Ricky Wilson (British musician)

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Ricky Wilson (born Charles Richard Wilson, 17 January 1978) is the lead singer of English band Kaiser Chiefs.

Wilson has also been on the panel of the BBC Television comedy series Never Mind the Buzzcocks in 2005, and was a guest host on the show in 2006.

Wilson at Lollapalooza 2005.
Wilson at Lollapalooza 2005.
Ricky Wilson at Summercase
Ricky Wilson at Summercase

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[edit] Personal life

Wilson was born in Keighley, West Yorkshire. He studied at Leeds Grammar School, then at Leeds Metropolitan University .Whilst setting up the Kaiser Chiefs he worked as an art teacher on the art and design foundation course at Leeds College of Art.

Wilson was recruited by the other members of the Kaiser Chiefs in 1998 (then known as Parva [1]) to be the lead singer.

On 22 May 2006 Wilson survived a hit and run incident in Leeds by leaping with his trademark stage jump. He escaped with minor injuries but had to perform with his ankle in a plaster cast for much of the summer.

Wilson is a fan of Leeds United F.C.

According to NME[1], Wilson is allergic to chocolate and milk products (LI).

He has a girlfriend called Storme who was mentioned in an interview with The Sun.

[edit] Character and Style

Wilson is well known wearing stripy blazers, waistcoats, turn-up jeans and winkle picker shoes, a style that won him the Shockwaves NME Award For Best Dressed Person in 2006.

On stage he is well-known for his ability to "pogo" about the stage frantically whilst simultaneously playing either the cowbell or the tambourine. At the Glastonbury Festival in 2005 Wilson dived into the audience to drag a large green inflatable dinosaur on to stage. Now inflatable dinosaurs make a regular appearance at Kaiser Chief concerts, and are known as Kaisersaur amongst the Kaiser Chiefs' fans.

Wilson is also known to take matters into his own hands, such as at Dublin's Bud Rising Festival, when he started to climb up scaffolding on the stage, to the dismay of a nearby cameraman who immediately attempted to shout him down.

Wilson often 'surfs' the crowd at concerts, most often during the playing of I Predict a Riot. Wilson says that this is because he likes to "get out and see the crowd, see what they smell like".[2]

Wilson's personal life is often a theme in his songs, such as the reference to John Smeaton, a famous citizen of Wilson's hometown Leeds, in 'I Predict a Riot'.

[edit] References

  1. ^ NME (New Musical Express) December 2007
  2. ^ Interview with Ricky Wilson, Kaiser Chiefs - Enjoyment (Universal Island, DVD Video, 2005)

[edit] External links