Karen Zoid

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Karen Zoid (born Karen Louise Greeff) is a female South African rock artist with both vocal and guitar talent.

On 3 May, 2008 she won one of the top 5 most prestigious music awards in South Africa - the South African Music Awards SAMA for Best Female Solo Artist of 2008. This is very much the Grammy of South Africa.

She is also an acclaimed songwriter with 55 of her songs released over her three EMI albums (36 in English, 19 in Afrikaans).

Born, on 10 August 1978, in Brussels, Belgium, to a South African diplomat, she grew up in Belgium and then Johannesburg where she developed form a teenage busker on the streets of Johannesburg to an award-winning national figure.

Her band is composed of Don Reinecke on lead guitar and co-writer on many of her songs, Rixi Roman on bass guitar and Marlon Green on drums and percussion. In 2004 she married Don Reinecke. On 29 January 2007 Karen and Don welcomed a third member to their family, baby boy Ben Francis Reinecke.

Her first album, "Poles Apart", released by EMI in June 2001, was an instant success, especially amongst the youth of South African. Even the press started referring to the "Zoid Generation", and her icon status was highlighted in 2004 by both Time Magazine and U.S. News & World Report. Her songs, both in English and Afrikaans, are regarded as poetry. In fact, her songs are part of the first year university curriculum in Afrikaans at some universities, for example in course AFR 164 at the University of Pretoria.

In 2002 she was a nomination in the finalists for South African Woman of the Year.

In 2004 she was the poster face and main speaker at an international poetry conference in Cape Town.

EMI released her second album, "Chasing the Sun", in June 2003, and her third, "Media" In July 2005.

All three of those albums achieved Gold Record status.

In 2007 she changed her record company from EMI to Just Music and on 2 August 2007 her fourth album, "Postmodern World", was released to critical and public acclaim. In particular her songs "Aeroplane Jane" and "Postmodern World" on the new digital world alternatively topped the charts at the end of 2007 in South Africa.

She has consistently had major radio play and many of her songs have attained cult status across language, cultural and ethnic lines. Her CDs have been included on the audio entertainment of international flights to and from South Africa. She has written music for television and two of her songs featured in the 2006 movie "Number 10".

Her status as a cross-cultural icon was exemplified when she performed at the inauguration of State President Mbeki. She and her band also performed at the Nelson Mandela 46664 concert where she shared the stage with Queen and Katie Melua. She and her band have had several concerts in London over the years. In 2006 they performed in London again as well as Canada and in Dubai at the Dubai Desert Rhythm Festival. She has performed alongside John Mayer, Metallica, Seal, Hothouse Flowers, Collective Soul and Simple Plan.

As of mid May 2008, almost a year after its release, "Aeroplane Jane" is still the no 1 download on South Africa's main download site, Rhythm Records. Her albums are also available on iTunes Store in the United Kingdom.