Rebecca Ferguson (singer)
Rebecca Ferguson | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Rebecca Caroline Ferguson |
| Born | July 21, 1986 Liverpool, England, UK |
| Genres | Soul |
| Occupation | Singer-songwriter |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Labels | Syco Music, Epic Records |
| Website | www |
Rebecca Ferguson (born July 21, 1986)[1] is an English singer-songwriter born in Liverpool, who became notable as the runner-up of the seventh series of The X Factor to Matt Cardle in 2010. Ferguson became the new face of Walkers crisps Sunbites as of June 2011.[2] She released her debut single "Nothing's Real But Love" on 20 November 2011 and entered the official UK charts at number 10 on 26 November. Her debut album, Heaven, was released on 5 December 2011.[3]
Early life
Ferguson is a student and single mother from Anfield, Liverpool.[4] She is a qualified legal secretary, having studied at Hugh Baird College, Bootle.[5]
Music career
2009–10: The X Factor
Ferguson had previously unsuccessfully auditioned for The X Factor and for P. Diddy's Starmaker in New York.[4] She sang "A Change Is Gonna Come" during her initial audition.[4] At her bootcamp audition, she sang "Like a Star" to which Cowell said "That is a recording voice!" and Nicole Scherzinger said, "I told you first time I saw her, she is our generation’s songbird."[6] She sang "Fireflies" at judges' houses and made it through to the live shows.[7] For the first live show she sang "Teardrops" and in the second live show she sang "Feeling Good". In the third live show she sang "Why Don't You Do Right?" and in the fourth live show she sang "Wicked Game". In the fifth live show, Rebecca received a standing ovation from Simon and Cheryl following her performance of "Make You Feel My Love". In the following episode, Rebecca received another standing ovation from Dannii and Cheryl after singing "Candle in the Wind". In the final, she performed a duet with Christina Aguilera, performing Aguilera's hit single "Beautiful". Ferguson's winner's song was a cover of Duffy's "Distant Dreamer", but she finished as the runner-up to Matt Cardle, making her the first female runner-up on The X Factor. After the final, it was announced that Ferguson had been signed by Syco Music,.[8]
Performances on X Factor
| Week | Song choice | Theme | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audition | "A Change Is Gonna Come" | Free choice (no theme) | Through to bootcamp |
| Bootcamp | "Like a Star" | Free choice (no theme) | Through to judges houses |
| Judges' houses | "Fireflies" | Free choice (no theme) | Through to live shows |
| Week 1 | "Teardrops" | Number-ones | Safe |
| Week 2 | "Feeling Good" | Musical heroes | Safe |
| Week 3 | "Why Don't You Do Right?" | Guilty pleasures | Safe |
| Week 4 | "Wicked Game" | Halloween | Safe |
| Week 5 | "Make You Feel My Love" | American anthems | Safe |
| Week 6 | "Candle In The Wind" | Songs by Elton John | Safe |
| Week 7 | "Yesterday" | Songs by The Beatles | Safe |
| Week 8 | "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" | Rock | Safe |
| "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" | |||
| Week 9 | "Show Me Love" | Club classics | Safe |
| "Amazing Grace" | "Get me to the final songs" | ||
| Week 10 | "Like A Star" | Free choice (no theme) | Safe |
| "Beautiful" (performed with Christina Aguilera) | Celebrity duet | ||
| "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" | Free choice (no theme) | Safe | |
| "Distant Dreamer" | Winner's song | Runner Up |
2011–present: Heaven
In January 2011, it was reported that Ferguson had signed a joint record deal between Syco and Epic Records.[8][9] In June 2011 Ferguson became the new face of Walkers crisps Sunbites.[2] Ferguson released her debut single "Nothing's Real but Love" on 20 November 2011 which was written by herself and Eg White with the album being released on 5 December.[10] It includes new material, all co-written by herself. Producers include Eg White, Fraser T. Smith, and Jonny Lattimer.[11] Speaking about her experiences recording her debut album, Ferguson explained: "I've loved writing and recording the album throughout this year so I'm really excited for everyone to hear it! I feel like I've learnt a lot about myself going through the writing process, putting my experiences on paper and into the tracks. It's a record I'm really proud of."[12] "Nothing's Real but Love" premiered on Monday 17 October 2011 on BBC Radio 1Xtra[citation needed] and she performed it live on The X Factor on 20 November 2011. On 18 November 2011, Ferguson announced her first UK and Ireland Tour spanning 14 dates from 20 February to 13 March 2012. Simon Cowell posted on his Twitter account on 21 November how proud he was of Ferguson's album saying, "I am absolutely blown away by @RebeccaFMusic, her album and by her performance. Congratulations!".[13]
On 16 November Rebecca revealed that she told label boss Simon Cowell that she wanted to write her debut album. She admitted that she refused to record material written for her as she wanted to create her own songs for new LP Heaven. She is quoted by The Sun as saying: "Syco have been really brilliant – as soon as I put my foot down they back off completely. I just wanted songs I'd written on the album. At first I was going into sessions with writers who'd pretty much got all of the songs done already. But I told management they needed to let me write it because otherwise no-one's going to think I'm a credible artist. Then they let me just go into sessions on my own – I couldn't believe it."I told Simon Cowell I was writing my album Heaven". on 12 December it was announced that Heaven is set to be certified Gold after selling 128,000 in its first weeks release. Following this Ferugson confirmed that the album would be released in the US sometime in 2012.[14] After two weeks of the album being released, the British Phonographic Industry awarded Ferguson with a Platinum certification.[15] On 3 January 2012 Ferguson confirmed on her offical website that the second single to be released from the album will be "To Good To Lose".
Personal life
Ferguson is a single mother to two children, Lillie May and Karl.[4] She dated fellow X Factor contestant and One Direction member Zayn Malik which caused controversy because of the six year age difference.The relationship ended after 4 months together. In November 2011 Ferguson stated in an interview: "Me and Zayn just grew apart. I wish him all the best." [16]
Discography
Albums
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | IRE | SCO | |||
| Heaven |
|
3 | 9 | 3 | |
Singles
| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | IRE | SCO | |||
| 2011 | "Nothing's Real But Love" | 10 | 23 | 10 | Heaven |
| 2012 | "Too Good To Lose" | TBA | TBA | TBA | |
As featured artist
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | IRE | SCO [17] | |||
| 2010 | "Heroes" (as part of The X Factor finalists) | 1 | 1 | 1 | Non-album single |
Music videos
| Song | Year |
|---|---|
| "Heroes" | 2010 |
| "Nothings Real But Love" | 2011 |
| "Too Good To Lose" | 2012 |
Tours
- Headlining
- Heaven Tour (2012)
- Supporting
- X Factor Tour (2011)
References
- ^ "EXCLUSIVE: X Factor finalist Rebecca Ferguson's family on the childhood that encouraged her to become a star". ECHO. 25 Nov 2010. Retrieved 16 December 2011.
- ^ a b Rebecca Ferguson ditches nice-girl image in Walkers ad
- ^ "Rebecca Ferguson to release debut single in November". Radio 1 Newsbeat. 5 October 2011. Retrieved 22 October 2011.
- ^ a b c d Tina Miles (23 September 2010). "Liverpool's X Factor hopeful Rebecca Ferguson on her singing ambitions". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 3 October 2010.
- ^ Tina Miles (7 October 2010). "X Factor favourite Rebecca Ferguson's teacher from Hugh Baird College talks about her star potential". Liverpool Echo.
- ^ Tina Miles (27 September 2010). "X Factor: Liverpool's Rebecca Ferguson reaches judges' houses stage". Liverpool Echo.
- ^ "The X Factor 2010: the 12 acts who made it to the Live Shows". STV. 3 October 2010.
- ^ a b Lee, Cara (15 December 2010). "Father Xmas Si's three special gifts". The Sun. London: News Group Newspapers. Retrieved 3 January 2011.
- ^ Copsey, Robert (21 January 2011). "Rebecca Ferguson secures record deal". Digital Spy. London: Hachette Filipacchi UK. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
- ^ "Rebecca Ferguson". Rebecca Ferguson - New Album Out Soon. www.HMV.com. Retrieved 10 September 2011.
- ^ Rebecca Ferguson interview by Pete Lewis, 'Blues & Soul' December 2011
- ^ http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/music/news/a343725/rebecca-ferguson-announces-debut-single-nothings-real-but-love.html
- ^ http://tv.uk.msn.com/news/articles.aspx?cp-documentid=159852257
- ^ http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/music/news/a355528/rebecca-ferguson-to-release-debut-album-heaven-in-us-in-2012.html
- ^ a b "BPI > Certified Awards Search". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2011-12-017.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help) - ^ http://www.mtv.co.uk/news/rebecca-ferguson/338835-rebecca-ferguson-zayn-malik-one-direction-split
- ^ Peak positions for singles in Scotland:
- For "Heroes": "Heroes on Scottish Singles Chart". The Official Charts Company. Chart Information Network. Retrieved 24 March 2011.