KT Tunstall

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

KT Tunstall
KT Tunstall performing at the SECC on April 19 2008 in Glasgow.
KT Tunstall performing at the SECC on April 19 2008 in Glasgow.
Background information
Birth name Kate Tunstall
Born June 23, 1975 (1975-06-23) (age 32)
Origin St Andrews, Scotland
Genre(s) Rock, folk, country, pop, acoustic, alternative
Instrument(s) Guitar, drums, flute, piano, vocals
Years active 2000–present
Label(s) Relentless, Virgin
(2004-present)
Website www.kttunstall.com

Kate "KT" Tunstall (born 23 June 1975) is a Scottish singer and songwriter. She broke into the public eye with a performance of her song "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" on Later with Jools Holland. She has enjoyed commercial and critical success since, selling over four million albums[1] and picking up three BRIT Awards and two Grammy nominations.

While her first name is Kate, she chose to go by KT as her first name, saying "[Kate] just makes me think of a buxom lass baking bread for her man working in the fields. I have no problem with that, but it's just not really how I pictured being a rock star."[2] Also, Tunstall spells her first name KT (as opposed to Katie) to differentiate herself from fellow singer Katie Melua.[3]

Contents

[edit] Childhood and beginning

Tunstall was born in Edinburgh, Scotland on 23 June 1975, and was adopted eighteen days later.[2] She had been born in Edinburgh to a half Chinese and half Scottish mother and an Irish father.[4] KT has never met her biological father.[5] Her adoptive father was a physics lecturer at the University of St Andrews, and her adoptive mother a school teacher.[2] Tunstall's family also included an older brother named Joe and a younger brother named Daniel.

She grew up in St. Andrews, a town in Fife, attending Goodhead Primary, but spending her last year of high school in New England[2] at the Kent School, a selective preparatory school in Kent, Connecticut.[6][7] She spent time performing on Church Street in Burlington, Vermont, and at a commune in rural Vermont. Tunstall studied at the High School of Dundee in Dundee, Madras College in St Andrews, Kent School in Connecticut, and at Royal Holloway College, University of London.

[edit] Recording and performing career

Tunstall performing at the 2005 Glastonbury Festival with her Gibson Dove guitar.
Tunstall performing at the 2005 Glastonbury Festival with her Gibson Dove guitar.

Throughout her twenties, she mostly played in independent bands including Elia Drew and Tomoko, and focused on songwriting, as well as performing with members of the fledgling Fence Collective including work in the Skubaidh Dubh Orchestra with King Creosote, who recently supported her UK tour. She toured with the Klezmer band Oi Va Voi, and featured on their album, Laughter Through Tears. Her debut album, Eye to the Telescope, was released in late 2004. Tunstall's style of music varies from folk to pop. In Edinburgh and St Andrews, she played in a band called Red Light Stylus, which was regarded as one of the better bands to emerge from the limited Fife scene.

Tunstall's first appearance of note was a solo performance of her famed blues song "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" on Later with Jools Holland.[8] The performance was notable as she had only 24 hours to prepare after scheduled performer Nas cancelled.[9] Her performance caught the eye of many viewers, upstaging more established acts such as The Cure, Embrace, and The Futureheads; she then went on to top the post-show poll on the website for that episode.

Shortly after the "Later" appearance, Eye to the Telescope was re-released and shot up the UK charts, eventually peaking at #3 (on its first release it had entered at #73); it was nominated for the 2005 Mercury Music Prize. It was released in the U.S. on February 7, 2006.

Tunstall's North American break came when American Idol contestant Katharine McPhee contacted her asking to use "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" as her choice for a Billboard-themed week. At the time, the song was #79 on the Billboard charts.[10] Tunstall had not been shy with her opinions regarding shows like Idol saying "The major problem I have is that it's completely controlled... they're told what to say. They're told how to sing."[11] She chose to license the song as she felt that "no one on that show told Katharine McPhee to sing my song because no one knew it"[11] Tunstall's belief was correct - the song was suggested to McPhee by Billboard columnist and author Fred Bronson.[12] The song immediately jumped to #23 on the Billboard charts the week following McPhee's performance.[10] She has later said "My status as a musician in America is pretty much cemented by Katharine McPhee, which is really interesting and funny for me because I've never been polite about how I feel about shows like that."[13]

Tunstall released a new acoustic album in May 2006, KT Tunstall's Acoustic Extravaganza, which was first only available via mail order from her website. The album was re-released in stores worldwide in October 2006.

Tunstall sang with Scottish band Travis on their 2007 album "The Boy With No Name", on the track "Under The Moonlight", a song written by Susie Hug (late of Katydids).

Tunstall's third album, Drastic Fantastic, premiered on September 3, 2007 in Scotland, followed a week later on September 10, 2007 with the London release for the UK and September 18, 2007, in the US. In its first week, Drastic Fantastic reached #1 on the Scottish Album Charts, #3 on the UK Charts, and #9 on the U.S. Charts.[14]

On October 5th, Target in association with NBC, released a special KT Tunstall Christmas album with 6 exclusive tracks:

  • "2000 Miles"
  • "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)"
  • "Mele Kalikimaka (Christmas In Hawaii)"
  • "Sleigh Ride"
  • "Fairytale of New York"
  • "Lonely This Christmas"

[edit] Live performances

Tunstall performing at the Cardiff Union on October 19, 2005.
Tunstall performing at the Cardiff Union on October 19, 2005.

Tunstall is known for her live performances, in which she combines use of a loop pedal (an AKAI E2 Headrush, which she affectionately calls "Wee Bastard,") with a full four-piece backing band.

Since her debut appearance on Later with Jools Holland, she has returned to the show to perform "Suddenly I See," "Under the Weather," "Tangled up in Blue" (she performed the same song, as well as "Simple Twist of Fate" and "This Wheel's on Fire" on a BBC 4 Bob Dylan tribute), and an Ella Fitzgerald song ("Ain't Misbehavin'" by Fats Waller) with Jools Holland on piano.

She ended 2005 on Hogmanay by performing at Edinburgh's Concert in the Gardens alongside Scottish band Texas, being broadcast on BBC Scotland's Hogmanay Live show also. Tunstall said prior to that performance that "This is the gig of a lifetime... This Hogmanay party is probably the best-known and best-loved in the world, and I've been here a few times over the years dreaming of being the one entertaining the crowds. Until we're on that stage I won't believe we're allowed on it."[15]

While Tunstall had performed on multiple American talk shows since the previous summer, it wasn't until 17 January 2007 that Tunstall actually was interviewed on an American programme, The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

On 7 July 2007, she performed at the American leg of Live Earth at Giants Stadium in New Jersey wearing gold leggings and a t-shirt fittingly emblazoned with "save the future". She sang her two biggest hits, "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree", "Suddenly I See", along with "Other Side of the World".

On 5 September 2007, she performed at Apple's 'The Beat Goes On', at which Apple revealed their new iPod touch and a redesign of their remaining iPods. She sang "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" from her album Eye to the Telescope as well as the single, "Hold On," from her album Drastic Fantastic.

On 15 October 2007, she kicked off her new tour in at the Carling Academy in Birmingham and on 11 December she participated on the Nobel Peace Prize Concert together with a variety of artists.[16]

On 13 January 2008, she was featured in the premiere episode of the series Live from the Artists Den at 8 PM ET/PT on Ovation TV. The episode documented her performance from 9 July 2007 at the Prince George Ballroom in Manhattan.

On 17 March 2008, she performed "Saving My Face" live on So You Think You Can Dance Australia. 10 days after that, she went to perform for the first time in South East Asia, in Singapore.

On 20 May 2008, she performed several hits from her albums Eye to the Telescope and Drastic Fantastic at the Ryman Auditorium. When she played her biggest hits ("Black Horse and the Cherry Tree", "Hold On", and "Suddenly I See"), the crowd stood up for each performance. She got such a long standing ovation at the end that she came back out and played three more songs.

[edit] Awards

In 2005, Tunstall won Best Track Q Music Award for "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree".[17]

She received a nomination for the Mercury Music Prize, though lost to Antony and the Johnsons.[18]

Tunstall received three BRIT award nominations when they were announced on January 11, 2006. Nominations included Best British Live Act, British Breakthrough Act, and British Female Solo Artist. At the ceremony on February 15, 2006, Tunstall performed "Suddenly I See" and won the award for Best British Female Solo Artist, remarking that she wished to share it with fellow nominee Kate Bush.[8]

On January 22, 2006, she was awarded a European Border Breakers Award, which awards the top-selling EU artists, discounting sales in their home state (in this case, discounting UK sales).[19] Also, in 2006 she won the Ivor Novello Best Song Musically and Lyrically for "Suddenly I See"[20] along with Scottish Style Awards "Most Stylish Band or Musician - Interview here."

She received a 2007 Grammy Award nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree", but the award went to Christina Aguilera's "Ain't No Other Man."[21]

Tunstall received a BRIT award nomination on January 14, 2008 for British Female Solo Artist - the same accolade she won in 2006.[22] She is nominated alongside Bat For Lashes' Natasha Kahn, Kate Nash, Leona Lewis and PJ Harvey.

[edit] Other credits

Tunstall appears on the Sophie Solomon song "Lazarus", on the album Poison Sweet Madeira, and provided guest vocals for three tracks, "Ladino Song," "Refugee," and "Yesterday's Mistake," on the Oi Va Voi album Laughter Through Tears (2003). She has also performed "Get Ur Freak On" by Missy Elliott, "My Doorbell" by the White Stripes at a school performance in Scotland and "The Prayer" by Bloc Party at Live Lounge. Tunstall's seventh single, "Another Place to Fall," featured a cover of Radiohead's "Fake Plastic Trees". She appears in the 2006 album Wave of the Japanese singer Yuki, where she wrote "Yume Miteitai" and "Birthday". She also provided backing vocals for the Travis song 'Under The Moonlight' and recorded lead vocals for the Leo Abrahams song 'City Machine'.

Excerpts from other tracks were subsequently used in Ugly Betty, Grey's Anatomy, and Will & Grace. The singer's breakthrough hit "Suddenly I See" was used in the opening scene of the 2006 fashion satire The Devil Wears Prada.[13]

"Suddenly I See" was also used as a backing track on the second series of American dance competition show So You Think You Can Dance and was featured in the September 2007 Next television advert 'Ali's Party'.

"Suddenly I See" is also one of Hillary Clinton's campaign songs.

In 2007 KT came into The DL Show [1] and showcased her knowledge of Star Trek Trivia.

[edit] Personal life

Tunstall sparked some controversy in 2005 when she publicly bashed singer/songwriter Dido, stating that the artist "can't fucking sing" after several fans compared the two musically. Tunstall later apologized, stating that she did not want to be involved in a public feud.[23]

Despite rumours otherwise, even though Tunstall has expressed her gratitude to her gay and lesbian following in an interview with a daily newspaper[24] and wore a pair of rainbow patterned braces on her record cover,[25] she is not a lesbian.[26]

Since 2003, Tunstall has been dating Luke Bullen, the drummer in her band.[24] She has indicated her intention to live in Edinburgh with Bullen. On Christmas Day, 2007, Bullen proposed to KT at her parents' home in St Andrews, Scotland, and the couple are set to marry at the end of 2008.[27]

In April 2007, Tunstall underwent surgery to correct a problem with a kidney, which was undersised owing to an infection during her childhood.[28]

Despite being of Scotish origin, KT has a taste for Yorkshire. KT is said to be a fan of Sheffield made sauce, Henderson's Relish, and is quoted to have said that Henderson's Relish is easily the best non-alcoholic liquid on the face of the earth[29].

[edit] Discography

Main article: KT Tunstall discography

[edit] Albums

[edit] Early recordings

  • 2000: Tracks In July
  • 2003: Toons March '03

[edit] Studio albums

[edit] Singles/EPs

Release Title Album Chart positions
UK U.S. U.S. Pop U.S. AC U.S. Adult Top 40 U.S. Digital Italy CAN IRL ARIA Singles Chart
2004 "Throw Me a Rope" - - - - - - - - - - -
"False Alarm" (EP) Eye to the Telescope - - - - - - - - - -
2005 "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" 28 20 22 4 1 9 10 22 16 -
"Other Side of the World" 13 - - - 19 - 22 - 25 -
"Suddenly I See" 12 21 23 10 7 14 36 33 25 6
"Under the Weather" 39 - - - - - - - - -
2006 "Another Place to Fall" 52 - - - - - - - - -
"Ashes" (Promo Only) Acoustic Extravaganza - - - - - - - - - -
2007 "Hold On" Drastic Fantastic 21 104 95 - 27 - 19 46 41 -
"Saving My Face" 50 - - - - - 23 - - -
2008 "If Only" 45 - - - - - - - - -
  • Notes:
  1. "Throw Me a Rope" was released as a 7" vinyl only and was limited to 300 copies.
  2. "False Alarm" was released as an EP.
  3. "Other Side of The World" charted at Hot Adult Top 40 Tracks in 2007.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Jacqui Swift (2007-08-24). 'I didn't want to be a pop star'. The Sun. Retrieved on 2007-08-30.
  2. ^ a b c d Tim Blanks (September 2005). KT Tunstall. Interview (magazine). Archived from the original on 2005-12-01. Retrieved on 2007-08-29.
  3. ^ TUNSTALL HATES MELUA COMPARISON. contactmusic.com (2007-08-24). Retrieved on 2007-09-17.
  4. ^ Montgomery, James. KT Tunstall Outdoes The Cure, But Label Still Won't Trust Her. mtv.com. Retrieved on 2007-11-19.
  5. ^ Fiona Shepherd (2005-60-11). KT Tunstall: Live and Proud. The Scotsman.
  6. ^ Mark Guarino (Sep/Oct 2007). KT Tunstall: Never Going Home. Harp. Retrieved on 2007-08-30.
  7. ^ Thomason, Carmel. "KT's got one eye on the future", Manchester Evening News, March 10, 2005. Accessed February 24, 2008. "After school, having learned to play the piano, flute and guitar, she left her native St Andrews to take up a scholarship at Kent School in Connecticut, New England, where she formed her first band, The Happy Campers."
  8. ^ a b KT ecstatic at Brit Award success. BBC News (2006-02-16). Retrieved on 2007-08-29.
  9. ^ Barry Didcock (2005-05-01). Almost Famous: By the end of the summer KT Tunstall will be huge. Sunday Herald. Archived from the original on 2005-05-01. Retrieved on 2007-08-29.
  10. ^ a b KT Tunstall: Grey’s Music Mainstay, greysanatomyinsider.com 
  11. ^ a b Chris Rolls (2007-08-26). KT Tunstall: Slightly More Esoteric. MP3.com. Retrieved on 2007-09-05.
  12. ^ Fred Bronson (2008-03-14). He's Just Seen A Face. billboard.com. Retrieved on 2008-04-04.
  13. ^ a b Fergus Sheppard (2007-02-17). 'KT breaks into US market to become an American Idol'. The Sun. Retrieved on 2007-09-03.
  14. ^ KT Tunstall – Home
  15. ^ Joan McFadden (2005-11-05). What KT did next. The Scotsman. Retrieved on 2007-09-06.
  16. ^ Nobel Peace Prize Concert 2007. nobelpeaceprize.org. Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
  17. ^ Edward Black (2005-10-11). KT Tunstall caps year of success with Q award. The Scotsman. Retrieved on 2007-08-30.
  18. ^ Antony and Johnsons win Mercury. BBC News (2005-08-15). Retrieved on 2007-08-29.
  19. ^ JH. Tunstall Breaks Borders. MTV UK. Retrieved on 2007-08-31.
  20. ^ Tunstall single tops Ivor awards. BBC News (2006-05-25). Retrieved on 2007-08-29.
  21. ^ Complete list of 2007 Grammy winners and nominees. Baltimore Sun (2007-02-12). Retrieved on 2007-08-29.
  22. ^ Brit Awards British Female Solo Artist. BRIT Awards (2008-01-14). Retrieved on 2008-01-14.
  23. ^ Tunstall Apologies to Dido. contactmusic.com (2005-08-19). Retrieved on 2007-08-30.
  24. ^ a b PinkNews.co.uk writer (2006-02-28). KT Tunstall: I'm proud of my lesbian following. pinknews.co.uk. Retrieved on 2007-08-29.
  25. ^ KT's lesbian following. Ananova. Retrieved on 2007-08-29.
  26. ^ John Dingwall (2005-08-17). Mercury Is Still Rising on Red-Hot Rocker KT. The Daily Record. Retrieved on 2007-08-29.
  27. ^ {{cite web|url=http://www.kttunstall.com/diary/2008-01/ |title=KT Tunstall - Diary January 2008
  28. ^ Toby McDonald (2007-04-21). KT Tunstall has kidney operation. The Scotsman. Retrieved on 2007-08-30.
  29. ^ www.hendersonsrelish.com

[edit] External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:
Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Video:

Audio:

v • d • e
KT Tunstall
Studio albums
Other albums
Singles
EPs
Related articles