Music

• Katy Perry

  Feb 22, 2014 AVA 0 Comments

  

  Katheryn Elizabeth "Katy" Hudson (born October 25, 1984), better known by her stage name Katy Perry, is an American recording artist, businesswoman, philanthropist, and actress. She was born near Santa Barbara, California and grew up there before moving to Los Angeles. Having had limited exposure to mainstream pop music in her childhood, she pursued a career in gospel music as a teen and released her debut studio album, Katy Hudson (2001). She later recorded a collaborative album with The Matrix and a solo album she worked on with Glen Ballard, the latter of which was never released.

  In April 2007, Perry signed a recording contract with Capitol Records. She rose to prominence with the release of her single "I Kissed a Girl" followed by her second album, One of the Boys (2008), which is predominantly pop rock. Perry's third record, Teenage Dream (2010), was preceded by the Billboard Hot 100 chart-topping singles "California Gurls" and "Teenage Dream", and later produced the number-one singles "Firework", "E.T.", and "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)". Teenage Dream became the first album recorded by a female artist in history to produce five number-one hits, and the second album overall after Michael Jackson's Bad (1987). The album features disco, electronic music, funk, and hip hop in addition to pop and rock. In March 2012, she re-released Teenage Dream as Teenage Dream: The Complete Confection, which was preceded by the number-one single "Part of Me". Her fourth album, Prism (2013), was preceded by the number-one single "Roar". The album was originally planned to be "darker" than Perry's previous material, but ultimately became an album influenced by Swedish dance music and focusing heavily on self-empowerment. The album later produced the number-one single "Dark Horse".

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• SIBEL CAN

  Feb 22, 2014 AVA 0 Comments

  

  Sibel Can (born August 1, 1970) is a popular Turkish folk pop singer. In recent years, she has also become popular in Azerbaijan. Sibel Can became a dancer at the age 14 and later started her singing career. She has been known as one of the most successful and powerful singers in Turkey. She is of Romani heritage.

  
  Rise to success and marriage
  Sibel first rose to fame as she started off as a professional belly-dancer hired by Fahrettin Aslan to perform at the Maksim Casino. Her little brother Ferhat was helping her with singing every day. Dancing was not the only activity she engaged in during her time at work, she had also been known to sing and so she would eventually shift her career direction into singing instead. Her first stage performance came at the age of 18, when she began singing songs from her first album, which had been produced by the help of Orhan Gencebay. These first stepping stones into the music industry would eventually make her be one of Turkey's most famous Arabesque artists. The achievements to her music would cause her to be a successful artist within this genre, as her voice has also become well familiar for Turks of all generations.
  Sibel was married to Sulhi Aksüt. They married on 24 March 2000 and filed for divorce in the summer of 2009. Together, they have a son named Emir. Her first marriage was to famous actor Hakan Ural, from 28 September 1988 until 18 February 1999. She has two children from her marriage with Hakan Ural, a son named Engincan and a daughter named Melisa.

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• Taylor Swift

  Nov 2, 2013 AVA 0 Comments

  Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Raised in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, Swift moved to Nashville, Tennessee at the age of fourteen to pursue a career in country music. She signed with the independent label Big Machine Records and became the youngest songwriter ever hired by the Sony/ATV Music publishing house. The release of Swift's eponymous debut album in 2006 established her as a country music star. "Our Song", her third single, made her the youngest person to single-handedly write and perform a number one song on the country chart. She received a Best New Artist nomination at the 2008 Grammy Awards.

  Swift's second album, Fearless, was released in 2008. Buoyed by the pop crossover success of the singles "Love Story" and "You Belong with Me", Fearless became the best-selling album of 2009 and was supported by an extensive concert tour. The record won four Grammy Awards, with Swift becoming the youngest ever Album of the Year winner. Swift's third album, 2010's Speak Now, sold over one million copies in its first week of US release and was supported by the Speak Now World Tour. The album's third single, "Mean", won two Grammy Awards. Swift's fourth album, Red, was released in 2012. Its opening US sales of 1.2 million were the highest recorded in a decade, with Swift becoming the only female artist to have two million-plus opening weeks. The singles "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" and "I Knew You Were Trouble" were worldwide hits. The Red Tour is visiting worldwide venues in 2013 and 2014.

  Swift is known for her narrative songs about her experiences as a teenager and young adult. As a songwriter, she has been honored by the Nashville Songwriters Association and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Swift's other achievements include seven Grammy Awards, twelve Billboard Music Awards, eleven American Music Awards, seven Country Music Association Awards and six Academy of Country Music Awards. She has sold over 26 million albums and 75 million digital single downloads worldwide. Forbes estimates that she is worth over $220 million. In addition to her music career, Swift has appeared as an actress in the ensemble comedy Valentine's Day (2010) and the animated film The Lorax (2012). As a philanthropist, Swift supports arts education, children's literacy, natural disaster relief, LGBT anti-discrimination efforts, and charities for sick children.

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• Adele

  Aug 24, 2013 lily 0 Comments

   

  

  Adele Laurie Blue Adkins MBE (born 5 May 1988), better known simply as Adele, is an English singer, songwriter, musician,

  and multi-instrumentalist. Adele was offered a recording contract from XL Recordings after a friend posted her demo on Myspace in 2006. The next year she received the Brit Awards "Critics' Choice" award and won the BBC Sound of 2008. Her debut album, 19, was released in 2008 to much commercial and critical success. It certified four times platinum in the UK, and double platinum in the US. Her career in the US was boosted by a Saturday Night Live appearance in late 2008. At the 2009 Grammy Awards, Adele received the awards for Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.

   

  Adele released her second album, 21, in early 2011.The album was well received critically and surpassed the success of her debut, earning the singer six Grammy Awards in 2012 including Album of the Year, equalling the record for most Grammy Awards won by a female artist in one night.^[10][11] The album has also led to her receiving numerous other awards, including two Brit Awards and three American Music Awards. The album has been certified 16 times platinum in the UK; in the US the album has held the top position longer than any other album since 1985, and iscertified Diamond. According to the IFPI, the album has sold over 26 million copies worldwide.

  The success of 21 earned Adele numerous mentions in the Guinness World Records. She is the first artist to sell more than 3 million copies of an album in a year in the UK. With her two albums and the first two singles from 21, "Rolling in the Deep" and "Someone Like You", she became the first living artist to achieve the feat of having two top-five hits in both the UK Official Singles Chart and the Official Albums Chart simultaneously sinceThe Beatles in 1964. With her third release from the album, "Set Fire to the Rain", which became her third number one single in the US, Adele became the first artist in history to lead the Billboard 200 concurrently with three Billboard Hot 100 number-ones.

  Adele is the first female in the history of the Billboard Hot 100 to have three singles in the top 10 at the same time as a lead artist, and the first female artist to have two albums in the top five of the Billboard 200 and two singles in the top five of the Billboard Hot 100 simultaneously.21 is the longest running number one album by a female solo artist on the UK and US Albums Chart. In 2011 and 2012, Billboard named Adele Artist of the Year. In 2012, Adele was listed at number five on VH1's 100 Greatest Women in Music, and the American magazine Time named Adele one of the most influential people in the world. In 2013, she received an Academy Award as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Songfor her song "Skyfall", written for Skyfall, the twenty-third James Bond film.

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• Googoosh

  Jul 21, 2013 lily 0 Comments

   Faegheh Atashin (Persian: Fāeqe Ātaŝin‎, Azerbaijani: Faeqeh Atashin , born on 5 May 1950 in Tehran), also known by her stage name Googoosh(Persian: Guguŝ‎, Azerbaijani: Ququş ), is an Iranian singer and actress. She is known for her contributions to Iranian pop music, but also starred in a variety of movies from the 1950s to the 1970s.

  

  She achieved the pinnacle of her fame and success towards the end of the 1970s. Her overall impact and contributions to Middle Eastern and Central Asian pop-music earned her the title of the most iconic female pop-singer from those regions. Due to her great talents and overall endearment to her people, she is a symbol of national pride to the Iranian people and Iranian Azerbaijanis.

  Following the Iranian Revolution in 1979, she is famously known for remaining in Iran until 2000 and not performing again due to the ban on female singers. Still, her following grew. Younger people have rediscovered her music via bootleg recordings.Outside of Iran, she has a significant following in many Middle Eastern and Central Asian countries, and has even caught the attention of western media and press. Her most recent projects include a new collaboration with singer/songwriter Hassan Shamaizadeh for the track Hayahoo from her last album Ejaz, as well as serving as head judge and head of academy for the popular reality show Googoosh Music Academy which is broadcasted on London based satellite channel Manoto 1.

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• Mizz Nina

  Jul 12, 2013 lily 0 Comments

  Shazrina binti Azman (born 1 July 1980) also professionally known as Mizz Nina, is a Malaysian singer-songwriter. She performs songs in English and Malay, which includes Malaysian and international collaborations.Mizz Nina is married to Noh Salleh, vocalist for the band Hujan. Their wedding was held at Mizz Nina's family residence near Ukay Heights, Ampang on her birthday, July 1, 2011. She is the daughter of Tan Sri Dato' Azman Hashim, the Chairman of AmBank Group.

  In 1997, she formed First Born Troopz with Fiquetional, with whom she would later co-found the seminal Malaysian hip-hop group, the Teh Tarik Crew in 1999. It was with TTC that her musical career truly took off, with two AIM nominations in 2002 for the group’s full-length album How’s The Level?. By 2004, Mizz Nina had two more AIM nominations, this time for Teh Tarik Crew’s sophomore album, What’s Next?. They later disbanded in 2007 to pursue solo careers.

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• Jennifer Lopez (J.LO)

  Jul 8, 2013 lily 0 Comments

  Jennifer Lynn Muñiz (née Lopez; born July 24, 1969) is an American entertainer, businesswoman, producer and philanthropist. She became interested in pursuing a career in the entertainment industry following a minor role in the 1986 film My Little Girl, to the dismay of her Puerto Ricanparents, who believed that it was an unrealistic career route for a Hispanic. Lopez gained her first regular high-profile job as a Fly Girl dancer on In Living Color in 1991, where she remained a regular until she decided to pursue an acting career in 1993. She received her first leading role in theSelena biopic of the same name in 1997. Lopez became the first Latina actress to earn over $1 million for a role the following year, with the film Out of Sight. She ventured into the music industry in 1999 with her debut studio album, On the 6, joining a select few in successfully converting from a film to a music career.

  With the simultaneous release of her second studio album J.Lo and her film The Wedding Planner in 2001, Lopez became the first person to have a number one album and film in the same week. Her 2002 remix album, J to tha L–O! The Remixes, was the first in history to debut at number one on the US Billboard 200, while her fifth studio album, Como Ama una Mujer (2007), received the highest first-week sales for a Spanish album in the United States. Lopez has established herself as a prominent figure in both the film and music industry, in a career spanning four decades. With records sales of 75 million and a cumulative film gross of over $2 billion, Lopez is regarded as the most influential Hispanic performer in the United States, as well as the highest-paid Latin actress. Her rags to riches story is considered a rarity, having innovated Latin influence in the entertainment community which it lacked for decades.

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• Shadmehr Aghili

  Jul 7, 2013 lily 0 Comments

  

  Shadmehr was a child prodigy with an innocent sensuality, one that seems to be of his own invention. At the age of (4), signs of artistic sensations appeared on his face every time he heard a song or a tender voice from the TV or radio, or even from his own parents. Young Shadmehr began studying music with the encouragement of his brother and mother. He learned to play the piano and the violin just before he was 18 years old. The guitar is also an instrument which Shadmehr learned to play in a dexterous manner. at age 17, he entered a school of arts in Tehran and in a short time showed great intelligence in composing and playing music. After receiving a music diploma, when pop music was forbidden in Iran, Aghili entered the “music school of television”. Aghili composed a great deal of music for other singers. Finally, in 1997, his first album was presented, Bahareman (“My spring”), which was a collection of classic and folkloric music played and arranged by Aghili (violin, guitar, piano, keyboard). In the same year his voice was heard in Mabood, his first vocal music, and afterward he continued work that resulted in Mosafer (“The traveler”), his first complete vocal album. In 1999 he created a revolutionary album, Dehati (“The villager”), with rock and roll, 6′n’8 and popular rhythms. However, none of his songs were permitted to be played on public media (i.e. TV). Shadmehr worked hard to get a permission for his Adam o Hava (Adam & Eve), an album that was supposed to be released in 2001. However, not only he did not, but also, he was banned to work as a singer, musician, or to appear on TV shows. Having left with no better choice, he decided to leave Iran in 2002, in order to continue his music in Canada , away from any restrictions. Khiali Nist (“No Worries”), Adamforoush (“Traitor”, 2004) and “Popcorn 2006″ and “Destiny 2009″ are his most recent albums released since his move to Canada and the United States. In addition, Shadmehr acted in two movies, namely, Pare Parvaz (2000) and Shabe Berahneh (2001). He is the first Iranian who entered Mandolin in Iranian musics in (Mashkook) and (Yekari kon) songs from his recent album Destiny. Shadmehr addicted to his work; he’s a perfectionist who spends hours in the studio.Shadmehr is definitely a promising star with an extra ordinary talent. We expect more success day after day for our extra ordinary star.

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• Ebrahim Hamedi (Ebi)

  Jul 7, 2013 lily 0 Comments

  Ebrahim Hamedi (born 19 June 1949), known better by his stage name Ebi, is one of the most famous and influential Iranian singers of his time. He is widely known for his expressive voice and is considered one of the best singers of his generation. He lives in exile in Marbella, Spain, although he also spends time in Los Angeles. Since the Islamic revolution in Iran he mostly tours the world, having combined musical influences from traditional Persian music, western pop and sometimes Latino style rhythms.
  

  In 1974, he became the best singer in Turkey festival with the song Shekar. Exiled from Iran since the Islamic Revolution he has taken an active political stand against the Iranian regime; but has also performed his Iranian nationalistic song "Persian Gulf" that makes reference to the Iranian stand in the Persian Gulf naming dispute. Among other "politically charged" songs,Tasmim critically addressed the very controversial 2009 presidential Election. In 2010,  He has also been awarded Testimonially by the British M.S. (Multiple Sclerosis) Society in respect of his voluntary performance at the Royal Albert Hall in benefit of the M.S. patients....

  Ebi was born in Tehran, the eldest of five siblings. He received early musical schooling, as he was discovered by the Ministry of Art and Culture at a very early age. Declining an offer to further pursue classical schooling as an opera soloist in Italy, Ebi instead turned to popular music as a member in the group "Sun Boys". A major breakthrough was Ebi's performance of the song "Shab" (Night) at Fereydoun Farrokhzad's TV-show "Mikhak-e Noghreyi". During a series of planned concerts in the United States, Ebi, due to the events preceding the revolution of 1979, decided not to return to Iran.

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• Kourosh Yaghmaei

  May 11, 2013 AVA 0 Comments

  Kourosh Yaghmaei was 10 when his father gave him a gift that revealed his talent for music. It was a Santour (The Persian Traditional string-percussive /Dulcimer). According to his mother, when he opened his present, after a few tries, he started to play a tune. Not to mention that he had never touched a Santour before. After 5 years of practice he gained precious knowledge of Iranian traditional music along with excellent skills in playing Santour.

  At the age of 15 he chose to play the guitar, which he has always loved. He gathered his own Pop/Rock bands which he both composed for and played in. He mostly played the lead guitar. In fact Kourosh introduced Rock music to Iran with a Pop formation of songs. At that time he received several tempting offers from Western musicians and bands’ managers to join them. In his senior year as a Social Science student at the Iran National University (DANESHGHAH-e MELLI-e IRAN), Kourosh released his first single hit GOL-e YAKH. The poem was written by his classmate, now-famous poet Mahdi Akhavan Langeroudi. This memorable love song led him to worldwide fame. He orchestrated, composed, played and sang the song. The song received international attention. It was re-played and sang in several other languages by their local musicians.

  His voice was banned for 17 years after 1979. In these years he published children stories on books and cassettes. He released an instrumental album called DIYAAR (Homeland). It was an orchestration of endemic songs for Grand National Orchestra. He also took some guitar students. His first album SIB-e NOGHRE’EE (Silvery Apple) was released after the ban was lifted. His picture was only allowed to be printed in his albums after 24 years. It has to be noted that Kourosh has learnt all different aspects of music without having any music teacher or instructor.

   

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