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Biography
Infobox musical artist| name =India.Arie| image = India-Arie in 2004 by Chris Hakkens.jpg| caption = Arie performing in Belgium in 2004| background = solo_singer| landscape = yes| birth_name = India Arie Simpson| Born = birth date and age|1975|10|3 Denver, Colorado.| origin = Atlanta, Georgia | instrument = Singing|Vocals , guitar , flute , Keyboard instrument|keyboard | genre = Soul music|Soul , contemporary R& B|R& B , neo soul , blues , folk music|folk , pop music|pop | occupation = singer-songwriter , record producer | years_active = 2000–present| label = Motown Records|Motown (1999& ndash;2007) SoulBird / Universal Motown Republic Group|Universal Republic (2007& ndash;present)| website = http://www.indiaarie.com/ www.indiaarie.com http://www.soulbird.com/ www.soulbird.com India.Arie (born India Arie Simpson ; October 3, 1975) is a Grammy Award -winning American singer-songwriter and record producer .cite web |url= http://www.efi-news.com/2011/10/on-spiritual-and-emotional-journey.html |title=On A Spiritual And Emotional Journey - India.Arie And Her Music |work=EF News International |accessdate=2011-10-28 She has sold over 3.3 million records in the U.S. and 10 million worldwide. She has won four Grammy Awards from her 21 nominations, including Grammy Award for Best R& B Album|Best R& B Album .
Background
Simpson was born in Denver , Colorado . Her musical skills were encouraged by both parents early in life. Her mother Joyce is a former singer (she was signed to Motown Records|Motown as a teenager and opened for Stevie Wonder and Al Green )cite web |url= http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HST/is_5_6/ai_n6192628 |title=The soul of a songwriter: India.Arie talks about reading, writing and stoking her creative fires |accessdate=2007-05-05 |work= Black Issues Book Review |date=September–October 2004Dead link|date=November 2010|bot=H3llBot and is now her stylist. She has an older brother named J'On. After her parents divorced, Simpson's mother moved the family to Atlanta, Georgia|Atlanta , Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia when she was thirteen.cite web |url= http://www.mtv.com/music/artist/arie_india/artist.jhtml#bio |title=India.Arie MTV biography |accessdate=2007-10-15 |work= MTV Simpson had taken up a succession of musical instruments throughout her schooling in Denver, but her interest in the guitar while attending the Savannah College of Art and Design , in Savannah, Georgia|Savannah , led to a personal revelation about songwriting and performing. "When I started tapping into my own sensitivity, I started to understand people better. It was a direct result of writing songs", she said at the press release of her debut album, Acoustic Soul .
Co-founding the Atlanta-based indie (music)|independent music collective Groovement EarthShare (Groovement was the collective artists' name and EarthShare was their independent label name), her one-song turn on a locally-released compilation led to a second-stage gig at the 1998 LilithFair . In 1999, a Universal Records|Universal /Motown music scout spotted her and made an introduction to former Motown CEO Kedar Massenberg . Arie currently resides in Atlanta, Georgia .
Musical career
Acoustic Soul (2001)
Main|Acoustic Soul Acoustic Soul was released on March 27, 2001 and debuted at number ten on the U.S. Billboard 200| Billboard 200 and number three on the Top R& B/Hip-Hop Albums . Within months, without the concentrated radio airplay (radio)|airplay that typically powers pop music|pop and rap albums, Acoustic Soul was certified double platinum, selling 2,180,000 copies in the U.S. and 3,000,000 copies worldwide. While Arie and the album were nominated for seven Grammy awards in 2002, they won no awards, losing in five of seven categories to Alicia Keys . She closed the ceremony with a performance of her song " Video (song)|Video ".
Main|Voyage to IndiaArie followed the success of her debut on September 24, 2002 with the release of Voyage to India . It debuted at number six on the Billboard 200 and number one on the R& B chart. In 2003 it won her two Grammy Awards in 45th Grammy Awards|2003 —" Grammy Award for Best R& B Album|Best R& B Album " and Grammy Award for Best Urban/Alternative Performance|Best Urban/Alternative Performance " for the song "Little Things". Soon after its release, Voyage to India was certified platinum selling 1,400,000 copies Citation needed|date=June 2009in the U.S. and 2,300,000 worldwide Citation needed|date=June 2009.
Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship (2006)
Main|Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & RelationshipArie's third studio album, Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship , was released on June 27, 2006. It gave Arie her first number-one spot on the Billboard 200 and was her second chart-topper on the R& B chart. This album was also the first number-one album for Motown in twelve years Citation needed|date=July 2009. Its first-week sales of 161,000 copies are Arie's best sales week to date and was certified gold in August 2006, selling 730,000 in US and 1,300,000 worldwide. " I Am Not My Hair " was the most successful release from Testimony: Vol. 1. , reaching the U.S. Billboard Hot 100| Billboard Hot 100 at #97 and the UK Singles Chart at #65.
Her cover of Don Henley 's " The Heart of the Matter (song)|The Heart of the Matter " from Testimony: Vol. 1 was used in 2008 as a feature in the trailers to the film Sex and the City: The Movie .
Testimony: Vol. 2, Love & Politics (2009)
Main|Testimony: Vol. 2, Love & PoliticsHer highly anticipated next album, Testimony: Vol. 2, Love & Politics was released on Tuesday, February 10, 2009. It debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, and No. 2 on the R& B chart. Within this CD, Arie collaborated with such artists as Sezen Aksu , Keb Mo, Gramps Morgan and Musiq Soulchild to fulfill her self-proclaimed desire to "do projects with people who are making music that is meaningful, with a lot of integrity and a lot of sonic diversity". Arie, in the cited interview, also identified this CD as the first of her collection to come directly from her own point of view, without feeling any necessity to fulfill fan or media needs. Arie was able to achieve this newfound ability to write and sing songs without worrying about public opinion after a much-needed vacation to Hawaii. This CD was Arie's first CD produced after her change from Motown to Universal Records.Lewis, Pete. "India.Arie: Sweet, Sweet Soul Music." bluesandsoul.com. Issue 1024. Web. 03 Nov 2009
Open Door
India.Arie's new album, a work produced in collaboration with Israeli singer Idan Raichel is due to be released in summer, 2012.cite web |url=https://twitter.com/#!/indiaarie/|title=India.Arie (indiaarie) on Twitter |accessdate=2012-02-05 |date=2012-02-05
Collaborations
Arie performed a duet with rock music|rock singer-guitarist John Mellencamp on the song " Peaceful World (John Mellencamp song)|Peaceful World " for his 2001 album '' Cuttin' Heads .
Arie performed a duet with jazz singer Cassandra Wilson on the song "Just Another Parade" for her 2002 album Belly of the Sun .
On the http://tyrashow.warnerbros.com/show_recaps/show_recap_mon1.html September 12, 2005 premiere of The Tyra Banks Show , Arie http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=63-7HdZwmcY performed "Just 4 2day", a song she wrote especially for Tyra Banks|Tyra 's show. She also performed "What About the Child", a song that did not air but was made available as a one-dollar Internet download to support child victims of Hurricanes Hurricane Katrina|Katrina and Hurricane Rita|Rita .cite web |url= http://www.iamplify.com/tyra_banks_release.php |title=Tyra Banks & India.Arie |accessdate=2007-03-06 |work=iAmplify|date=December 8, 2005
Arie is also featured on Stevie Wonder 's album A Time to Love , released on October 18, 2005. Arie and Wonder duet on the title track "A Time to Love", written by Arie, which was nominated for " Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals|Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals " at the 48th Grammy Awards|2006 Grammy Awards . Three years earlier, their rendition of Mel Tormé 's 1944 classic " The Christmas Song ", recorded for the holiday TV commercial for retailer Target Corporation|Target , had been nominated for the same category, making it the first song created and financed exclusively for a commercial to be nominated for a Grammy Award.cite web |url= http://www.xs4all.nl/~mroyen/News/2003/news_february_9_2003.htm |title=Brian McKnight, Marc Anthony & More On Stevie Wonder Tribute Collection |accessdate=2007-06-01 |work=Spotlight on R& B |date=February 9, 2003
Arie performed a duet with Brazil ian musician Sérgio Mendes on the title song "Timeless" for his 2006 album Timeless (Sérgio Mendes album)|Timeless .
Arie performed the vocals for "It Might Be You" on Dave Koz 's 2007 album At the Movies .
Arie collaborated with Akon for her song " I Am Not My Hair ". On the April 16, 2007 episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show entitled "After Imus: Now What? ", Arie guest-starred as a panelist. She stated that she was not completely crazy about the duet partner, but the label suggested that it would make the album more commercial. Versions without Akon on the song were made available.
Arie performed the song "She Is" for Ellen Johnson Sirleaf , inspired by the PBS Independent Lens documentary Iron Ladies of Liberia .
Arie performed a duet with singer Anthony David (singer)|Anthony David for his song " Words (Anthony David song)|Words " for his 2008 album Acey Duecy .
Arie performed "Self-Fulfilling" in duet with Beate S. Lech of Beady Belle on the band's 2008 album Belvedere .
Arie http://www.youtube.com/watch? v=ML8IL77gQ3k sang the Alphabet song with Elmo on Sesame Street .
Arie appeared with Leona on Between the Lions singing a song about outlaw word s.
Arie performed "Video" with British singer Adele (singer)|Adele at the 2009 VH1Divas
Arie is one of over 70 artists singing on " We Are the World: 25 for Haiti ", a charity single in aid of the 2010 Haiti earthquake .
Arie performed a duet with Marc Cohn on the song "Make It With You" for his 2010 album Listening Booth: 1970 .
Arie collaborated in 2010 with Santana (band)|Santana for the Beatles' cover, While My Guitar Gently Weeps .
Arie contributed vocals to " Imagine (song)|Imagine " for the 2010 Herbie Hancock album, The Imagine Project along with Seal (musician)|Seal , P!nk , Jeff Beck , Konono N°1 , Oumou Sangare and others.cite web|url= http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php? id=36827 |title=The Imagine Project |publisher=All About Jazz |date=2010-06-21 |accessdate=2010-11-29
Arie collaborated with Idan Raichel to create a series of different songs including a performance at the Noble Peace Prize
The Grammy Award s are awarded annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences . Arie has won four awards from twenty-one nominations, including Grammy Award for Album of the Year|Album of the Year , Grammy Award for Record of the Year|Record of the Year , Grammy Award for Song of the Year|Song of the Year and Grammy Award for Best New Artist|Best New Artist , she lost all. In 2002, She got record Most Nominations in One Night without winning with received seven nominations.
awards table|- |rowspan="7"|grammy|2002|India.Arie | Best New Artist |nom|- |rowspan="2"| Acoustic Soul | Album of the Year |nom|- | Best R& B Album |nom|- |rowspan="4"|" Video (India.Arie song)|Video " | Record of the Year |nom|- | Grammy Award for Song of the Year|Song of the Year |nom|- | Best Female R& B Vocal Performance |nom|- | Best R& B Song |nom|- |rowspan="3"|grammy|2003|" Little Things " | Best Urban/Alternative Performance |won|- |" The Christmas Song " | Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals |nom|- | Voyage to India |Best R& B Album |won|- |rowspan="1"|grammy|2006|"A Time To Love" |Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals |nom|- |rowspan="3"|grammy|2007|rowspan="2"|"I Am Not My Hair" |Best Female R& B Vocal Performance |nom|- |Best R& B Song |nom|- | Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationships |Best R& B Album |nom|- |rowspan="1"|grammy|2008|rowspan="1"|"Beautiful Flower" |Best R& B Song |nom|- |rowspan="1"|grammy|2009|rowspan="1"|"Words" | Best R& B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group |nom|- |rowspan="3"|grammy|2010|rowspan="1"|"Pearls" |Best Urban/Alternative Performance |won|- |rowspan="1"|"Chocolate High" | Best R& B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group |nom|- |rowspan="1"| Testimony Vol. 2, Love & Politics |Best R& B Album |nom|- |rowspan="2"|grammy|2011|rowspan="2"|" Imagine (song)|Imagine " |Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals |won|- | Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s) |nomend ; BET Awards :2002 - Best Female R& B Artist (Won) :2003 - Best Female R& B Artist (Won) ; MTV Video Music Award :2001 - MTV2 Award for "Video" (Nominated) ; Soul Train Music Award :2003 - Female R& B/Soul Single for "Little Things" (Nominated)
In 2009, India.Arie portrayed Nina Simone in a staged reading at the Roundabout Theatre Company of the upcoming Broadway musical "Soul Doctor", about the life of Shlomo Carlebach written by Daniel Wise (playwright)|Daniel Wise .
References
reflist
External links
http://www.indiaarie.com Official website
http://www.bluesandsoul.com/feature/401/sweet_sweet_soul_music/ India.Aire interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' April 2009
http://umrg.com/artist.aspx? pg=product& aid=426& pid=1836 India.Arie on Motown Records website
Allmusic|class=artist|id=p475170|label=India.Arie
imdb name|id=1136546|name=India.Arie
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php? storyId=15184245 India.Arie at NPR Music
India.Arie Persondata| NAME = India.Arie | ALTERNATIVE NAMES = Simpson, India Arie | SHORT DESCRIPTION = American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and flautist | DATE OF BIRTH = October 3, 1975 | PLACE OF BIRTH = Denver, Colorado|Denver , Colorado , United States | DATE OF DEATH = | PLACE OF DEATH = DEFAULTSORT:Arie, India Category:1975 births Category:African American female singer-songwriters Category:African American record producers Category:American contraltos Category:American female guitarists Category:American flautists Category:American rhythm and blues guitarists Category:American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters Category:American soul singers Category:English-language singers Category:Feminist musicians Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Living people Category:Motown artists Category:Musicians from Colorado Category:Neo soul singers Category:People from Atlanta, Georgia Category:People from Denver, Colorado Category:People from Savannah, Georgia Category:Songwriters from Colorado
