Lisa Lee Dark

Last updated

Lisa Lee Dark
Birth nameLee Dark
Born (1981-04-16) 16 April 1981 (age 43)
Origin Swansea, Wales
Genres Opera, classical crossover, Christian, new-age, dance
Occupation(s)Opera singer, songwriter, voice actress
InstrumentVocals
Years active1992–present
LabelsAngel Guardian Records, VIP international Records
Website Blog

Lisa Lee Dark (born Lee Dark; 16 April 1981) is a Welsh opera singer, songwriter, and voice actress.

Contents

Early life

Lisa Lee Dark was born Lee Dark [1] in the Clydach area of Swansea on 16 April 1981. [2] Her distant relatives include Italian opera singer Adelina Patti. [3] She was born with the rare medical condition congenital adrenal hyperplasia, which leads to excessive generation of testosterone during the early part of foetal life. [4] This meant that she was raised as male because doctors failed to realise that she was biologically female, a fact even she did not discover until she was 19 years old. [1] [5] She was very badly bullied during her school years. [5] [6] She went to an all-boys comprehensive school where she would regularly get kicked, punched, spat at, and have obscene things screamed at her; even outside school, she would get the same treatment because she was slightly different and did not behave like all the other boys. [4] [7] This left her with agoraphobia and PTSD. [7]

Music career

At age 12 she was discovered while singing in a park in Swansea. [8] In 2000 she released a compilation CD of ten years of her recordings she called The Unknown Story of Lisa-Lee Dark. [8] In 2004, Dark released an album entitled Breath of Life. [1] As of 2009 it had sold 50,000 copies. [9] She has released several more since, [4] including one in French. [9] She had previously worked on films, backing tracks and voiceovers. [3]

Dark claims an 8–9 octave vocal range. [3] [4]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Davies, Daniel (13 September 2004). "Lisa-Lee album launch". The Western Mail. walesonline.co.uk. Retrieved 20 December 2008.
  2. Williams, Maria (11 July 1999). "Why I'll be twice as good as the average pop star". Wales on Sunday.
  3. 1 2 3 Gledhill, Ruth (20 November 2004). "Highs and lows". The Times. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Smith, Mark (25 March 2018). "I want people to see me as a human being first and foremost". Wales on Sunday. pp. 6–7. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  5. 1 2 "BBC Radio 4 – Changing Sex" . Retrieved 6 August 2008.
  6. Collins, Claire (8 May 2000). "Showbiz loves the girl who was a guy". The Mirror. p. 18. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  7. 1 2 Smith, Mark (24 March 2018). "The woman who didn't realise she was female until she was 19". Wales Online. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  8. 1 2 Doyle, Christine (25 April 2000). "Lisa-Lee's refuge in music". The Daily Telegraph.
  9. 1 2 "Opera star wants to give back to charities". South Wales Evening Post. p. 16. Retrieved 29 September 2009.