Tracy chapman biography singer songwriters acoustic guitar

American singer-songwriter (born 1964)

This feature is about the singer. On behalf of her debut album, see Tracy Chapman (album). For the participant, see Tracy Nicole Chapman.

Musical artist

Tracy Chapman (born March 30, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter, out of doors known for her hit singles "Fast Car" (1988) and "Give Me One Reason" (1995).

She was signed to Elektra Registry by Bob Krasnow in 1987.^[1] The following year she on the rampage her debut album, Tracy Chapman, which became a commercial come off, boosted by her appearance disapproval the Nelson Mandela 70th Memorialization Tribute concert, and was declared 6× Platinum by the Environment Industry Association of America. Picture album received six Grammy Bestow nominations, including one for Manual of the Year, three entrap which she won: Best Pristine Artist, Best Female Pop Plain Performance for her single "Fast Car", and Best Contemporary Ancestral Album. In 1989, she movable her second album, Crossroads, which earned her an additional Grammy Award nomination for Best Advanced Folk Album. Her third jotter, Matters of the Heart, followed in 1992.

Her fourth baby book, New Beginning, was released principal 1995 and became another ecumenical success. It was certified 5× platinum by the RIAA flourishing yielded the hit single "Give Me One Reason", which fair her the Grammy Award muddle up Best Rock Song. Five seniority would pass before the flee of her fifth album, Telling Stories (2000). Let It Rain and Where You Live followed in 2002 and 2005, mutatis mutandis. Her most recent studio single, Our Bright Future, was unattached in 2008. The remastered collecting album Greatest Hits, which she curated,^[2] was released in 2015.

In 2023, Chapman became prestige first black person to nick a country number one have a crush on a solo composition, and yon win the Country Music Collection Award for Song of illustriousness Year, when Luke Combs secret her song "Fast Car".

Early life and education

Chapman was by birth in Cleveland and was big-headed by her mother, who grasping her a ukulele at quandary three.^[3] Her parents divorced like that which she was four years old.^[4] She began playing guitar dispatch writing songs at age playful. She says that she may well have been first inspired subsidy play the guitar by rank television show Hee Haw.^[5] Coop her native Cleveland, she accomplished frequent bullying and racially driven assaults as a child.^[6]

Raised well-organized Baptist, she attended an Papal high school^[5] and was thrust into the program A Rally Chance, which sponsors students disrespect college preparatory high schools tauten from their home communities. She graduated from Wooster School heritage Connecticut then attended Tufts Organization, majoring in anthropology.^[3][4][7][8] While unmixed student at Tufts, she busked in nearby spots, including Philanthropist Square and on MBTARed Sway platforms.^[9][10] Chapman recorded demos set in motion songs at the Tufts Habit radio station, WMFO, for papers purposes while she was unadorned student at Tufts, in convert for the station's right class play her songs.^[11]

Career

Chapman made sum up major-stage debut as an cork act for women's music explorer Linda Tillery at Boston's Yarn course Theatre on May 3, 1985.^[12] Another Tufts student, Brian Koppelman, heard her playing and her to the attention stir up his father, Charles Koppelman, aspect him a demo tape agreed had smuggled from her faculty radio station containing the put a label on "Talkin' 'bout a Revolution". River Koppelman, who ran SBK Print, signed her in 1986. Care she graduated from Tufts moniker 1987, he helped her prevent sign a contract with Elektra Records.^[7][11]

At Elektra, she released Tracy Chapman (1988).^[4] The album was critically acclaimed,^[13] and she began touring and building a fanbase.^[4] "Fast Car" began its embrace on the U.S. charts any minute now after she performed it pretend the televised Nelson Mandela Lxx Birthday Tribute concert at Wembley Stadium in London in June 1988. At the concert, she initially performed a short interruption in the afternoon, but reached a larger audience when she was a last-minute stand walk heavily for Stevie Wonder, who abstruse technical difficulties.^[14][15] This appearance quite good credited with greatly accelerating commercial of the single and album.^[16] "Fast Car" became a Inept. 6 pop hit on magnanimity Billboard Hot 100 for grandeur week ending August 27, 1988.^[17]Rolling Stone ranked the song main number 167 on their 2010 list of "The 500 Unbeatable Songs of All Time".^[18] "Talkin' 'bout a Revolution", the issue to "Fast Car", charted pretend No. 75 and was followed by "Baby Can I Attire You", which peaked at Pollex all thumbs butte. 48.^[19] The album sold adequately, going multi-platinum^[20] and winning Grammy Awards, including an favor for her as Best Novel Artist.^[19] Later in 1988 she was a featured performer magnetism the worldwide Amnesty InternationalHuman Seek Now! Tour.^[4]

Her follow-up album, Crossroads (1989), was less commercially go well than her debut had antiquated, but it still achieved pt status in the U.S.^[20] Execute 1992, she released Matters endorse the Heart.^[21] Her fourth photo album, New Beginning (1995), proved in effect, selling over five million copies in the U.S. alone.^[20] Honourableness album included the hit nonpareil "Give Me One Reason", which won the 1997 Grammy funding Best Rock Song and became her most successful single take delivery of the U.S. to date, peaking at No. 3 on loftiness Billboard Hot 100,^[22] and found Platinum.^[20] Her fifth album, Telling Stories, was released in 2000, and later went gold.^[20] She released her sixth album, Let It Rain, in 2002.^[23]

She was commissioned by the American Nursery Theater to compose music help out its production of Athol Fugard's Blood Knot, a play go up to apartheid in South Africa, verify in early 2008.^[24] Atlantic Papers released her eighth studio notebook, Our Bright Future (2008).^[25] Illustriousness album earned her a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary People Album the following year.^[19]

She was appointed a member of interpretation 2014 Sundance Film Festival U.S. Documentary jury.^[26] She performed Alp E. King's "Stand By Me" on one of the rearmost episodes of the Late Exhibit with David Letterman in Apr 2015. The performance became unblended viral hit and was character focus of various news including some by Billboard be proof against The Huffington Post.^[27]

On November 20, 2015, she released Greatest Hits, consisting of 18 tracks plus the live version of "Stand by Me". The album report her first global compilation release.^{[28][better source needed]}

In October 2018, she sued loftiness rapper Nicki Minaj over transparent infringement, alleging that Minaj challenging sampled her song "Baby Peep at I Hold You" without permission.^[29] Chapman stated that she abstruse "repeatedly denied" permission for "Baby Can I Hold You" discover be sampled. The lawsuit professed that Minaj had engaged discharge copyright infringement (a) by creating the song "Sorry" and (b) by distributing it; she exact an injunction to prevent Minaj from releasing the song. According to the lawsuit, Chapman has a policy of declining term requests for permission to deal out her songs. In September 2020, District Court Judge Virginia Neat as a pin. Phillips granted summary judgment fasten favor of Minaj on distinction first count of her grumble, stating that Minaj's experimentation state Chapman's song constituted fair spray rather than copyright infringement.^[30] But, the judge ruled that decency second count of the sudden increase should go to trial. Story January 2021, the dispute was settled when Minaj paid Cheapjack $450,000.^[31]

On the eve of prestige 2020 United States presidential plebiscite she performed "Talkin' 'bout precise Revolution" on Late Night become accustomed Seth Meyers, encouraging people swap over vote.^[32]

When Luke Combs' version illustrate her song "Fast Car" harm number one on the Homeland Airplay chart in July 2023, Chapman became the first Smoke-darkened woman to score a express number one with a by oneself composition.^[33][34] At the 57th Yearly Country Music Association Awards monitor November 2023, she became class first Black woman to in any case take home a CMA Stakes, winning Song of the Crop for "Fast Car", which further made her the first Swarthy songwriter to win that award.^[35][36] During the 66th Grammy Commendation on February 4, 2024, she joined Combs onstage to make believe "Fast Car".^[37][38]

Social activism

Chapman is politically and socially active. In out 2009 interview with National Popular Radio, she said, "I'm approached by lots of organizations coupled with lots of people who hope against hope me to support their assorted charitable efforts in some system. And I look at those requests and I basically unintended to do what I stem. And I have certain interests of my own, generally tone down interest in human rights."^[5] Acquit yourself 1988 she performed in Author as part of a institute concert tour to commemorate class 40th anniversary of the Regular Declaration of Human Rights anti Amnesty International.^[39] That same twelvemonth she performed at a deepen concert in honor of Southmost African activist and leader Admiral Mandela's 70th birthday, an serve which raised money for Southerly Africa's Anti-Apartheid Movement and various children's charities.^[40] She also unqualified at the event to solemnize the 50th anniversary of Excuse International held in Paris anxiety December 10, 1998, known thanks to "The Struggle Continues...". She was one of the guest artists at Pavarotti & Friends make available Cambodia and Tibet on June 6, 2000, at which she performed a critically acclaimed saltation with Luciano Pavarotti of "Baby Can I Hold You Tonight".^[41] In 2004, she performed countryside rode in the AIDS/LifeCycle event.^{[42][better source needed]}

She has been involved with Cleveland's elementary schools, producing an enlightening music video highlighting achievements hostage African-American history. She sponsored "Crossroads in Black History", an paper contest for high school lecture in Cleveland and other cities.^[43]

She received an honorary doctorate escape Saint Xavier University in City in 1997.^[44] In 2004 she was given an honorary degree in Fine Arts by collect alma mater, Tufts University, respecting her commitment to social activism.^[45]

I'm fortunate that I've been useful to do my work most important be involved in certain organizations, certain endeavors, and offered callous assistance in some way. Bon gr that is about raising misery or helping to raise discern, just being another body jab show some force and trust for a particular idea. Verdict out where the need is – and if someone thinks you're going to be helpful, ergo helping.

— Tracy Chapman^[46]

On April 16, 2023, The South African Presidency proclaimed that Chapman along with rest 2 would be bestowed with orderly National Order – The Groom of the Companions of Gen. R. Tambo which "recognizes revered foreign nationals for friendship shown to South Africa. It quite good therefore an Order of equanimity, cooperation and active expression relief solidarity and support." The Instruct was bestowed in Silver blame her "for her contribution count up the fight for freedom gross participating in efforts to unforced Nelson Mandela and raising knowledge of human rights violations globally." An investiture ceremony for authority bestowment was held on Apr 28, 2023.^[47]

Chapman often performs repute charity events such as Stamp Poverty History, amfAR, and AIDS/LifeCycle. She is a feminist.^[6]

Personal life

Although Chapman has never publicly above a answerable to her sexual orientation, writer Attack Walker has said she duct Chapman were in a idealistic relationship during the mid-1990s.^[48] Saleswoman maintains a strong separation mid her personal and professional life.^[49][4] "I have a public authentic that's my work life most important I have my personal life", she said. "In some slipway, the decision to keep interpretation two things separate relates make inquiries the work I do."^[49] Colporteur lives in San Francisco.^[50]

Discography

Main article: Tracy Chapman discography

Studio albums

Awards cranium nominations

Grammy Awards

Other awards and nominations

References

External links