Heather Headley
| Heather Headley | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 5, 1974 Barataria, Trinidad and Tobago |
| Genres | R&B, soul, inspirational, gospel |
| Occupations | Singer, songwriter, record producer, actress |
| Years active | 1997–present |
| Labels | RCA, EMI Gospel |
| Website | www.heatherheadley.com |
Heather Headley (born October 5, 1974) is a Trinidadian-American R&B and soul singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. She has won one Tony Award and one Grammy Award.
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[edit] Personal life
Headley was born in Barataria, Trinidad and Tobago, the daughter of Hannah and Eric Headley.[1] At age four, Headley began playing the music of her native Trinidad, including calypso, and soca.[citation needed] In 1989 she moved to Fort Wayne, Indiana in the United States at the age of fifteen with her mother and brother Junior, when her father was offered a job as pastor of McKee Street Church of God with headquarters in Anderson, Indiana.
Headley attended Northrop High School, and was a member of their resident show choir, Charisma, and starred as Fanny Brice in the school's production of Funny Girl. After graduating from Northrop High School, Headley attended Northwestern University to study communications and musical theatre until the last day of her junior year, when she made the difficult decision to become a part of the musical Ragtime and drop out of school.
In 2003 Headley married Brian Musso, formerly of the New York Jets. Both attended Northwestern University.[2] On December 1, 2009, they welcomed their first child John David.
[edit] Career
In 1997, she originated the role of Nala in The Lion King, the Broadway musical. Headley's performance was well-received and she then originated the title role in the Broadway adaptation of Aida, earning the Tony Award for Best Actress in 2000. In 1999, she appeared in the Encores! production of Do Re Mi, with Nathan Lane, Randy Graff, and Brian Stokes Mitchell. She also starred in a concert version of the musical Dreamgirls alongside Audra McDonald and Lillias White.
In the autumn of 2006, Heather performed Hal David and Burt Bacharach's song "I'll Never Fall In Love Again", from the 1968 musical Promises, Promises for "The Kennedy Center Presents: The 2006 Mark Twain Prize," honoring playwright Neil Simon. The ceremony was later broadcast on PBS.
On 5 July 2007 Headley made a guest appearance for Andrea Bocelli's Vivere Live in Tuscany concert in Lajatico, Italy. They performed Vivo Per Lei and The Prayer. Headley sang "My Country, 'Tis of Thee" (also known as "America") with Josh Groban on January 18, 2009 during the We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial.[3] On March 12, 2009, Headley sang, "I Wish" on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.
[edit] Music
Headley released her debut album, This Is Who I Am, in October 2002 on RCA Records. Although its first single, "He Is", was not very successful, the second single, "I Wish I Wasn't", achieved moderate success. The work on this album earned her a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and for Best New Artist.
Her second album, In My Mind, was delayed due to the various executive shake-ups associated with RCA parent BMG's merger with Sony.
Under BMG North America chairman/CEO Clive Davis for the first time, Headley released her second album In My Mind in January 2006. The title track "In My Mind" ( produced by India.Arie collaborator Shannon Sanders ) was released as the first single; and its music video was directed by Diane Martel. The song reached number-one on the U.S. Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. The second single "Me Time" was released to Urban AC outlets only. An album track, "Am I Worth It", served to promote Headley's New March of Dimes Educational Campaign "I Want My 9 Months".
In 2009, Headley, along with Al Green, released a version of the song People Get Ready on the compilation album Oh Happy Day: An All-Star Music Celebration.[4]
On the January 31, 2010, Heather won her first Grammy Award for Best Contemporary R&B Gospel Album for Audience of One on the EMI Gospel label.
In December 2010, Headley performed a duet version of "Blue Christmas" and "My Prayer" with Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli on Bocelli's "My Christmas" tour in six cities. Of special note: at the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ on December 4, 2010, the audience insisted on a rare second encore with Bocelli, as they were captivated with her as much as Bocelli. Bocelli had to summon the detail to go back and get her to come back on stage.[citation needed] This is noted because Bocelli has other performers with whom he travels, but rarely do they get the ovation on the level of Bocelli, but this crowd clearly and loudly ovated their praise of Headley's stunning performance.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
| Year | Album | US | US R&B |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | This Is Who I Am (Certified: Gold) |
#38 | #14 |
| 2006 | In My Mind (Certified: Gold) |
#5 | #1 |
| 2009 | Audience of One | #27 | #6 |
[edit] Singles
| Year | Song | US Hot 100 | US R&B | US Dance | US Gospel | Hot Adult R&B | Hot R&B Recurrents | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | "He Is" | 90 | 38 | 4 | - | - | 2 | This Is Who I Am |
| 2003 | "I Wish I Wasn't" | 55 | 15 | 5 | - | - | 5 | This Is Who I Am |
| 2005 | "In My Mind" | 75 | 16 | 1 | - | - | 4 | In My Mind |
| 2006 | "Me Time" | - | 35 | - | - | 5 | 4 | In My Mind |
| 2008 | "Jesus Is Love" | - | 90 | - | 10 | 29 | - | Audience of One |
[edit] Other
| Name of the Song | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| Can You Feel the Love Tonight | 1997 | The Lion King on Broadway Cast Recording |
| Shadowland | 1997 | The Lion King on Broadway Cast Recording |
| The Madness of King Scar | 1997 | The Lion King on Broadway Cast Recording |
| Love Will Find a Way | 1998 | Return to Pride Rock |
| Just One Dream | 2001 | Golden Dreams (film at Disney California Adventure Park) |
| People Get Ready (with Al Green) | 2009 | Oh Happy Day |
[edit] Awards
[edit] Acting
| Year | Award | Role | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical | Aida | Won |
| 2000 | Sarah Siddons Award | Work in Chicago theatre | Won |
[edit] Music
| Year | Award | Recording | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Grammy Award for Best New Artist | "I Wish I Wasn't" | Nominated |
| 2004 | Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance | "I Wish I Wasn't" | Nominated |
| 2010 | Grammy Award for Best Gospel Performance | "Jesus Is Love" | Nominated |
| 2010 | Grammy Award for Best Contemporary R&B Gospel Album | "Audience Of One" | Won |
| 2003 | Billboard Music Award for R&B/Hip-Hop New Artist of the Year | N/A | Nominated |
| 2003 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding New Artist | N/A | Nominated |
| 2003 | NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Female Artist | N/A | Nominated |
| 2002 | Soul Train Award for Best R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist | "He Is" | Nominated |
| 2003 | Soul Train Lady of Soul Award for R&B/Soul Album of the Year - Solo | "This Is Who I Am" | Won |
| 2003 | Soul Train Lady of Soul Award for Best R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist - Solo | "He Is" | Won |
| 2003 | Soul Train Lady of Soul Award for Best R&B/Soul Single - Solo | "He Is" | Nominated |
| 2006 | BET J/Centric for Cool Like That Award | N/A | Nominated |
[edit] References
- ^ "Heather Headley Biography" FilmReference.com, accessed August 28, 2011
- ^ "In Step With Heather Headley"Parade, accessed August 28, 2011
- ^ Gans, Andrew." 'Obama Inauguration Celebration', with Beyonce, Headley, Usher, Latifah, Broadcast Jan. 18", Playbill.com, January 18, 2009
- ^ Price, Deborah Evans (March 27, 2009). "Jon Bon Jovi, Queen Latifah go gospel for "Day"". Reuters. http://www.reuters.com/article/musicNews/idUSTRE52Q6WQ20090327.
[edit] External links
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- 1974 births
- Living people
- American film actors
- American musicians
- American female singers
- American people of Trinidad and Tobago descent
- American record producers
- American stage actors
- Grammy Award winners
- Neo soul singers
- Northwestern University alumni
- People from Fort Wayne, Indiana
- Rhythm and blues singer-songwriters
- Tony Award winners
- Trinidad and Tobago film actors
- Trinidad and Tobago musicians
- Trinidad and Tobago record producers
- Trinidad and Tobago stage actors
