Elly Jackson
Elly Jackson | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Eleanor Kate Jackson |
| Born | 12 March 1988 London, England |
| Genres | Synthpop |
| Occupations | |
| Instruments | |
| Labels | |
Eleanor Kate "Elly" Jackson (born 12th March 1988)[1] is an English singer-songwriter and the lead singer of the synthpop duo La Roux. She is well known for her reddish toned hair and androgynous style.[2][3][4] Jackson has a soprano vocal range.[5]
Biography
Jackson was born in London on 12 March 1988. She is the daughter of The Bill and Emmerdale actress Trudie Goodwin and actor Kit Jackson, and has an older sister named Jessica. Her great grandfather was Anthony Bernard, founder of the London Chamber Orchestra and first musical director of the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre in Stratford upon Avon. She attended Pimlico School, Sydenham High School and Royal Russell School.
Elly Jackson's first interest in music revolved around folk music. She was particularly interested in Carole King and Nick Drake whom she discovered in her parents' record collection. Jackson's early musical material consisted of folk songs informed by Joni Mitchell.[6] Her taste in music changed during her mid-teens when she became involved in the rave scene. She lists Gerry Rafferty,[7] David Bowie, Depeche Mode, Madonna, Prince and The Knife as her influences.[8] She currently cites disco,[9] Swedish electronic artist Fever Ray,[10] and English indie group White Lies[10] as her favourite music. Jackson is unhappy with what she perceives as a "normality" fashion trend among a majority of today's musical acts.[11][12] Her androgynous clothing and hair style, which has been compared to the 1980s group A Flock of Seagulls, is being imitated.[13][14] Jackson strongly opposes stylists who try to change her appearance to a more classically feminine look.[15] Jackson does not feel that social networking will help musicians' careers in the long run because it makes them too accessible at the expense of mystery and intrigue.[16]
Jackson herself is often incorrectly referred to as "La Roux", when in reality she is only one half of the group. This is largely because Ben Langmaid, the other half of La Roux, most often does not appear in interviews, music videos and live performances. His most commonly known appearance was in their 2011 Grammy win.
She has accumulated a lesbian cult following.[17] She also stated that she was frequently bullied in school because of her tomboyish appearance and weight.[18]
La Roux
La Roux's debut single "Quicksand" was released on 15 December 2008. Their second single, "In for the Kill", which was released on 16 March 2009, reached number two on the UK Singles Chart. Their third single "Bulletproof" was released on 21 June 2009 and reached number one on the UK Singles Chart and later number eight in the United States. These songs are all featured on La Roux's debut album La Roux.
Collaborations
In 2010, Jackson added vocals to Kanye West's platinum-selling album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, which was released on November 22, 2010.[19][20] Jackson contributed vocals to West's debut album with Jay-Z, Watch the Throne, on the track "That's My Bitch." which was released 9 August 2011.[21][22]
In addition to her appearance on Kanye West's album in 2010, Jackson performed on Chromeo's third album Business Casual, providing chorus vocals for the track "Hot Mess".[23]
References
- ^ Elly Jackson - Celebrity News - Digital Spy
- ^ Odell, Amy (June 24, 2010). "La Roux's Elly Jackson Refused to Wear Heels at Viktor & Rolf's Men's Show". New York Magazine.
- ^ Kennedy, Gerrick D. (July 14, 2010). "La Roux Takes its Best Shot". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ "England's Dreamy". Spin. September 2009. p. 66.
- ^ Fuller, Andy. "Elly Jackson SPG Interview". Student Pocket Guide. Retrieved 26 December 2011.
- ^ Breaking: La Roux Rolling Stone Magazine 4 November 2009
- ^ Elly Jackson: 'It's not just being catchy' The Independent 19 May 2010
- ^ Et intervju med La Roux
- ^ "La Roux (@larouxofficial) op Twitter". Twitter.com. Retrieved 2013-04-06.
- ^ a b "La Roux's Elly Jackson On Joni Mitchell, Misogyny And Being 'Bulletproof'". The Alternate Side. 2010-02-01. Retrieved 2013-04-06.
- ^ Day, Elizabeth (19 April 2009). "Pop's new wave: quirky, stylish girls fashioned from the 80s". The Observer. London. Retrieved 20 April 2009.
- ^ Dingwall, John (1 May 2009). "A Girl Named Roux Leads 80s Revival; Electropop Trendsetter Recaptures the Style of New Romantics for A New Generation of Music Fans". California Chronicle. Retrieved 4 May 2009.
- ^ Lester, Paul (24 September 2009). "La Roux: 'Of course Lady Gaga's not my thing'". The Guardian.]
- ^ N-Dubz hit out at 'bitter' La Roux BBC 1 October 2009
- ^ La Roux takes its best shot 14 July 2010
- ^ In a minute with musician La Roux The Times 6 December 2009
- ^ "Elly Jackson Talks La Roux's Lesbian Fans - She Isn't BTW EveryJoe". Everyjoe.com. 2009-09-29. Retrieved 2013-04-06.
- ^ "La Roux singer tells of bullying". BreakingNews.ie. Retrieved 2013-04-06.
- ^ Kanye West announces La Roux, Jay-Z, MIA will feature on new album NME 7 October 2010
- ^ Kanye West Adds M.I.A., La Roux And Alicia Keys To Album MTV 7 October 7 2010
- ^ Kanye West & Jay-Z f. Elly Jackson of La Roux - That's My Bitch [Prod. Q-Tip] | New Hip Hop Music & All The New Rap Songs 2011 | HipHop DX
- ^ Kanye West and Jay-Z's 'Watch the Throne': A Track-by-Track Breakdown Rolling Stone 9 August 2011
- ^ Chromeo Featuring Elly Jackson - Hot Mess, 1st February 2011
External links
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
- 1988 births
- British electronic musicians
- British record producers
- English female singers
- English singer-songwriters
- English sopranos
- Grammy Award-winning artists
- Interscope Records artists
- Living people
- Singers from London
- People educated at Royal Russell School
- People educated at Sydenham High School
- Polydor Records artists
- Synthpop musicians
- Tracker musicians
- Androgyny
- Genderqueer people