, and in the lyrics, she tells him to stand up and to regain control of his life. It was well received by music critics, who noted its darkness and praised Björk's energy. "Army of Me" was a commercial success and the first single from Björk to enter the top 10 on the UK Singles Chart.
Abigail II: The Revenge is the tenth studio album by Danish heavy metal band King Diamond, released in 2002, and is plotwise a successor to the 1987 album Abigail. Abigail II: The Revenge is the first album to feature guitarist Mike Wead, drummer Matt Thompson, and the first to feature bassist Hal Patino since The Eye.
The Puppet Master is the eleventh studio album by Danish heavy metal band King Diamond, released in 2003. A limited edition includes a DVD on which frontman King Diamond tells the story of the Puppet Master. It is a concept album with a storyline telling the tale of a young couple who go to watch a puppet show in Budapest in the 1700s, and end up being turned into undead puppets by the Puppet Master and his wife.
Marion Hall is a Jamaican singer and songwriter whose career has spanned over two decades. Formerly known as the Queen of Dancehall, she is the first female deejay to be certified as a triple-platinum and Grammy Award-winning artist.
Chantay Savage is an American R&B/dance singer. She experienced some success in the 1990s on various Billboard singles charts, one of which was "I Will Survive", a reworking of the Gloria Gaynor hit song.
The discography of King Diamond, a Danish heavy metal band, consists of twelve studio releases, three live albums, five compilations, six singles, and four music videos. King Diamond was formed in 1985, after the dissolution of the group Mercyful Fate, by vocalist King Diamond, guitarists Andy LaRocque and Michael Denner, bassist Timi Hansen, and drummer Mikkey Dee. The following year, the band released their debut album Fatal Portrait, which charted at number 33 in Sweden. King Diamond's second studio album, Abigail, was released on 24 February 1987 and reached number 123 in the US, number 39 in Sweden and number 68 in the Netherlands. Following some line-up changes, the group released the album "Them" in 1988, which peaked at number 38 in Sweden, number 65 in the Netherlands, and at number 89 in the US, making "Them" King Diamond's highest-charting album in North America. The following year, the band released the follow-up album Conspiracy, which charted at number 111 in North America, number 41 in Sweden and at number 64 in the Netherlands. In 1990, after more line-up changes, King Diamond released the album The Eye, which only charted at number 179 in the US, which makes The Eye King Diamond's lowest-charting album in North America.
"Please Send Me Someone to Love" is a blues ballad, written and recorded by American blues and soul singer Percy Mayfield in 1950, for Art Rupe's Specialty Records. It was on the Billboard's R&B chart for 27 weeks and reached the number-one position for two weeks; it was Mayfield's most successful song.
Anthony Mandler is an American film director, music video director, television commercial director and photographer. As a music video director, his most notable and frequent collaborator is Rihanna. The two have worked on sixteen music videos together throughout her career, beginning with "Unfaithful" in 2006 and most recently "Diamonds" in 2012. He has also written and directed music videos for many other prominent artists including the Spice Girls, Jay Z, Beyoncé, Eminem, Usher, Shakira, Taylor Swift, The Killers, Selena Gomez, Justin Bieber, Christina Aguilera, 50 Cent, Ne-Yo, Nicki Minaj, Drake, Snoop Dogg, Lenny Kravitz, Cheryl Cole, M.I.A., Mary J. Blige, fun. and Lana Del Rey.
Livia Zita is a Hungarian voiceover actress and rock singer, best known for her work with the Danish heavy metal band King Diamond, to which she belongs as a guest musician in studio and backing vocalist in live performances since 2003.
