| Des'ree | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Desiree Annette Weeks |
| Born | 30 November 1968 London, England |
| Genres | Soul, R&B, pop |
| Occupations | Singer-songwriter |
| Years active | 1992–2003 |
| Labels | Dusted Sound Records, Epic Records |
Des'ree (born Desirée Annette Weeks, 30 November 1968) is an English pop/soul singer, who was popular during the 1990s. She is well known for her hits: "Feel So High", "You Gotta Be", "Life", and "Kissing You" (from the soundtrack of the film William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet). Des'ree has not released any new material since 2003's Dream Soldier.
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Des'ree was born in South London, England in 1968.[1][2] Her mother is from British Guiana (now Guyana), and her father is from Barbados. She was introduced to reggae, calypso and jazz music by her parents, and Des'ree's interest in pursuing a musical career followed a two year trip to Barbados with her family at the age of 11.
Des'ree has released 5 albums through Sony Music Worldwide:
Mind Adventures, I Ain't Movin', Supernatural, Endangered Species and Dream Soldier
Her First Single, "Feel So High', (Mind Adventures) went top 10 in the UK and several other European countries, along with Japan.
In 1994, her single "You Gotta Be" (I Ain't Movin) hit the Billboard Hot 100 Top 5, peaking at #5, and was a hit in the UK three times. "You Gotta Be" became the most played music video on VH1 and remained on the Billboard recurrent airplay chart for 80 weeks.
Following the single's success, Des'ree's second album, I Ain't Movin' , sold in excess of 2.5 million copies worldwide. Her success led to an American tour with Seal in 1995. The following year, she contributed the song "Kissing You" to the soundtrack of the film William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet.
In 1997, her single "Crazy Maze" was featured on the soundtrack of the movie Nothing to Lose with Tim Robbins and Martin Lawrence.
In 1998, her single "Life" became a hit in Europe, reaching no1 in many countries, along with Japan. In 1999, she won a BRIT Award for the British Female Solo Artist category.[3]
She released Dream Soldier in 2003. The album released one single, "It's Okay". The video was shot in London's Notting Hill.
Des'ree has also performed various duets, including "Fire" with Babyface (part of the soundtrack for the independent film, Hav Plenty), "Plenty Lovin" with Steve Winwood and "Delicate" with Terence Trent D'Arby.
In 2012, her hit-song You Gotta Be can be seen as the soundtrack to the Tyler Perry movie, Good Deeds.
In 1998, Des'ree's hit, "Feel So High" was interpolated into the Janet Jackson song "Got 'Til It's Gone" from Jackson's CD The Velvet Rope without due credit to Des'ree as a contributor. The album prompted a lawsuit and as part of the settlement, Jackson was forced to pay an undisclosed sum to Des'ree. The album does not list the song or Des'ree as a contributor, but the maxi single, released in 2000, lists Des'ree as one of the song's writers.[4]
In 2007, Des'ree filed suit against Beyoncé for her cover version of the Tim Atack/Des'ree penned song, "I'm Kissing You",[5] for the re-release of her album B'Day.[6]
Other duets include, Bill Withers, "Aint No Sunshine", recorded by Ladysmith Black Mombazo, featuring, Des'ree
"Silent Hero", written by Des'ree and Prince Sampson, featured in Spike Lee's, "Clockers"
"Feel So High", written by Des'ree and Michael Graves, featured in "Set It Off"
"You Gotta Be", also featured in "The Object Of My Affection"
Des'ree has won several awards, including a Brit Award, an Ivor Novello Award, World Music Award, Urban Music Award and a BMI award for over 5 million plays of "You Gotta Be" in America alone.
Between 1999 and 2003, Des'ree studied photography, ceramics and art at the Camberwell College of Arts.[7]
She continues songwriting and has performed for charities.
Studio albums
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Compilation albums
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| Song | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [8] |
AUS [11] |
ITA [12] |
SPA [13] |
US [14] |
|||
| "Feel So High"1 | 1991 | 13 | 28 | — | — | 67 | Mind Adventures |
| "Mind Adventures" | 1992 | 43 | — | — | — | — | |
| "Why Should I Love You" | 44 | — | — | — | — | ||
| "You Gotta Be" | 1994 | 20 | 9 | — | — | 5 | I Ain't Movin' |
| "I Ain't Movin'" | 44 | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Little Child" | 69 | — | — | — | — | ||
| "You Gotta Be" (remix) | 1995 | 14 | — | — | — | — | |
| "Kissing You" | 1997 | 1372 | 17 | — | — | — | Supernatural |
| "Life" | 1998 | 8 | 8 | 1 | 1 | — | |
| "Fire" (duet with Babyface)3 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "What's Your Sign?" | 19 | — | — | 30 | — | ||
| "God Only Knows" (Japan only)[15] | 1999 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "You Gotta Be" (1999 mix)3 | 10 | — | — | 1 | — | ||
| "It's Okay" | 2003 | 69 | — | — | — | — | Dream Soldier |
| "Why?"[10] | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| Song | Year | Peak chart positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK [8] |
|||
| "Delicate" (Terence Trent D'Arby featuring Des'ree) | 1993 | 14 | Symphony or Damn |
| "Ain't No Sunshine" (Ladysmith Black Mambazo featuring Des'ree) | 1999 | 42 |
Des'ree had British RPMs sold from 1991 to 1998.