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Pink (singer)

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Pink

Alecia Beth Moore (born September 8, 1979),[2] known professionally as Pink or P!nk is a two-time Grammy-winning American singer-songwriter who gained prominence in 1998.

P!nk released her first single 'There You Go' and first record, the R&B-oriented Can't Take Me Home, in 2000 via LaFace Records. Her pop rock-based second studio album, M!ssundaztood, was released in 2001 and is her biggest seller to date, featuring the chart-topping hits 'Get The Party Started' and 'Just Like a Pill'. Pink then followed up her 2001 album with 'Try This', in 2003. After a bit of a break from music, she returned in 2006 with her fourth album 'I'm Not Dead' which spawned 7 hit singles including 'Stupid Girls', 'Who Knew' and 'U & Ur Hand'. Her fifth album, 2008's Funhouse, was released in October 2008, and has been preceded by her first solo number one ever on the Billboard Hot 100, "So What".[3]

Childhood and discovery

Pink was born in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, the daughter of Judy, a nurse, and James Moore, Jr., a Vietnam veteran.[4][5] Her father is Catholic and her mother Jewish(yentafilth),[6] and her ancestors immigrated from Ireland, Germany and Lithuania.[7][8] She grew up in Doylestown, where she attended Central Bucks West High School. Her father played guitar and sang songs for her, and from an early age she aspired to be a rock star. When in high school, Pink joined her first band called Middleground, which never gained popularity beyond local status. According to Pink, her biggest influences are Bette Midler, Janis Joplin, Steven Tyler, Bad Religion, Mary J. Blige, Bob Marley, Billy Joel, Indigo Girls, Don McLean, 2Pac and The Notorious B.I.G.[9]

Pink developed her voice early in life.[10] Although a healthy baby at birth, she quickly developed asthma that plagued her through her early years.[11] When she was a young teenager, Pink wrote lyrics as an outlet for her feelings, and her mother commented, "Her initial writings were always very introspective. Some of it was very black, and very deep, almost worrisome."[11] She began performing in Philadelphia clubs when she was fourteen years old. At sixteen, she joined the R&B Atlanta-based trio Choice, which included Chrissy Conway of the Christian girl group ZOEgirl. The group signed with LaFace Records and contributed "Key to My Heart" to the soundtrack of the 1996 film Kazaam. Choice eventually disbanded after recording an unreleased album; Pink remained at LaFace as a solo act under the stage name P!nk. Daryl Simmons took her to recordings where she sang backing vocals for artists such as Diana Ross, 98 Degrees, Kenny Lattimore and Tevin Campbell.

Musical career

2000–2001: Can't Take Me Home

Main article: Can't Take Me Home

Pink co-produced her debut album, Can't Take Me Home, with Babyface and Steve Rhythm, and released it in April 2000. A substantial success, it went double platinum in the U.S., sold 5 million copies worldwide and produced two U.S. top ten singles: "There You Go" and "Most Girls" (which reached number one in Australia). The album's third single, "You Make Me Sick", became a smaller U.S. top forty hit and UK top ten hit in early 2001 and was featured in the film Save the Last Dance. Pink later acknowledged, with regard to Can't Take Me Home, that she chose to relinquish creative control to her record label and that she did not like the music she made at this time or her image,[12] which included bright pink hair.

In 2001, she recorded a cover of Labelle's 1975 single "Lady Marmalade" with Christina Aguilera, rapper Lil' Kim and Mýa for the soundtrack of the film Moulin Rouge!. Produced by hip-hop producers Rockwilder and Missy Elliott, the song topped the charts in countries including New Zealand, the UK, Australia and the U.S., where it became the most successful airplay-only single in history.[13] The success of the single was helped by its music video, which was popular on music channels[14] and won the MTV Video Music Award for Video of the Year.[15] The song won a Grammy Award — Pink's first — for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals, and provided a boost for the four performers' careers.[16]

2001–2002: M!ssundaztood

Main article: M!ssundaztood

Tired of being marketed as another cookie-cutter pop act and eager to become a more serious songwriter and musician, Pink took her sound in a new direction and sought more creative control during the recording of her second album.[12] She recruited former 4 Non Blondes vocalist Linda Perry, who said Pink opened up to her: "In the beginning I just said: "What do you feel?", and she [Pink] would just sit behind the piano and sing".[16] Perry co-wrote and co-produced the album with Dallas Austin and Scott Storch, and according to VH1 Driven, Antonio "LA" Reid of LaFace Records wasn't initially content with the new music Pink was making.[16] The album, named M!ssundaztood because of Pink's belief that people had a wrong image of her,[17] was released in November 2001.

Its lead single, "Get the Party Started" (written and produced by Perry), went top five in the U.S. and many other countries, and number one in Australia. At the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards, the music video won in the categories of Best Female Video and Best Dance Video. The album's other singles—"Don't Let Me Get Me", the Dallas Austin-produced "Just like a Pill", and "Family Portrait"—were also radio and chart successes, with "Just like a Pill" becoming Pink's first solo UK number-one hit. The singles were substantial hits on adult Top 40 radio and the United World Chart, and "Family Portrait" became a theme song for many children whose parents were divorced (according to MTV Diary). M!ssundaztood was certified gold or platinum status in more than twenty countries,[18] with worldwide sales of 16 million.[19] It was the second-best-selling album in the UK during 2002, and Pink was the best-selling female artist globally.[20] M!ssundaztood and "Get the Party Started" earned nominations at the 2003 Grammy Awards for Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, respectively.

The 2002 Faith Hill album, Cry, features a song co-written by Pink and Perry. In 2002, after opening for 'N Sync on their American tour, Pink started a headlining American, European and Australian tour, the Party Tour; later, she became a supporting act for Lenny Kravitz's American tour.

2003–2005: Try This

Main article: Try This

In mid-2003, Pink contributed the song "Feel Good Time" to the soundtrack of the film Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle, in which she had a cameo appearance as a motorcross race ramp owner/promoter. "Feel Good Time" was co-written by singer Beck, produced by electronic music artist William Orbit and based on the song "Fresh Garbage" by the band Spirit. It became Pink's first single to miss the top forty on Billboard's Hot 100 chart, although it was a hit in Europe and Australia. During the same period, a song Pink co-wrote with Damon Elliott was released on Mýa's album Moodring.

"Feel Good Time" was included on non-U.S. editions of Pink's third album, Try This, which was released on November 11, 2003. Eight of the thirteen tracks were co-written with Tim Armstrong of the band Rancid; Linda Perry was featured on the album as a writer and musician. Though Try This reached the top ten on album charts in the U.S., Canada, the UK and Australia, sales were considerably lower than those of M!ssundaztood; it went platinum in the U.S. and sold over 3 million copies worldwide, a commercial flop compared to its predecessor.[21] The singles "Trouble" and "God Is a DJ" did not reach the U.S. top forty but went top ten in other countries, and "Last to Know" was released as a single outside North America. "Trouble" earned Pink her second Grammy Award (for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance) at the 2004 Grammy Awards, and "Feel Good Time" was nominated in the category of Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals. She toured extensively on the Try This Tour through Europe and Australia, where the album was better received. In 2005 she collaborated with her good friend Lisa Marie Presley on the track Shine, on Presley's sophomore album Now What.

2006–2007: I'm Not Dead

Main article: I'm Not Dead

Pink took a break to write the songs for her fourth album, I'm Not Dead, which she said she titled as such because "It's about being alive and feisty and not sitting down and shutting up even though people would like you to."[22] Pink worked with producers Max Martin, Billy Mann, Christopher Rojas, Butch Walker, Lukasz Gottwald and Josh Abraham on the album.

It was released in April 2006 through LaFace Records was a substantial success throughout the world, particularly in Australia. The album reached the top ten in the U.S., the top five in the UK, number one in Germany, and sat at number one in Australia for two non-consecutive weeks,[23] though it was Pink's lowest seller in the U.S. until the success of the single "U + Ur Hand" in early 2007. Worldwide, the album was the tenth biggest selling album of 2006. The album ranked 96th in the USA during 2007. [1][24]

Lead single "Stupid Girls" was Pink's biggest U.S. hit since 2002 and earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Its music video, in which she parodies celebrities such as Lindsay Lohan, Jessica Simpson and Paris Hilton,[25] won the MTV Video Music Award for Best Pop Video. Subsequent singles "Who Knew" and "U + Ur Hand" were substantial hits in Australia and Europe, and they later became top ten singles in the U.S. in 2007. The non-U.S. singles were "Nobody Knows", a minor hit in the UK, Australia and Germany; "Dear Mr. President", an open letter to American President George W. Bush featuring the Indigo Girls and a top five hit in Germany, Australia and other countries; "Leave Me Alone (I'm Lonely)", a UK top forty and Australian top five entry; and "'Cuz I Can".

The album has sold over 1.1 million copies in the U.S., over 630,000 in Australia, and over 6 million worldwide. Proving very popular in Australia, with 6 top five singles, and a record breaking 62 weeks in the top 10, so far the album has gone 9 times platinum. Even as of June 2008, the I'm Not Dead album returned to the Australian Top 40 ARIA charts and remained there in July 2008 - a total of 100 weeks in the Australian top 40 to date.[26]

In support of the album, Pink embarked on the world I'm Not Dead Tour, for which ticket sales in Australia were particularly high—she sold approximately 307,000 tickets in Australia, giving her the record for the biggest concert attendance for an arena tour by a female artist.[27] One of the London shows on the tour was taped and released as a DVD, Pink: Live from Wembley Arena. In 2006, Pink was chosen to sing the theme song for NBC Sunday Night Football, "Waiting All Day for Sunday Night", which is a take on "I Hate Myself for Lovin' You" by Joan Jett. She contributed a cover of Rufus's "Tell Me Something Good" to the soundtrack of the film Happy Feet, and lent her name to PlayStation to promote the PSP, a special pink edition of which was released.[28]

Pink performing on the I'm Not Dead summer tour in 2007

Pink collaborated with several other artists in 2006 and 2007, when she opened for Justin Timberlake on the American leg of his FutureSex/LoveShow Tour. She sang on the Indigo Girls album Despite Our Differences. She was featured on a remix of India.Arie's song "I Am Not My Hair" featured in the Lifetime Television film Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy. She wrote a song ("I Will") for Natalia's third album, Everything & More. "Outside of You", another song she co-wrote, was recorded by dance-pop singer Hilary Duff and released on her 2007 album Dignity. Pink recorded a song with Annie Lennox and twenty-two other female acts for Lennox's fourth solo studio album, Songs of Mass Destruction. Titled "Sing", it was written as an anthem for HIV/AIDS, according to Lennox's official site.[29]

In December 2007, a special edition Pink Box, which comprises her second to fourth albums and the DVD Live in Europe, was released in Australia and reached the top twenty on the albums chart and was credited gold (35,000+).[30]

2008: Funhouse

Main article: Funhouse (Pink album)

On February 20, 2008, Pink posted a message on her website discussing her separation from her husband Carey Hart and to confirm that she is working on a new album.[31]

On March 31, 2008, a Dutch music store published an album and DVD release list on their website, stating that in October 2008 a new album from Pink will be released in stores.[32]

On June 16, 2008 Pink's Manager confirmed that Pink was in fact working on her album and was due to release it in October if all goes well. This story is taken from Late News Channel Ten in Australia. Also during June, producer Danja wrote in a MySpace bulletin that he was working on tracks for Pink as well as other artists.

On July 15, 2008 the official Pink website posted behind the scenes photos of the singer in the studio. The black and white pictures show Pink recording her new album.[33] Later that month, it was announced that the new album will be released in America on October 28, 2008[34] and on October 25 in Australia.[35]

On August 18, 2008, Pink's single, "So What", officially went for radio adds,[36] however on August 7, 2008, it was leaked online, and radio stations across Australia were quick to give it massive airplay. Within less than 6 hours from the leak, "So What" was immediately voted #1 on Nova 100 Melbourne and shot to #1 on the Today Network's national radio Hot30 Countdown.[37] It also shot straight to number 1 on the official Australian and British iTunes single downloads charts.

On August 22, Pink announced a new track titled Crystal Ball. The song is about not knowing what the future holds and liking it that way.[38]

On about August 24, 2008, Pink spoke about her new album 'Funhouse' in an interview with Kyle Sandilands from Australian radio (for selected stations on the Austereo Radio Network eg. 2DayFM / B105 FM / Fox FM from the Today Network). This interview was then aired on Austereo radio on Monday August 25, and Pink stated she now has a fairly busy schedule booked right up till 2010, including touring again in Australia and elsewhere.[39]

On September 18, 2008, "So What" became the first solo number one of her career on the Billboard Hot 100. The track has also reached number one in Australia, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Canada and Germany.

To support the album release P!nk will go on tour. The Funhouse Tour will start in Belgium on February 26 and will tour in Europe until mid-May. After that the Australian leg of the tour starts in Perth. After Australia the tour also visit New Zealand. No North America dates are announced thus far.

Filmography

Year Title Role
2002 Rollerball Rock singer
2003 Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle Coal bowl starter
2007 Catacombs Carolyn
2009 Get Him to the Greek

Personal life

Marriage and divorce

Pink met professional motocross racer Carey Hart at the 2001 X Games in Philadelphia. Pink proposed to Hart in 2005 by doing his pit boarding and then asking him to marry her during one of his races in Mammoth Lakes, California by holding up a sign saying the classic phrase "Will you marry me? Serious". On the other side was written "I'm Serious!". After Hart read the sign, he almost caused an accident.[40] They married in Costa Rica on January 7, 2006 at sunset.[41] After months of speculation, Pink's publicist, Michele Schweitzer, told PEOPLE magazine on February 19, 2008, that the singer and Carey Hart had separated.[42] "This decision was made by best friends with a huge amount of love and respect for one another", Schweitzer said.[43] She is currently single and lives in Los Angeles, California. The video for her current hit "So What", in which Hart appears, deals with her separation and pending divorce. Pink has spoken about her relationships with women before her marriage.[44]

PETA

See also: Kentucky Fried Cruelty Campaign

Pink is a prominent campaigner for PETA, contributing her voice towards causes such as a protest against KFC. She sent a letter to Prince William criticizing him for fox hunting and one to Queen Elizabeth II protesting the use of real fur in the bearskins of the Foot Guards and the Honourable Artillery Company. In November 2006, Pink mentioned in the News of the World that she was disgusted with fellow singer Beyoncé for wearing fur. In conjunction with PETA, she criticized the Australian wool industry over its use of mulesing. In January 2007, she stated that she had been misled by PETA about mulesing and that she had not done enough research before lending her name to the campaign.[45] Her campaigning led to a headlining concert in Cardiff, Wales on August 21, 2007 called PAW (Party for Animals Worldwide). This highlighted her involvement with animal cruelty problems, as well as her unwavering commitment to contributing her voice towards such causes. Pink follows a strict vegan lifestyle.[46]

Image

The musician was voted #36 on Stuff's "102 Sexiest Women in the World" list.[citation needed]

Charity work

Pink is involved with many charities including "Phoenix vert" (www.phoenixvert.com), Human Rights Campaign, ONE Campaign, Prince's Trust, Run For The Cure Foundation, Save the Children, Take Back the Night, UNICEF and World Society for the Protection of Animals.[47] As of May 2008 Pink has been officially recognized as an advocate for the RSPCA in Australia.

Discography

Main article: Pink discography

Tours

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