Sonique (musician)
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| Sonique | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Sonia Clarke |
| Born | June 21, 1968 |
| Origin | Crouch End, North London, England, United Kingdom |
| Genre(s) | House Dance Pop Trance Electro |
| Instrument(s) | Synthesizer |
| Years active | 1985 - present |
Sonia Clarke (born June 21, 1968 in Crouch End, North London, United Kingdom), known more commonly by her stage name Sonique, is a British singer and DJ.[1] She is well known for her successful career in dance music. She was temporarily the lead vocalist for two late S'Express singles. She won the 2001 BRIT Award for British female solo artist.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
[edit] Early life
Sonia Clarke was born and raised in Crouch End, North London to parents of Trinidadian descent. She has credited her later music success from listening to her mothers record collection of mostly R&B artists.[2] The first record she ever purchased was Donna Summer's "I Feel Love". When Sonique was sixteen her mother re-married and moved back to Trinidad. She refused to move with her mother and two siblings and instead stayed in England moving into the YMCA. With mounting debt and disgusted by the sexual advances of the hostel warden, she moved out and slept on the streets.
[edit] Early music career
At the age of seventeen, a youth worker commented that she had a nice voice and suggested she utilize it. She put together a reggae band called "Fari" in which she ended up writing all the music. She credits this band with getting her through her time on the streets. After Fari disbanded she set about getting a recording contract.
Sonique released the single "Let Me Hold You", published by Cooltempo, in 1985.[3] The single hit the Top 40 on the British dance charts.
In 1990, she was credited for the transcendental loop-groove on a track called "Zombie Mantra" on the album Set the Controls for the Heart of the Bass, the debut record of William Orbit's project Bass-O-Matic. Soon after she teamed with DJ Mark Moore in S'Express.[3] The dance-pop duo charted in the UK singles chart with such singles as "Nothing to Lose".[3] She maintained a friendship with Mark Moore after S'Express disbanded and shortly afterwards, he gave her the gift of a set of turntables and a mixer with which she began experimenting.
[edit] DJ career
While clubbing she became frustrated at what she considered to be the inept performances by DJs. She decided to take on the challenge herself. For three years she accompanied both Mark Moore and her childhood friend Judge Jules to their DJ gigs to study the crowds. She eventually signed to one of simon belofsky's' companies Serious Records where her first single was "I Put A Spell On You" produced by Simon Belofsky, Julian Elkan, Graeme Pleeth and Chris Alan.[2]
She was DJ-in-residence at Club Manumission in Ibiza from 1997-1999.
In 1998, she came to the attention of UK promoters/label Fantazia and was asked to mix one of the discs on their album Fantazia British Anthems Summertime.[3] The album was certified as gold in the UK.
Sonique also released her own album, "Hear My Cry," in 1998. When it was re-released in 2000, the hit single "It Feels So Good" topped the charts for three weeks in May. After 14 weeks in the Top 40, it became the UK's third best-selling single of 2000.
In 2001, after the success of "It Feels So Good" she announced that she planned to retire from the world of DJing to focus on her singing career. After finishing the album "Born to be Free," Sonique did return to DJing on a few special occasions, but later decided to go back to headlining events.
[edit] On Kosmo
In 2004, Sonique announced she was working on a new album called On Kosmo. The first single was "Another World", which reached number 57 in Germany when released in 2004. "Why" (released Spring 2005), reached number 90 in Germany.
"Alone" was selected as the third single with which the album would be launched, but when the album got pushed back from the expected release date of February 2006, the single was cancelled. When the new release date of September 29, 2006 was announced, the track "Sleezy" was chosen as the single with which the album was to be released. Unfortunately, "Sleezy" was also cancelled when the release date was pushed back once again. When On Kosmo was finally released, on Monday November 13, 2006, it failed to chart significantly in the UK.
Nevertheless, Sonique was shown as a celebrity guest at The World Music Awards 2006 in England.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
| Released | Album | UK | US | AUS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Fantazia British Anthems... Summertime (mixed by Sonique) | — | — | — |
| 2000 | Serious Sounds of Sonique - In the Mix & on the Mic (live recording) | — | — | — |
| 2000 | Hear My Cry | #6 | #67 | #50 |
| 2001 | Club Mix (mixed by Sonique) | — | — | — |
| 2003 | Born to Be Free | #184 | — | — |
| 2006 | Sonique on Kosmo | — | — | — |
[edit] Singles
| Released | Single | Album | UK | US | GER | CAN |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S'Express | ||||||
| 1990 | "Nothing To Lose" | #32 | — | — | ||
| 1991 | "Find'em, Fool'em, Forget'em" | #43 | — | — | ||
| Solo artist | ||||||
| 1985 | "Let Me Hold You" | #99, #25 Dance | — | — | ||
| 1998 (UK) 1999 (US) 2000 (UK re-release) |
"It Feels So Good" * | #1 | #8 | — | #2 | |
| 2000 | "Sky" | #2 | #10 (Hot Dance) | — | 7 | |
| 2001 | "I Put a Spell on You" ** | #8 | — | — | 28 | |
| 2003 | "Can't Make Up My Mind" | #17 | — | — | ||
| 2003 | "Alive" | #70 | — | — | ||
| 2004 | "Another World" | — | — | — | 57 | |
| 2005 | "Why" | — | — | — | 90 | |
| 2006 | "Sleezy" | — | — | — | ||
*-Originally released in 1998, reaching #24 on the UK charts **-Originally released in 1998, reaching #36 on the UK charts
[edit] Trivia
- Sonique is dyslexic.
- In Butters' Very Own Episode, an episode of South Park that mainly focuses on Butters, Sonique's "It Feels So Good" was played in a Gay bathhouse.
[edit] References
- ^ Sonique
- ^ a b AskMen.com - Sonique pictures. AskMen.com. Retrieved on 2007-05-13.
- ^ a b c d Sonique Biography on Yahoo! Music. Yahoo! Music. Retrieved on 2007-05-13.
[edit] See also
- List of number-one dance hits (United States)
- List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart
- List of songs that reached number one on the Irish Dance Chart
