| Kate Miller-Heidke | |
|---|---|
On the set of her film clip for "The Last Day on Earth" |
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| Background information | |
| Born | 16 November 1981 |
| Origin | Brisbane, Queensland, Australia |
| Genres | Adult Contemporary Pop music Rock music Alternative |
| Occupations | Singer-songwriter |
| Instruments | singing, keyboards, acoustic guitar |
| Years active | 2000–present |
| Labels | Waterbear Records/Sony BMG, Epic US, RCA UK |
| Associated acts | Transport |
| Website | katemh.com |
Kate Miller-Heidke /ˈhaɪdkiː/[1] (born 16 November 1981) is a singer-songwriter from Brisbane, Australia. Although classically trained, she has followed a career in alternative pop music. She is signed to Sony Australia, Epic in the US and RCA in the UK.
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Miller-Heidke graduated from St Aidan's Anglican Girls' School in 1998. She then went on to university, completing degrees in music from Queensland Conservatorium of Music and Queensland University of Technology. As a classical singer, she has won many awards including the Elizabeth Muir Prize (2000), the Donald Penman Prize (2001), the Linda Edith Allen Memorial Prize (2002) and the Horace Keats Prize (2002). Her conservatorium performances include Orpheus in the Underworld (2000), Venus and Adonis (2002) and The Pilgrim's Progress (2002).[2][3] As an Opera Queensland Developing Artist, Miller-Heidke has performed as an understudy in many productions including Sweeney Todd, Don Pasquale and Un ballo in maschera. In July 2005 she made her solo professional operatic debut with Opera Queensland in the role of Flora in Britten's The Turn of the Screw.
She played in several Brisbane bands before going solo in 2002.[4] Miller-Heidke was lead singer and songwriter with Brisbane band Elsewhere, formed in 2000, which released a self-titled EP of original songs before breaking up in 2001.
Miller-Heidke performed at the annual cult event Women In Voice in 2002, 2004 and 2005, when she shared the stage with such performers as Pearly Black, Margret RoadKnight, Jenny Morris and Divinyls lead singer Chrissy Amphlett. Miller-Heidke became well known in Brisbane through these performances, and her 2005 appearance in Women in Voice 14 won her the Helpmann Award for Best Performance in an Australian Contemporary Concert.[5]
In June 2004, Miller-Heidke independently recorded and distributed her first EP, Telegram, a collection of songs, all written by Miller-Heidke herself (except for two songs written by her creative collaborator and now-husband, Keir Nuttall).
In 2006, Miller-Heidke was invited by Deborah Conway to take part in the Broad Festival project, with three other Australian female artists, they performed their own and each other's songs.[6] With Miller-Heidke and Conway were Melinda Schneider, Mia Dyson and Ella Hooper.[7]
Miller-Heidke was to have moved on to singing Gilbert and Sullivan tunes with Opera Australia; instead, she turned her back on classical singing to concentrate on popular music and songwriting when "Space They Cannot Touch", a song from Telegram, became a hit on Australia's national youth radio network, Triple J and was named Richard Kingsmill's "pick of the week" in September 2005.[8] This radio support led to increased national attention for Miller-Heidke's music: not only did she gain thousands of fans, she also went on to sign a record deal, get her first manager, Leanne de Souza, and her first agent,Dorry Kartabani at the Harbour Agency. Miller-Heidke then began touring the country with her band.
As well as touring throughout Australia and appearing regularly at festivals in Woodford – where she was named Queen of the Woodford Folk Festival in 2002/2003,[2] Port Fairy and in the Blue Mountains, Miller-Heidke appeared on Australian national television as a guest panelist on RocKwiz, Spicks and Specks and Q&A. She has performed on ABC TV's The Sideshow and Q&A, on Network Ten's Rove, Sunrise, The Morning Show and Good News Week, and twice on the live broadcast of the ARIA Music Awards.
Signed to Sony Australia, Miller-Heidke released her debut album Little Eve on 15 June 2007. The album is certified gold in Australia.[9]
Miller-Heidke's second album, Curiouser, was released in Australia on 18 October 2008. The album was recorded in Los Angeles, with Miller-Heidke working with co-producers Nuttall and Mickey Petralia, who has produced albums for Beck and Flight of the Conchords. The songs on the album were mostly written over a two-month period with creative collaborator and partner Nuttall.[10] The album's first single, "Can't Shake It" debuted on the ARIA Singles Chart at number 38 in October 2008, making it Miller-Heidke's first top 40 song.[11] Curiouser was her first top 10 album, debuting at number 8 and peaking at number 2 on the ARIA Top 50 Albums chart. [12]
In mid 2008, Miller-Heidke contributed the female vocals for Ian Carey's dance hit "Get Shaky", a role that propelled her into the mainstream and resulted in more media attention (Henderson 2009, 206-211).
In April 2009, Miller-Heidke won critical acclaim for her performance as Baby Jane in Jerry Springer: The Opera at the Sydney Opera House.[13]
Miller-Heidke and Nuttall were awarded the $US25,000 grand prize in the 2008 International Songwriting Competition for their composition "Caught in the Crowd". They were the first Australians ever to win the grand prize. The second Australian single from Curiouser which had peaked at number 33 on the ARIA singles charts in June 2009.[14] "Caught in the Crowd" was re-released in November 2009 and has since been accredited as a Gold single.[15]
Her following single, "The Last Day on Earth" reached #3 in Australia, her first top 10 hit. Due to the single's success, Curiouser re-entered the top 50 and reached #1 on iTunes for three weeks. The song became her first song to reach #1 in any chart later peaking on the ARIA Australian Artist Singles Chart at #1. On 19 September 2009, the single "The Last Day On Earth" and the album Curiouser both went platinum.[16]
Curiouser has enjoyed critical success in the US. Sasha Frere-Jones, the music critic from The New Yorker, wrote "I got lucky last week and found a gem in the pile; Curiouser. If your favourite American pop star is coming across slightly washed out, you will want to hear Miller-Heidke. Curiouser is a big clutch of pantone swatches."[17]
Miller-Heidke has toured extensively throughout the US, UK and Europe as the special guest of Ben Folds. Ben Folds is a fan of her, stating "she's one of those people that actually doessic deserve to be called a unique talent." She released her first music DVD, Live in San Francisco.
Throughout 2010/2011, Miller-Heidke played at many festivals around the world including Coachella, Lilith Fair, Rifflandia, Byron Bay Bluesfest, Southbound and Peats Ridge Festival.
In June 2011, Miller-Heidke released an album by her side project band Fatty Gets a Stylist, another collaboration with Keir Nuttall.[18][19] Their first single, "Are You Ready?", has been used in a New York Lottery advertisement on US television[20] and for advertising the Seven Network, in which actors from various shows mime to the words while walking, ending with Alf Stewart from Home and Away yelling the end line "Let's go!".
The album Fatty Gets a Stylist (released as Liberty Bell outside Australia) was written and recorded on a lap top over several months in different locations in between Australia, South East Asia and West London.
On stage and in the studio Miller-Heidke has usually been backed by Brisbane band Transport, consisting of her husband[21] Keir Nuttall (guitar, backing vocals), Scott Saunders (bass) and Steve Pope (drums).
Until recently the band has included a violinist-vocalist, originally Emma Dean who left the band in 2006 to pursue a solo career. Emma was replaced by Sallie Campbell, who also played keyboards. Early in 2008, Sallie Campbell left to focus on her own band Speed of Purple, and Nicole Brophy joined on guitar and vocals.
From April to June 2007, with Transport working in the US and UK, Miller-Heidke's touring band was Mark Angel (guitar), Ben McCarthy (bass, backing vocals) and Joachim Alfheim (drums), along with regular vocalist-violinist Sallie Campbell. Both Angel and Alfheim went on to play for Kristy London & The Other Halves. Ben McCarthy stayed on with Miller-Heidke and appears to have become a permanent member of the band into 2008.
The current line-up is: Kate Miller-Heidke (piano, vocals), Keir Nuttall (guitar), Nicole Brophy (acoustic guitar, backing vocals), Nathan Moore (bass, backing vocals) and Steve Pope (drums).
Her 2010 tour of the United States of America features only Miller-Heidke and Nuttall.
| Year | Event | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Age EG Awards | Helpmann Award for Best Contemporary Concert | Won |
| 2007 | ARIA Awards | Best Female Artist[22] | Nominated |
| Breakthrough Album (Little Eve)[22] | Nominated | ||
| Breakthrough Single ("Words")[22] | Nominated | ||
| Best Pop Release (Little Eve)[22] | Nominated | ||
| 2009 | International Songwriting Competition | Grand Prize (with Keir Nuttall) ("Caught in the Crowd")[23] | Won |
| Age EG Awards | Best Female | Won | |
| APRA Music Awards | Song of the Year (with Keir Nuttall) ("Can't Shake It")[24] | Nominated | |
| ARIA Awards | Best Pop Release[25] | Nominated | |
| Best Female Artist[25] | Nominated | ||
| Single of the Year ("The Last Day on Earth")[25] | Nominated | ||
| Best Video[25] | Nominated | ||
| 2010 | APRA Music Awards | Song of the Year (with Keir Nuttall) ("The Last Day on Earth")[26] | Nominated |
Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Kate_Miller-Heidke Kate Miller-Heidke] at Wikimedia Commons
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