Amelle Berrabah
Encyclopedia
Amelle Berrabah is a British
singer, songwriter and member of pop girl group the Sugababes
. Since replacing founding member Mutya Buena
in the group in December 2005, Berrabah has attained two UK number one singles, "About You Now
" and "Walk This Way", as well as a number one album, Change
. Berrabah also achieved a solo number one single in 2009 after collaborating with Tinchy Stryder
on their single "Never Leave You
", making her the first and to date only member of the Sugababes to achieve a number one single outside of the group.
, Hampshire to Moroccan parents. She has four sisters, younger sisters Samiya and Laila, older sisters Zakiya and Nora and a brother Khaled. Her family owned a kebab
shop in Aldershot. Berrabah's father died of cancer in 2002.
Berrabah attended Academy of Contemporary Music
in Guildford
on the merit of a scholarship. It was then that she met her managers and formed the band Boo2, with her sister, Samiya and began looking for record contract opportunities. She won Top of the Pops
magazine’s Star Search in 2003 that gave her the chance to be the lead singer of a new band and had performed at Party in the Park
as well.
and Heidi Range
. They liked the demos and Berrabah was then announced as the newest member of the band.
The first single to feature Berrabah's vocals, "Red Dress
", entered the UK Singles Chart
at number four. Taller in More Ways
was re-released in early 2006 with re-recorded vocals by Berrabah. Because of the hastiness of the replacement, she could only re-record vocals for half the album. The Sugababes' greatest hits collection, Overloaded: The Singles Collection
was released later that year. They were also involved in the 2007 Comic Relief single with fellow girlband, Girls Aloud
, "Walk This Way", which went to number one. With the release of first single from their album Change, the Dr. Luke
produced "About You Now", the Sugababes became the first girl group to top the UK Singles Chart on downloads alone, the song remained at number one for four weeks. In October 2007, Change became the group's second UK Albums Chart
number one, giving the group the top positions on the singles and albums charts simultaneously. She was credited with co-writing five songs on the album. Despite announcing a break after the Change tour, the group quickly began working on Catfights and Spotlights
, which was released in late 2008.
Berrabah was featured on "Never Leave You" by Tinchy Stryder in 2009, the single debuted at number one. After the commercial disappointment of Catfights and Spotlights, the group began working on a new album, Sweet 7, signing with Roc Nation
and working with their in-house producers and other producers in the US. Prior to shooting the video for the second single, RedOne
production "About a Girl
", Berrabah was rumoured to have left the group. She had missed two engagements promoting the album. It was later revealed that in fact Buchanan had been booted and replaced by Britain's Eurovision entry that year, Jade Ewen
. Berrabah and Range had earlier quit the band claiming that they could not work with Buchanan any more, their management then retained them and removed Buchanan instead. Following these events, Berrabah checked into a European health clinic for a three week stay, citing "severe nervous exhaustion". Sweet 7 was released in early 2010 after multiple delays from late 2009. It charted at number 14 on the UK Albums Chart.
Collaborations
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
singer, songwriter and member of pop girl group the Sugababes
Sugababes
The Sugababes are an English pop girl group based in London, consisting of members Heidi Range, Amelle Berrabah and Jade Ewen. The Sugababes were formed in 1998 with founding members Siobhán Donaghy, Mutya Buena and Keisha Buchanan. Their debut album, One Touch, was released in 2000 under London...
. Since replacing founding member Mutya Buena
Mutya Buena
Rosa Isabel Mutya Buena is an English recording artist who rose to fame as a member of girl group the Sugababes. With the Sugababes, Buena had four UK number one singles, an additional six top-ten hits and three multi-platinum albums. After leaving the group in December 2005, she released her...
in the group in December 2005, Berrabah has attained two UK number one singles, "About You Now
About You Now
"About You Now" is a 2007 single by English girl group Sugababes, written by Cathy Dennis and producer Dr. Luke for the group's fifth studio album, Change...
" and "Walk This Way", as well as a number one album, Change
Change (Sugababes album)
Change is the fifth studio album by English girl group Sugababes, released through Island Records during October 2007 in most European territories. The album features production by Dr...
. Berrabah also achieved a solo number one single in 2009 after collaborating with Tinchy Stryder
Tinchy Stryder
Kwasi Danquah III , better known by his pseudonyms Tinchy Stryder and Star In The Hood, is a Ghanaian British recording artist, music executive, A&R executive, and businessman...
on their single "Never Leave You
Never Leave You
-Charts:The song immediately rushed to the top of the charts, charting at #1 in the UK and #2 in Ireland, the song knocked The Black Eyed Peas's song "I Gotta Feeling" of the top spot on 2 August 2010, but failed to knock I Gotta Feeling of the Irish top spot, and charted behind it.-End-of-year...
", making her the first and to date only member of the Sugababes to achieve a number one single outside of the group.
Early life
Berrabah was born in AldershotAldershot
Aldershot is a town in the English county of Hampshire, located on heathland about southwest of London. The town is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council...
, Hampshire to Moroccan parents. She has four sisters, younger sisters Samiya and Laila, older sisters Zakiya and Nora and a brother Khaled. Her family owned a kebab
Kebab
Kebab is a wide variety of meat dishes originating in Middle East and later on adopted by the Middle East, and Asia Minor, and now found worldwide. In English, kebab with no qualification generally refers more specifically to shish kebab served on the skewer...
shop in Aldershot. Berrabah's father died of cancer in 2002.
Berrabah attended Academy of Contemporary Music
Academy of Contemporary Music
The Academy of Contemporary Music is a music academy located in Guildford, Surrey, England.The school differs from more traditional music academies by its focus on rock and pop music, and its vocational approach...
in Guildford
Guildford
Guildford is the county town of Surrey. England, as well as the seat for the borough of Guildford and the administrative headquarters of the South East England region...
on the merit of a scholarship. It was then that she met her managers and formed the band Boo2, with her sister, Samiya and began looking for record contract opportunities. She won Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops, also known as TOTP, is a British music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly from 1 January 1964 to 30 July 2006. After 25 December 2006 it became a radio program, now hosted by Tony Blackburn...
magazine’s Star Search in 2003 that gave her the chance to be the lead singer of a new band and had performed at Party in the Park
Party in the Park
Party in the Park is the generic name given to music concerts organised by various radio stations and local authorities in England and Wales, typically in large parks during the summer.-Leeds' Party in the Park:...
as well.
Career
Following Mutya Buena's departure from Sugababes, Berrabah was roped in as a replacement by the group's management. Their manager had seen Boo2 perform at an American showcase a few years prior and Berrabah had impressed him. As soon as Buena left, he gave Berrabah a call about the opportunity and got her to record three songs to audition for remaining members Keisha BuchananKeisha Buchanan
Keisha Kerreece Fayeanne Buchanan is an English singer-songwriter and was a founding member of the BRIT Award-winning girl group the Sugababes. With the Sugababes, Buchanan had six number one singles and two number one studio albums, making the Sugababes one of the most successful British pop acts...
and Heidi Range
Heidi Range
Heidi India Range is an English singer, songwriter and member of the Sugababes. Range was an original member of girl group Atomic Kitten, although she left the group after two years of its formation with no album released...
. They liked the demos and Berrabah was then announced as the newest member of the band.
The first single to feature Berrabah's vocals, "Red Dress
Red Dress (song)
"Red Dress" is a song performed by British girl group Sugababes from their fourth studio album, Taller in More Ways. It was written by band members Keisha Buchanan, Mutya Buena, Heidi Range, and Brian Higgins, Miranda Cooper, Tim Powell, Nick Coler, Shawn Lee, Lisa Cowling, and Bob Bradley of the...
", entered the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
at number four. Taller in More Ways
Taller in More Ways
Taller in More Ways is the fourth studio album by British girl group Sugababes, released by Island Records on 10 October 2005 in the United Kingdom. It was primarily produced by Dallas Austin and Xenomania, with additional production from Cameron McVey and Guy Sigsworth...
was re-released in early 2006 with re-recorded vocals by Berrabah. Because of the hastiness of the replacement, she could only re-record vocals for half the album. The Sugababes' greatest hits collection, Overloaded: The Singles Collection
Overloaded: The Singles Collection
Overloaded: The Singles Collection is a compilation album by British girl group the Sugababes. It was released by Island Records on 13 November 2006 in the United Kingdom. The main version of the album was a 15-track collection of 13 Sugababes singles and two new tracks...
was released later that year. They were also involved in the 2007 Comic Relief single with fellow girlband, Girls Aloud
Girls Aloud
Girls Aloud are a British and Irish pop girl group based in London. They were created through the ITV1 talent show Popstars The Rivals in 2002. The group consists of Cheryl Cole , Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh. They are signed to Fascination Records, a Polydor...
, "Walk This Way", which went to number one. With the release of first single from their album Change, the Dr. Luke
Dr. Luke
Lukasz Gottwald , better known as Dr. Luke, is an American songwriter, record producer, and remixer. Luke performed with the Saturday Night Live Band for ten seasons until 2007. He has co-written and co-produced a string of commercially successful songs...
produced "About You Now", the Sugababes became the first girl group to top the UK Singles Chart on downloads alone, the song remained at number one for four weeks. In October 2007, Change became the group's second UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
number one, giving the group the top positions on the singles and albums charts simultaneously. She was credited with co-writing five songs on the album. Despite announcing a break after the Change tour, the group quickly began working on Catfights and Spotlights
Catfights and Spotlights
Catfights and Spotlights is the sixth studio album by British pop band Sugababes, released by Island Records in the Netherlands and Ireland on 17 October 2008 and in the United Kingdom on 20 October 2008. It was primarily produced by Klas Åhlund, Steve Booker and Orson, with additional contribution...
, which was released in late 2008.
Berrabah was featured on "Never Leave You" by Tinchy Stryder in 2009, the single debuted at number one. After the commercial disappointment of Catfights and Spotlights, the group began working on a new album, Sweet 7, signing with Roc Nation
Roc Nation
Roc Nation is an American management, music publishing and entertainment company founded by Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter.-History:In April 2008, Live Nation partnered with Jay-Z to create Roc Nation...
and working with their in-house producers and other producers in the US. Prior to shooting the video for the second single, RedOne
RedOne
Nadir Khayat , known by the stage name RedOne, is a Moroccan producer and songwriter. Renowned for co-producing hit singles such as "Just Dance", "Poker Face", "LoveGame", "Bad Romance", "Alejandro" and "Judas", he is attributed by some as the key to Lady Gaga's success...
production "About a Girl
About a Girl (Sugababes song)
"About a Girl" is an electropop song performed by English girl group Sugababes from their seventh studio album, Sweet 7. Written by Makeba Riddick and co-written/produced by RedOne, it was selected as the album's second single and was released on November 8, 2009...
", Berrabah was rumoured to have left the group. She had missed two engagements promoting the album. It was later revealed that in fact Buchanan had been booted and replaced by Britain's Eurovision entry that year, Jade Ewen
Jade Ewen
Jade Almarie Louise Ewen is an English singer, songwriter, actress and member of the Sugababes. Ewen began her singing career in a girl group named Trinity Stone signed to Sony BMG in 2005, but they disbanded in 2007 with no album released...
. Berrabah and Range had earlier quit the band claiming that they could not work with Buchanan any more, their management then retained them and removed Buchanan instead. Following these events, Berrabah checked into a European health clinic for a three week stay, citing "severe nervous exhaustion". Sweet 7 was released in early 2010 after multiple delays from late 2009. It charted at number 14 on the UK Albums Chart.
Personal life
On 28 April 2007, Berrabah was arrested over allegations that she had assaulted a girl on the dancefloor in a club. No charges were brought. Berrabah was arrested again on 10 January 2008 on suspicion of causing criminal damage and a public order offence. The arrest was made in connection with an alleged attack on a car in her hometown of Aldershot on 9 January 2008. The charges were quickly dropped when it was revealed that she was not even in town at the time. On 23 September 2010, Berrabah was arrested on suspicion of drink-driving after neighbours alerted the police. After pleading guilty in court, she received a 14 month driving ban and a £2000 fine. On 2 September 2011, she was convicted of common assault due to an incident immediately prior to her arrest for drink-driving. She was given conditional discharge and ordered to pay £250 to her victim.Singles
As featured artist| Year | Single | Chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
IRE Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
EU |
|||
| 2009 | "Never Leave You Never Leave You -Charts:The song immediately rushed to the top of the charts, charting at #1 in the UK and #2 in Ireland, the song knocked The Black Eyed Peas's song "I Gotta Feeling" of the top spot on 2 August 2010, but failed to knock I Gotta Feeling of the Irish top spot, and charted behind it.-End-of-year... " (Tinchy Stryder Tinchy Stryder Kwasi Danquah III , better known by his pseudonyms Tinchy Stryder and Star In The Hood, is a Ghanaian British recording artist, music executive, A&R executive, and businessman... featuring Amelle) |
1 | 2 | 5 | Catch 22 Catch 22 (Tinchy Stryder album) Catch 22 is the second full-length solo studio album by Ghanaian British recording artist Tinchy Stryder, and his major label debut, since allying with Universal Island Records. After three successful singles leading up to the album, the album, was released on August 17, 2009. The album is produced... |
Collaborations
| Title | Year | Other performer(s) | Album | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Til the End" | 2010 | Tinchy Stryder | Third Strike Third Strike (album) Third Strike is the third solo studio album from Ghanaian British recording artist Tinchy Stryder, and his second studio album with Universal Island Records. It was released in the United Kingdom on 15 November 2010... |
|
Music videos
Featured music videos| Title | Year | Director(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Never Leave You Never Leave You -Charts:The song immediately rushed to the top of the charts, charting at #1 in the UK and #2 in Ireland, the song knocked The Black Eyed Peas's song "I Gotta Feeling" of the top spot on 2 August 2010, but failed to knock I Gotta Feeling of the Irish top spot, and charted behind it.-End-of-year... " (Tinchy Stryder featuring Amelle) |
2009 | Emil Nava | |