Lillie Nicole McCloud | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Lillie Arlene Nicole Jade McCloud [1] |
| Also known as | Nicole (early recording career) Nicole McCloud Nicole J. McCloud |
| Born | December 7, 1958 [2] Rochester, New York, U.S. |
| Genres | R&B, soul, house, gospel |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, singer, songwriter |
| Years active | 1985–present |
| Labels | Portrait Records, Epic Records, Sony Music, Spectra Music Group |
Lillie Arlene Nicole Jade McCloud [1] (born December 7, 1958 in Rochester, New York), commonly known by her former stage name Nicole McCloud, or Nicole J. McCloud is an American dance and R&B singer. She has recorded five studio albums, What About Me (1986), Jam Packed (1988) (aka Rock the House), Love Town (1998), So What? (2002), "Red Apples" (2015), . Her single "Don't You Want My Love" became an international hit. Other US singles include "Runnin' Away", "Search'n", "One Good Reason", "Rock the House", and the "Alabaster Box" cover. In the late 1990s, she was also part of a house music project Voices of Freedom.
In 2013, she competed in season 3 of the American singing competition The X Factor . She was eliminated in the 5th week, being the sixth contestant eliminated.
McCloud first appeared on the Billboard US R&B charts as 'Nicole' in 1985 with "Always and Forever". Her single "Don't You Want My Love" in 1986 reached Top 10 in the US Dance charts, in addition to charting in Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden.
Ten of McCloud's singles landed the US Billboard specialized R&B and dance charts. As of 2013 [update] , her biggest hit has been the 1994 single "Runnin’ Away", which peaked at No. 3 on US Dance charts. In 2002 as Nicole J. McCloud, McCloud returned to the Top 10 with "Search’n", peaking at No. 5 on the US Dance charts. That same year she received a nomination for the International Dance Music Awards, along Craig David and Shakira.
She has recorded hits with Timmy Thomas, U.S.U.R.A. and The Source and has performed with Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, the group Kool & The Gang, Bruce Springsteen, Mick Jagger, and other artists.
In the late 1990s, McCloud joined the American house project Voices of Freedom. [3] The trio also included Angel Williams and Simone Böhlhoff. The trio was featured in a number of recordings, notably in E-Smoove & Ni-Che's 1999 single "Lift Your Hands Up" that featured the vocals of Voices of Freedom. The recording was made available through Finger Printz label. The trio was also featured in a 2002 recording by DJ Pope titled "America at War (Freedom)" on the Yellorange label.
In the mid-2000s, McCloud moved to Košice, a city in Slovakia. Her first Slovak performance took place at the prestigious Košice International Jazz Festival 2006, where she performed with jazz legend Peter Lipa.
In 2010, McCloud provided the title song for Česko Slovensko má talent, the joint Czech/Slovak version of Got Talent series. It was broadcast on TV JOJ in Slovakia and on TV Prima in the Czech Republic.
In 2013, McCloud made a comeback taking part in season 3 of the American singing competition The X Factor identified as Lillie McCloud, her birth name. [4] At the time of applying to The X Factor, she was 54 years old with three children (a son and two daughters) and seven grandchildren.
Her audition was broadcast on September 12, 2013. She received a standing ovation and four "yes" votes from judges Simon Cowell, Demi Lovato, Paulina Rubio and Kelly Rowland for her rendition of CeCe Winans' "Alabaster Box".
She was selected by the judges to progress to the Final 40 and subsequently competed successfully in the Four Chair Challenge, securing her position in the Final 16. As part of the Final Four "Over 25s", she was mentored by Kelly Rowland. She made it as far as the Top 8 but was eliminated on November 28, 2013.
Her performances on The X Factor were:
| Day of broadcast | Show | Theme | Song | Original artist | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 12 | Audition | Free choice | "Alabaster Box" | CeCe Winans | Through to Four-Chair challenge |
| October 2 | Four-Chair Challenge | Solo performance | "A House Is Not a Home" | Dionne Warwick | Advanced |
| October 29 | Live show 1 (Top 16) | Mentor's choice | "When a Man Loves a Woman" | Percy Sledge | Saved by Kelly Rowland |
| November 6 | Live show 2 (Top 13) | Motown Night | "All In Love is Fair" | Stevie Wonder | N/A |
| November 7 | Live show 3 (Top 13 Get Another Chance) | Free choice | "Who Wants To Live Forever" | Queen | Safe |
| November 13 | Live show 4 (Top 12) | 80's Night | "Ain't Nobody" | Rufus & Chaka Khan | Safe |
| November 20 | Live show 5 (Top 10) | British Invasion | This Woman's Work | Kate Bush | Safe |
| November 27 | Live show 6 (Top 8) | Big Band Night | Summertime | George Gershwin | Eliminated (8th) |
 | This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources .(May 2015) |
In 2014, McCloud signed with the Spectra Music Group and released a single entitled "What About The Beautiful Children" and later "The Other Part of Me". Her upcoming album, "Red Apples" is to be released on May 27, 2015 under Monarchy Records, a subsidy of Spectra. On the week ending September 13, 2015, Red Apples debuted at #16 on the UK Soul Charts.
| Year | Album title | Credited as |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | What About Me? | Nicole |
| 1988 | Jam Packed | |
| 1989 | Rock The House (US re-release of Jam Packed) | |
| 1998 | Love Town | Nicole McCloud |
| 2002 | So What? | Nicole J McCloud |
| 2015 | Red Apples | Lillie Nicole McCloud |
| 2015 | Number One Contender (re-release of Love Town, with selections from Red Apples) | Lillie McCloud |
| Year | Title | Credited as | Peak chart positions | Album | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Dance | US R&B | BEL [5] | FRA [6] | GER | ITA | NED | SWE | SWI | UK | ||||
| 1985 | "Always and Forever" | Nicole | — | 66 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | What About Me? |
| 1986 | "Don't You Want My Love" | 10 | 66 | 7 | 18 | 20 | — | 9 | 8 | — | — | ||
| "New York Eyes" / "Ordinary Girl" (Nicole & Timmy Thomas) / Nicole) | — | — | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 41 | |||
| "Housecalls" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "What About Me?" | — | 52 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1988 | "Jam Packed (At the Wall)" | 34 | 93 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Jam Packed / Rock the House(US release) | |
| 1989 | "Rock the House" | 21 | 62 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1992 | "Rock the House" (with The Source) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 63 | Non-album release | |
| 1994 | "Drive Me Crazy" (with U.S.U.R.A.) | — | — | — | — | — | 8 | — | — | 30 | — | ||
| "Runnin' Away" | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 69 | Love Town | ||
| 1996 | "Long Train Runnin' (Without Love)" | 35 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998 | "Missing You" | Nicole McCloud | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1999 | "I Ain't Crazy" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001 | "One Good Reason" | Nicole J. McCloud | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | So What? |
| 2002 | "Search'n" | 5 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
Melanie Janine Brown, commonly known as Mel B or Melanie B, is an English singer, songwriter, television personality, and actress. She rose to fame in the 1990s as a member of the girl group Spice Girls, in which she was nicknamed Scary Spice. With over 100 million records sold worldwide, the group became the best-selling female group of all time.
Markíza is a Slovak television channel launched on August 31, 1996. The channel was founded by a later politician Pavol Rusko, and is now part of the Central European Media Enterprises (CME). It also operates television channels Doma, Dajto, Markíza International, Markíza KRIMI and Markíza Klasik.
Nicole Scherzinger is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, actress, and television personality. She is best known as the lead singer of the Pussycat Dolls.
Kerry McGregor was a Scottish singer-songwriter and actress from West Lothian. McGregor appeared on the third UK series of The X Factor, where she was mentored by Sharon Osbourne. McGregor died on 4 January 2012 of complications from bladder cancer, a disease she had had for years.
"I'm Going Down" is a song written and produced by Norman Whitfield, and performed by American soul and R&B group Rose Royce in 1976. It is from the film Car Wash and is featured on its soundtrack. In 1994, it was covered by American singer Mary J. Blige.
Rebecca Caroline Ferguson is a British soul singer and songwriter. In 2010, Ferguson finished in second place in the seventh series of The X Factor. She later released her debut album titled Heaven in December 2011. The album peaked at number 3 on the UK Albums Chart. Ferguson celebrated three more top-ten albums: Freedom (2013), Lady Sings the Blues (2015) and Superwoman (2016). She cites Aretha Franklin, Kings of Leon, Christina Aguilera and Amy Winehouse among her influences.
"Poison" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Nicole Scherzinger for her debut solo studio album, Killer Love (2011). Released on October 25, 2010, it is the first single from the album. It was produced by RedOne, BeatGeek and Jimmy Joker, and is distinctively different from Scherzinger's previous attempts at releasing solo material. "Poison" is backed with powerful synthesizers and a pulsing dance-pop beat. The single was released as a two-track digital download and as a seven-track remixes extended play (EP).
"Runnin' Away" is a song released by The Voices of Life with lead vocals performed by Sharon Pass, with whom Steve "Silk" Hurley worked also on previous singles (on "Seasons of Love" with leading vocal by Keith Nunnally in 1991, and "The Word Is Love " that peaked at number twenty-six on the UK Singles Chart in 1998.
Killer Love is the debut solo studio album by Pussycat Dolls lead singer Nicole Scherzinger which features special guest appearances from Sting, Enrique Iglesias & 50 Cent. It was released on March 18, 2011, by Interscope Records, in association with its affiliated record labels. Scherzinger had been working on a solo album since 2005, under the title Her Name Is Nicole and was originally due for release in 2007. However, unsuccessful singles and poor timing led the project being pushed back numerous times. After releasing The Pussycat Dolls' second studio album Doll Domination (2008), Scherzinger shelved the project entirely citing bad timing and creative issues as the reasons for its cancellation. Many of its songs were reassigned to the Dolls or other artists. In 2010, Moroccan producer RedOne was brought on board for a second attempt at launching her solo album.
"Try with Me" is a song recorded by American singer Nicole Scherzinger, taken from the re-release of her debut studio album, Killer Love (2011). The song was produced by Carsten "Soulshack" Schack, and written by Schack, Sean Hurley and the twins Olivia and Miriam Nervo. "Try with Me" was released as the first single from the re-release and the fifth and final single overall both releases. The song starts as a slow power ballad before erupting into an upbeat dance track. Lyrically the song is about heartache and heartbreak.
Celeste Rizvana Buckingham is a Slovak singer and songwriter. Buckingham began her career in 2011, after finishing fifth in the second season of Česko Slovenská SuperStar, the joint Czech-Slovak version of Idol.
Česko Slovenská SuperStar is the joint Czech-Slovak version of Idol series' Pop Idol merged from Česko hledá SuperStar and Slovensko hľadá SuperStar which previous to that had three individual seasons each. The third season premiered in February 2013 with castings held in Prague, Brno, Ostrava, Banská Bystrica, Bratislava and Košice. It is broadcast on two channels: «TV Nova» and «Markíza» (Slovakia) which have also been the broadcast stations for the individual seasons. Also both hosts have been their hosts countries before as have been three out of the three judges. To legitimate a fair chance for each country's contestants to reach the final, twelve of the contestants will compete split into genders and nationalities in the semifinals, guaranteeing a in the top 12.
Rachel Lindsey Potter is an American singer and actress. She is most known for her performances on Broadway as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family, the Mistress in the Tony-nominated revival of Evita, and being a contestant on season 3 of The X Factor.
"Don't You Want My Love" is a 1985/1986 hit song by Nicole McCloud under her mononym Nicole. The song was written by Aldo Nova and became a hit in several European countries and charted on the Billboard dance chart (#10) and R&B chart (#66) in the US.
X Factor Česko a Slovensko is a Czech and Slovak reality television music competition created by Simon Cowell and produced by FremantleMedia, on TV Prima and TV JOJ. Based on the original UK show, and an addition to the X Factor franchise, the series finds new singing talent, drawn from public auditions, and they compete against each other for votes. The winner is determined by the show's viewers SMS text voting, and is awarded a recording contract, worth €200.000.
Milan Zimnýkoval, known professionally as "Junior", is a Slovak television and radio presenter. He is the son of a soldier and his mother was a primary school teacher. For ten years he has danced in the Slovak folk dance group Zemplín. In June 2012 he married the television producer Antónia Gondová, who took on the married surname Zimnýkoval. They live together in Bratislava and raise their daughter Alexandra.
Česko Slovenská SuperStar is the joint Czech-Slovak version of Idols merged from Česko hledá SuperStar and Slovensko hľadá SuperStar which previous to that had three individual seasons each. The fifth season castings were held in Prague, Brno, Ostrava, Žilina, Bratislava and Košice. The season premiered on February 24, 2018 on TV Nova in the Czech Republic and on February 25, 2018 on Markíza in Slovakia, which have also been the broadcast stations for the individual seasons.
RLY are an English pop music girl group formed on The X Factor: The Band. They went onto win the series, subsequently signing to Syco Music however, the label went defunct and is no longer in operation. The group then later signed to Warner in August 2022 and then Real / Darco Recordings. The band is composed of Halle Williams, Virginia Hampson, Kellimarie Willis, Jess Folley and Kyra West. On the 3rd of August 2023, the group released their debut single “Love Me Or Not”.
Česko Slovenská SuperStar is the joint Czech-Slovak version of Idol series' Pop Idol merged from Česko hledá SuperStar and Slovensko hľadá SuperStar which previous to that had three individual seasons each. The sixth season premiered in winter 2020 with castings held in Prague and Bratislava. It is broadcast on two channels: «TV Nova» and «Markíza» (Slovakia) which have also been the broadcast stations for the individual seasons.
Alžbeta Ferencová, known profesionally as Zea, is a Slovak television actress, singer, choreographer, best known for her role as Iveta in the eponymous TV JOJ series Iveta.
| Authority control: Artists |
|---|
