Ivy Levan | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Birth name | Ivy Rose Levan |
Born | Tulsa, Oklahoma, U.S. | January 20, 1987
Origin | Bentonville, Arkansas, U.S. |
Genres |
|
Occupations |
|
Years active | 2010–present |
Labels | BMG, Interscope, Cherrytree Records |
Ivy Rose Levan (born January 20, 1987) is an American singer, songwriter, model and actress from Bentonville, Arkansas. At 16, Levan moved to Los Angeles to pursue a music career, eventually signing to Cherrytree Records and Interscope Records. [1] Levan made her acting debut starring as "Cynthia" in the 2010 film Drop Dead Gorgeous which followed by other television appearances, including her most recent in Fox's The Rocky Horror Show film. [2]
In 2013, Levan released her debut EP on Interscope Records titled Introducing the Dame which peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Next Big Sound charts. [3] The most popular single from the EP was "Hot Damn". [4] [5] Following a three-track single, Frostbitten, released by Cherrytree Records on December 15, 2014, she released the single, "Biscuit", on January 13, 2015. "Biscuit" also appeared on her first Cherrytree EP, No Good , released on August 7, 2015. [6]
Levan was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and raised in Bentonville, Arkansas. [7] The singer moved to Los Angeles with her mother when she was 16 years old to pursue a music career. Of the experience, Levan says "I just knew I needed to get out of there as fast as I could, so two weeks before I was supposed to graduate high school, I took off for L.A. with my mama." After experimenting with various musical styles, Levan began to use her Southern upbringing as a frame of reference, and as an influence which can be found in her music. During her career, Levan has worked with many artists of note, across genres. Among others, the singer has collaborated with Ben Weinman of The Dillinger Escape Plan, Tomo Miličević of Thirty Seconds to Mars, Sting, [8] and Diplo.
In 2013, Levan released Introducing the Dame where it peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Next Big Sound charts. [3] The EP features her most popular single from the album "Hot Damn", which has racked up over 6 million views on YouTube. [4] [5] During the album's release, Levan was interviewed on Glamour Magazine and featured on CBS News' "The Feed." [9] [10] Levan was also featured on MTVu's Freshman segment, securing the winning spot twice and was dubbed as the "New It-Girl". [11]
In December 2013, Levan was featured in a television commercial for the Beats By Dre Color Solo Headphones alongside Chris Cole, Jasmine Villegas, August Alsina, Nipsey Hussle, Nyjah Huston, Serena Williams and Alex Midler. [12] Levan made her television performance debut February 2, 2014 on the Late Show with David Letterman in which she performed Drive My Car with Sting and Mike Einziger on day two of the Late Show's Beatles Tribute Week. [13] Additionally, in June 2013, Levan supported Fitz & The Tantrums touring mostly the Mid-West and North-Eastern United States as well as Texas. During this tour, she also performed at clubs in support of the LGBT community. In October 2013, she supported Emeli Sandé. On April 17, 2014, Levan performed with Lisa Fischer for the 25th Anniversary of the Rainforest Fund Benefit Concert.
In 2015, Levan released the first single "Biscuit" to her debut studio album titled No Good , which was released on August 7, 2015. [14] She also sang the theme song "Who Can You Trust?", for the comedy film Spy. [15] In 2016, it was announced that she would be singing the opening credits and starring as Usherette in Fox TV's production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show , which premiered in October 2016. [2]
In August 2017, she announced that she was in a new record deal with BMG. Along with this, she announced a new EP but didn't announce a release date. In November 2018, Levan announced the release date of her upcoming single "Her" which was released on November 8, 2018. [16]
Levan's influences include Tina Turner, Mariah Carey, Ray Charles, Madonna, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Slayer and Beyoncé. [17] Her musical style is sometimes dubbed as "Swamp-hop", a mixture of raw sounding soul music & synths. [5] [18] [19]
Levan is openly bisexual and is also a model. [20] She is signed to Ford Models, and has done ads for JCPenney, Payless ShoeSource and runway for Mercedes Benz Fashion Week. [21]
Title | Album details |
---|---|
No Good |
|
Title | Album details |
---|---|
Introducing the Dame |
|
Frostbitten |
|
FUCC IT |
|
Title | Album details |
---|---|
The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do the Time Warp Again |
|
Title | Year | Role | Other notes |
---|---|---|---|
Drop Dead Gorgeous | 2010 | Cynthia Barris | Main role |
90210 | 2013 | Singer | Season 5, Ep 2 [26] |
Mob Wives | 2013 | Singer | Season 4 [27] |
The Drama Queen | 2014 | Singer | Season 2 |
Banshee | 2014 | Singer | Series Premiere [28] |
Late Show with David Letterman | 2014 | Special Guest | Television performance |
The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do the Time Warp Again | 2016 | Trixie, the Usherette | TV movie |
Martin Kierszenbaum, also known by his pseudonym Cherry Cherry Boom Boom, is an American record executive and record producer. He founded Cherrytree Records in 2005, a record label and management company through which he has signed artists including Lady Gaga, Sting, Keane, LMFAO, Disclosure, Ellie Goulding, Far East Movement, Feist, La Roux, the Knux, Robyn, Keane, t.A.T.u., and Natalia Kills. He has been credited on releases by Madonna, Mylène Farmer, Tokio Hotel, Feist, Ai, Samantha Fish, and Alexandra Burke.
"Eh, Eh " is a song by American singer Lady Gaga, from her debut album, The Fame (2008). It was released as the third single from the album in Australia, New Zealand and selected European countries, and the fourth single in France. The song is a calypso-styled, mid-tempo ballad, and is about breaking up with one's old partner and finding someone new. The song peaked at number fifteen on the Australian ARIA Charts and at number nine on the RIANZ charts of New Zealand. It proved to be even more successful in Sweden, where it managed to peak at number two on the Sverigetopplistan chart, as well as in the Czech Republic, France, and Hungary, where it reached the top-ten of their respective charts. "Eh, Eh " received Gold certifications for its sales in Australia, Denmark, New Zealand, and the United States.
Far East Movement is an American hip hop and electronic music group based in Los Angeles, composed of Kev Nish, Prohgress, J-Splif, Jon Street, Ray Ro, DJ Virman, and Jerm Beats. They signed with Martin Kierszenbaum's Cherrytree Records, an imprint of Interscope Records to release their 2010 single, "Like a G6" which peaked at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, making them the first Asian American group to reach number one on the chart. Their follow up single, "Rocketeer", peaked at number seven and led their third album and major label debut, Free Wired (2010). It performed moderately on the Billboard 200, while their fourth album, Dirty Bass (2012) saw a steep commercial decline, although its lead single, "Live My Life" reached number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Natalia Noemi "Teddy" Sinclair is a British singer-songwriter and actress. She has recorded music under various aliases, most famously as Natalia Kills and Verbalicious. She is currently the lead vocalist of the band Cruel Youth, which also releases music under the name The Powder Room.
The Cherrytree Sessions is the first extended play by American singer Lady Gaga. It consists of three acoustic versions of "Poker Face", "Just Dance", and "Eh, Eh ". The EP was released on February 3, 2009, initially released only through Borders stores and via digital download, and was later reissued on CD in August 2010.
Colette Mary Carr is an American musician and songwriter based in Los Angeles, California, United States. Carr's debut album, Skitszo, a collection of previously released digital EPs, was released on July 9, 2013. "Never Gonna Happen", the fifth single from the album, was released May 5, 2013, and reached the number eleven spot on Billboard's Dance-Club Chart. Her musical style has been compared to Dev and Little Boots.
English singer Teddy Sinclair has released two studio albums, one extended play (EP), and ten singles as an artist, as well as eight as a featured artist. She began her musical career by releasing a standalone single, entitled "Don't Play Nice", under the alias of Verbalicious, with label All Around the World. Although the song reached number eleven in the United Kingdom, the label went bankrupt shortly after the song's release. In 2008, Sinclair collaborated with French recording artist M. Pokora in the song "They Talk Shit About Me", as Verse. Sinclair later changed her stage name to Natalia Cappuccini and released the extended play Wommanequin independently.
Amethyst Amelia Kelly, known professionally as Iggy Azalea, is an Australian rapper, songwriter, and model. Born in Sydney, Australia, Azalea moved to the United States at the age of 16 in order to pursue a career in music. Azalea earned public recognition after releasing the music videos for her songs "Pussy" and "Two Times" on YouTube. Shortly after releasing those two songs, she released her debut mixtape, Ignorant Art (2011), and subsequently signed a recording contract with American rapper T.I.'s Grand Hustle label.
Lana Del Rey is the second extended play by American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey. It was released on January 10, 2012, in the United States and Canada through Interscope Records. After the release of the EP Kill Kill (2008) and her debut studio album Lana Del Ray (2010) via 5 Points Records, an independent label, the EP was released in anticipation of Del Rey's major-label debut album Born to Die (2012). The tracks are influenced by several genres, including indie pop, hip hop, and alternative music. The lyrics and melody were written primarily by Del Rey, Justin Parker and Emile Haynie. Production of the album was led by Emile Haynie, who also co-wrote "Blue Jeans". The EP is Del Rey's second eponymous record after Lana Del Ray (2010).
Goldie Boutilier, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, model and DJ.
Tanner Elle Schneider, known professionally by her stage name Elle King, is an American singer, musician, songwriter, and actress. Her musical style is influenced by country, rock, and blues.
Skitszo is the debut studio album by American singer-rapper Colette Carr, which was released as a whole on July 9, 2013 through Interscope. The album consists of four digital EPs, each featuring four songs, released two months apart. The full album includes all the songs from the EPs, plus four new ones.
Matthew Bair, known professionally as Matthew Koma and Bagel Man, is an American songwriter and musician. Songs written by Koma include "Spectrum" and Grammy Award-winner "Clarity", both performed by Zedd. Koma has collaborated with artists such as Shania Twain, Britney Spears, Hilary Duff, Hardwell, Zedd, Miriam Bryant, Sebastian Ingrosso, Alesso, Afrojack, Tiësto, Vicetone, Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic, and others.
Seandrea Sledge, better known by her stage name Dreezy, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. She signed with Interscope Records in 2014 where she released the studio albums No Hard Feelings (2016) and Big Dreez (2019). In 2020, she split from the label and released Hitgirl (2022), a collaboration album with Hit-Boy.
"Biscuit" is a song performed by American recording artist Ivy Levan. It was written by Levan alongside Lucas Banker, William Pounds and Patrick Nissley, for her debut studio album, No Good. The song was released as the album's lead single on January 13, 2015 through Interscope Records. A music video for the song was released later the same day.
No Good is the first studio album by American singer Ivy Levan. The album was released on August 7, 2015, and featured the two official singles, "Biscuit" and "Killing You" featuring Sting.
Introducing the Dame is the debut EP by American singer Ivy Levan, released in the United States on June 4, 2013 by Cherrytree Records. It marks Levan's first official music release and is the first of two EPs which were released before her first full-length album, No Good (2015). Introducing the Dame was produced by Patrick Nissley, Lucas Banker, and Tomo Miličević.
Skylar Star Stecker, known professionally as Skylar Simone, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. In 2015, she released her debut studio album, This Is Me. In March 2019, she independently released her second album, Redemption. Skylar released her acclaimed EP Earth Signs in the fall of 2021, the follow-up to her 2019 album Redemption. The soulful project highlighted both her personal and artistic evolution, allowing fans an intimate glimpse into her budding romance, while also seeing her claim her rightful spot in the R&B space. In 2022, she continued her journey to stardom with a string of sensual new R&B singles; “hate that for you”, “What’s Good” Ft. Tone Stith, and “Know It’s Wrong” that showcase her unstoppable spirit, fierce determination, and undeniable talent that have set her apart from the start.