Calvin Harris
Encyclopedia
Calvin Harris is a Scottish singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...

, record producer and DJ. His gold-selling debut album, I Created Disco
I Created Disco
I Created Disco is the debut album by Scottish recording artist Calvin Harris. It was released in the United Kingdom on 18 June 2007 by Fly Eye Records and Columbia Records, preceded by the singles "Acceptable in the 80s" and "The Girls", which reached numbers ten and three on the UK Singles Chart,...

, was released in 2007 and contained the top ten singles "Acceptable in the 80s
Acceptable in the 80s
"Acceptable in the 80s" is a 2007 song by electropop musician Calvin Harris, based on the melody from Siouxsie and the Banshees's 1980 song "Happy House"...

" and "The Girls
The Girls (song)
"The Girls" is the second single of Scottish electropop artist Calvin Harris. It was released on 4 June 2007, prior to the release of his debut album, I Created Disco. "The Girls" was Harris' highest charting single on the Official UK Top 40, as of 10 June 2007, "The Girls" has reached a peak of #3...

". His second studio album, Ready for the Weekend (2009), reached number one in the UK Album Chart and includes the chart-topper "I'm Not Alone", the UK top five hit "Ready for the Weekend
Ready for the Weekend (song)
"Ready for the Weekend" is a song by Scottish recording artist Calvin Harris, released as the second single from his second studio album, Ready for the Weekend.-Background:...

", and the singles "Flashback
Flashback (Calvin Harris song)
Flashback is a song by Scottish electropop musician Calvin Harris taken from his second studio album Ready for the Weekend. The song was released in the UK on 2 November 2009. The song also features vocals from Ayah Marar.-Release and promotion:...

" and "You Used to Hold Me
You Used to Hold Me
"You Used to Hold Me" is a 2010 single release from Scottish Electronic musician Calvin Harris taken from his second studio album Ready for the Weekend. The song was released on February 8, 2010-Release and Promotion:...

".

A remix album titled L.E.D. Festival was released in July 2010 as a free album in the August issue of Mixmag
Mixmag
Mixmag is a British dance music and clubbing magazine. It styles itself as "the world's biggest selling dance music magazine", with an Audit Bureau of Circulations audited circulation of approximately 21,250...

. Harris is currently working on his third studio album—due in 2012—which has produced the singles "Awooga", "Bounce
Bounce (Calvin Harris song)
"Bounce" is the tenth single released by Scottish recording artist Calvin Harris and is the first from his upcoming third studio album, premiering on Annie Mac's show on 29 April 2011. The song features Kelis and is a move away from Harris singing, concentrating more on production...

" and "Feel So Close
Feel So Close
"Feel So Close" is a song by Scottish recording artist Calvin Harris from his upcoming third studio album. It was released as the album's second single on 19 August 2011. Harris returns to singing on this song, after previously stating he had quit singing in concerts. The song debuted at number two...

". He has written and produced records for other recording artists including Mary J. Blige
Mary J. Blige
Mary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...

,Kylie Minogue
Kylie Minogue
Kylie Ann Minogue, OBE - often known simply as Kylie - is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing...

, Dizzee Rascal
Dizzee Rascal
Dylan Kwabena Mills , better known by his stage name Dizzee Rascal, is a Ghanaian British rapper, songwriter and record producer. His music is a blend of garage, hip hop, grime, ragga, pop and electronic music, with eclectic samples and more exotic styles...

, and Rihanna
Rihanna
Robyn Rihanna Fenty , better known as simply Rihanna, is a Barbadian recording artist. Born in Saint Michael, Barbados, Rihanna moved to the United States at the age of 16 to pursue a recording career under the guidance of record producer Evan Rogers...

 (on the international chart topper "We Found Love
We Found Love
"We Found Love" is a song by Barbadian recording artist Rihanna, from her sixth studio album Talk That Talk . The song features Scottish singer-songwriter Calvin Harris. "We Found Love" was released as the lead single from the album and premiered on September 22, 2011, in the United Kingdom on the...

").

Early life and career

Harris was born in Dumfries
Dumfries
Dumfries is a market town and former royal burgh within the Dumfries and Galloway council area of Scotland. It is near the mouth of the River Nith into the Solway Firth. Dumfries was the county town of the former county of Dumfriesshire. Dumfries is nicknamed Queen of the South...

, Scotland. He states that his childhood hero was football star Steve McManaman
Steve McManaman
Steven McManaman is a retired English footballer who played as a midfielder, winger and playmaker. Having spent his playing career at two of European football's most successful clubs of the 20th century, Liverpool and Real Madrid, as well as a spell at Manchester City, McManaman is the most...

, but because he could not play [the game] nor have McManaman's 'curly hair', music was the next best option for a career. He was first attracted to electronic music in his teens and was recording bedroom demos by 1999. According to an interview with News of the World
News of the World
The News of the World was a national red top newspaper published in the United Kingdom from 1843 to 2011. It was at one time the biggest selling English language newspaper in the world, and at closure still had one of the highest English language circulations...

, all the while he created music, he started becoming an antisocial person, which affected his personality. His earliest success was when he was 21: the songs "Da Bongos" and "Brighter Days" were released as a 12" club single and CD-EP by the Prima Facie label in early 2002 under the name Stouffer. He released one song in 2004, "Let Me Know", with artist Ayah Marar. The song appears on The Unabombers' Electric Soul 2.

2006–08: I Created Disco

Harris signed contracts with EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...

 (publishing) and Sony BMG (recording) in 2006, after his music had been discovered on the social networking website MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....

. Harris had recently moved back from London to his hometown of Dumfries because he was unable to find a job. Later in 2006, Harris produced a remix of All Saints
All Saints (group)
All Saints were a British/Canadian girl group. Founded in 1993 as All Saints 1.9.7.5, the group consisted of founding members Melanie Blatt and Shaznay Lewis, and sisters Nicole Appleton and Natalie Appleton...

' hit single "Rock Steady".

Harris' first album, I Created Disco
I Created Disco
I Created Disco is the debut album by Scottish recording artist Calvin Harris. It was released in the United Kingdom on 18 June 2007 by Fly Eye Records and Columbia Records, preceded by the singles "Acceptable in the 80s" and "The Girls", which reached numbers ten and three on the UK Singles Chart,...

, was released in June 2007. The album contains uptempo electroclash
Electroclash
Electroclash is a style of music that fuses New Wave and electronic dance music. It emerged in New York and Detroit in the later 1990s, pioneered by acts including I-F and those associated with Gerald Donald, and is associated with acts including Peaches, Adult, and Fischerspooner...

 songs that were influenced by music from the 1980s. To promote I Created Disco, Harris embarked on a tour of the UK, supporting Faithless
Faithless
Faithless were a British electronica band consisting of Maxi Jazz, Sister Bliss and Rollo. The group is best known for their dance songs . Faithless recorded six albums. During their career they sold over 15 million records worldwide...

 and Groove Armada
Groove Armada
Groove Armada is an English electronic music duo from London, England comprising Andy Cato and Tom Findlay. They are perhaps best known for their singles "I See You Baby" and "Superstylin'"...

. I Created Disco has been certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry
British Phonographic Industry
The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies...

 for sales of 100,000 copies in the UK, where it reached number eight on the 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...

.

The first single, "Vegas", was issued on limited edition vinyl; the first wide-release single from the album was "Acceptable in the 80s
Acceptable in the 80s
"Acceptable in the 80s" is a 2007 song by electropop musician Calvin Harris, based on the melody from Siouxsie and the Banshees's 1980 song "Happy House"...

", a tribute to the style and culture of the decade. The song reached the top ten on 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 ...

, remaining on the chart for fifteen weeks. "The Girls", the album's third single, peaked at number three in the UK, although the fourth release, "Merrymaking at My Place
Merrymaking at My Place
"Merrymaking at My Place" is the fourth single from Scottish electronic musician Calvin Harris. The single was released on August 20, 2007 in the United Kingdom and August 21 in the United States. The song is featured on Harris' album I Created Disco...

", reached only number forty-three. The fifth and final single, "Colours", was featured in television advertisements for DFS
DFS
-File systems:* Depth-first search, an algorithm for traversing or searching a tree* DCE Distributed File System * Disc Filing System, a filesystem developed by Acorn Computers...

 sofas and Kia Motors
Kia Motors
Kia Motors , headquartered in Seoul, is South Korea's second-largest automobile manufacturer, following the Hyundai Motor Company, with sales of over 1.4 million vehicles in 2010...

. In October 2008, Harris was featured on BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...

's Essential Mix with a two-hour set.

2008–10: Ready for the Weekend

In April 2008, Harris stated that the only existing copy of his upcoming album work was lost when his was misplaced during the baggage handling problems at the opening of London Heathrow Terminal 5. Harris later admitted that this was a lie as the album was not in his luggage at all, and that he hoped that what he said would buy him some more time to finish recording the LP. The album, Ready for the Weekend, was released in August 2009 in the United Kingdom and debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart, eventually being certified gold by the BPI for selling 100,000 copies. The first single, "I'm Not Alone", released in April 2009, debuted on the UK Singles Chart at number one and was shortlisted for the Popjustice £20 Music Prize
Popjustice £20 Music Prize
The Popjustice £20 Music Prize is an annual prize awarded by a panel of judges organised by music website Popjustice to the singer of the best British pop single of the past year....

. The follow-up single, "Ready for the Weekend
Ready for the Weekend (song)
"Ready for the Weekend" is a song by Scottish recording artist Calvin Harris, released as the second single from his second studio album, Ready for the Weekend.-Background:...

" (featuring singer Mary Pearce), went to number three. Other tracks included on the album are "Worst Day" featuring Izza Kizza
Izza Kizza
Izza Kizza is an American hip-hop musician, rapper and MC, currently signed to Timbaland's Mosley Music Group label...

 and "Yeah Yeah Yeah La La La", which was used in a Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...

 advertisement.

Harris toured around the UK, Ireland, France, the Netherlands and the United States promoting the album. In June 2009, Harris appeared at the Summertime Ball at the Emirates Stadium
Emirates Stadium
Ashburton Grove, currently known as the Emirates Stadium, is a UEFA elite football stadium which is home to Arsenal FC, where they moved from Highbury in 2006. It has an current capacity of 60,361, and there have been rumours of an expansion...

, and in August, he made an appearance on the first Soccer AM
Soccer AM
Soccer AM is a British Saturday-morning football-based comedy/talk show, predominantly based around the Premier League...

show of the season. Harris performed at Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium
The original Wembley Stadium, officially known as the Empire Stadium, was a football stadium in Wembley, a suburb of north-west London, standing on the site now occupied by the new Wembley Stadium that opened in 2007...

 in October 2009 as part of the pre-game entertainment for the NFL International Series
NFL International Series
Beginning with the 2005 season, the National Football League has hosted regular season American football games held outside the United States in a series known as the International Series.-Background:...

 game between the New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...

 and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football franchise based in Tampa, Florida, U.S. They are currently members of the Southern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League – they are the only team in the division not to come from the old NFC West...

. The third single from Ready for the Weekend, "Flashback
Flashback (Calvin Harris song)
Flashback is a song by Scottish electropop musician Calvin Harris taken from his second studio album Ready for the Weekend. The song was released in the UK on 2 November 2009. The song also features vocals from Ayah Marar.-Release and promotion:...

", reached the top twenty in the UK, and the fourth, "You Used to Hold Me
You Used to Hold Me
"You Used to Hold Me" is a 2010 single release from Scottish Electronic musician Calvin Harris taken from his second studio album Ready for the Weekend. The song was released on February 8, 2010-Release and Promotion:...

", entered the top forty. During promotion of the album, Harris hosted a series of videos on YouTube titled JAM TV, in which musicians such as Florence Welch
Florence Welch
Florence Leontine Mary Welch is an English singer-songwriter, best known worldwide as the lead singer of Florence and the Machine...

, Goldie
Goldie
Clifford Joseph Price, better known as Goldie is an English electronic music artist, disc jockey, visual artist and actor. He is well known for his innovations in the jungle and drum and bass music genres, having previously gained exposure for his work as a graffiti artist...

 and Katy Perry
Katy Perry
Katy Perry is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Born in Santa Barbara, California, and raised by Christian pastor parents, Perry grew up listening to only gospel music and sang in her local church as a child. After earning a GED during her first year of high school, she began to pursue a...

 tried to open pots of jam. In 2010, Harris received a BRIT Award nomination for British Male.

On 14 November, Harris invaded the stage of The X Factor
The X Factor (UK)
The X Factor is a British television music competition to find new singing talent. Created by Simon Cowell, it began in September 2004 and is contested by aspiring singers drawn from public auditions. It is the originator of the international X Factor franchise. The seven series of the show to date...

during a performance by John & Edward
Jedward
John Paul Henry Daniel Richard Grimes and Edward Peter Anthony Kevin Patrick Grimes are an Irish hip pop duo. They are identical twins and perform under the name Jedward...

, holding a pineapple
Pineapple
Pineapple is the common name for a tropical plant and its edible fruit, which is actually a multiple fruit consisting of coalesced berries. It was given the name pineapple due to its resemblance to a pine cone. The pineapple is by far the most economically important plant in the Bromeliaceae...

 on his head and bending over to point at his buttocks. He was subsequently evicted from the studio by the security team and told not to return to have his say on the ITV2
ITV2
ITV2 is a 24 hour, free-to-air entertainment television channel in the United Kingdom owned by ITV Digital Channels Ltd, a division of ITV plc. It was launched on 7 December 1998, and is available on digital television via satellite, cable, IPTV and terrestrial platforms. The channel has the...

 programme The Xtra Factor—in which he was to have been a "Celebrity Guest". He later apologised on Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...

, saying he was a fan of the boys, "At the end of the day, I had a pineapple on my head. Sorry if I caused anyone embarrassment. PS, I love Jedward (sic)" The same week, Harris spoke to The Chris Moyles Show
The Chris Moyles Show
The Chris Moyles Show is the current BBC Radio 1 breakfast show in the UK, and has been since Chris Moyles became the station's breakfast show presenter on 5 January 2004. From 2004 to 2007, the show was broadcast 6:55–10:00 am each weekday, but since 15 October 2007 it has started from...

 and revealed that he had been "inspired to make a mockery of the show", as well as stating that "If you look at music it's a frightening stranglehold that Simon Cowell has got over the entire music chart in the UK at the moment." On the same day, John and Edward's "mentor" Louis Walsh
Louis Walsh
Louis Walsh is an Irish music manager and judge on the British television talent show The X Factor.-Band manager:...

, appearing on The Paul O'Grady Show
The Paul O'Grady Show
The Paul O'Grady Show was a BAFTA award-winning British comedy chat show hosted by Birkenhead-born comedian Paul O'Grady. The format was originally devised by Granada Television and was broadcast on ITV before moving to Channel 4...

, accused Harris of trying to "cash in" on John & Edward's fame, and claimed to not know who he was.

2010–present: Third album and touring

Harris played at the 2010 Big Day Out
Big Day Out
The Big Day Out is an annual music festival held in several cities in Australia and New Zealand in late January. It started in Sydney in 1992, spread to Adelaide, Melbourne and Perth by 1993, with the Gold Coast and Auckland joining in 1994...

, a music festival which takes place in several major cities in Australia and Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...

, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

. In May 2010, he performed at Evolution Festival, UK in Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...

, Quayside
Quayside
The Quayside is an area along the banks of the River Tyne in Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead in the North East of England, United Kingdom....

, and in July he played at Nottingham Splendour and headlined at the Stockton International Riverside Festival in Stockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees is a market town in north east England. It is the major settlement in the unitary authority and borough of Stockton-on-Tees. For ceremonial purposes, the borough is split between County Durham and North Yorkshire as it also incorporates a number of smaller towns including...

. In July 2010, Harris released a mix, titled L.E.D. Festival (short for L.E.D. Festival Presents... Calvin Harris). It was available for one month as a free covermount
Covermount
Covermount is the name given to storage media or other products packaged as part of a magazine or newspaper...

 CD in Mixmag
Mixmag
Mixmag is a British dance music and clubbing magazine. It styles itself as "the world's biggest selling dance music magazine", with an Audit Bureau of Circulations audited circulation of approximately 21,250...

.

Harris appeared at the tenth birthday of Our:House in Auckland, New Zealand, in November 2010, alongside Afrojack
Afrojack
Nick van de Wall, born 9 September 1987, commonly known by his stage name Afrojack, is a Grammy Award winning Dutch music producer and DJ. Born and raised in Spijkenisse, Netherlands, He was listed as number 7 on DJ Mags top 100 DJs of 2011...

, and performed an hour-long DJ set at Australia's Steresonic Festival alongside Tiesto, Carl Cox, Afrojack and Major Lazer in November/December 2010, in several major Australian cities including Sydney and Melbourne. In 2011, he toured with Rihanna
Rihanna
Robyn Rihanna Fenty , better known as simply Rihanna, is a Barbadian recording artist. Born in Saint Michael, Barbados, Rihanna moved to the United States at the age of 16 to pursue a recording career under the guidance of record producer Evan Rogers...

 in Australia and the UK as a support act on her Loud Tour
Loud Tour
The Loud Tour is the fourth concert tour by Barbadian recording artist Rihanna. Performing in over twenty countries in the Americas and Europe, the tour supports Rihanna’s fifth studio album, Loud...

; Rihanna was quoted to say that "Calvin is the perfect fit for the Loud tour. He is going to bring something unique and fun for the fans." Harris headlined the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras 2011 party.

During March and April 2011, Harris was scheduled to be an opening act/DJ for Katy Perry
Katy Perry
Katy Perry is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Born in Santa Barbara, California, and raised by Christian pastor parents, Perry grew up listening to only gospel music and sang in her local church as a child. After earning a GED during her first year of high school, she began to pursue a...

 on the UK leg of her California Dreams Tour
California Dreams Tour
California Dreams Tour is the second concert tour by American pop singer Katy Perry, in support of her third studio album Teenage Dream. Beginning February 2011, the tour will visit Europe, Australasia, Asia and the Americas...

, but he withdrew from the tour shortly before his first date, citing production issues and difficulties with Perry's management in his apology to her fans. Perry publicly criticised Harris via her Twitter feed, stating that the tour's other support acts had expressed no problems with their production arrangements, but Harris later said "it's all fine" between them and that he would still like to work with her in the future.

Harris headlined Limelite at Metropolis Fremantle (Western Australia) in March 2011 in celebration of the event's fourth birthday, where he played small samples of his new track, "Awooga", which was subsequently uploaded onto YouTube via his channel, icreateddisco. Following "Awooga", Harris released the single "Bounce
Bounce (Calvin Harris song)
"Bounce" is the tenth single released by Scottish recording artist Calvin Harris and is the first from his upcoming third studio album, premiering on Annie Mac's show on 29 April 2011. The song features Kelis and is a move away from Harris singing, concentrating more on production...

", a collaboration with Kelis
Kelis
Kelis Rogers Kelis Rogers Kelis Rogers (born August 21, 1971 is an American musical artist. She is a BRIT Award, Q Award and NME Award winner and has been nominated for two Grammy Awards. She has had nine top 10 singles on the UK Singles Chart...

 that debuted at number two on the UK Singles Chart in June 2011. Another single, "Feel So Close
Feel So Close
"Feel So Close" is a song by Scottish recording artist Calvin Harris from his upcoming third studio album. It was released as the album's second single on 19 August 2011. Harris returns to singing on this song, after previously stating he had quit singing in concerts. The song debuted at number two...

", was released in August 2011 and also reached number two. These singles precede Harris's third studio album, which will be released in 2012; he has said of the LP, "I'm going for pretty epic-sounding dance records. I guess the whole sound has just moved on in terms of production as I've got a new studio and some new gear to make the sounds I wasn't able to make before."

Harris will play at the 2011 Jingle Bell Ball
Jingle Bell Ball
The Jingle Bell Ball is a concert held every year in December, by Global Radio at O2 Arena. Headline acts have included superstars like Rihanna, Janet Jackson, Lady Gaga, The Black Eyed Peas and Kylie Minogue...

 concert, and has been announced as one of the headline acts at a number of Southern Hemisphere 2011/2012 new year music festivals, including Shore Thing and Field Day in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, as well as Rhythm and Vines in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

.

Productions and songwriting

In 2007, Harris caught the attention of pop singer Kylie Minogue
Kylie Minogue
Kylie Ann Minogue, OBE - often known simply as Kylie - is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing...

 after his recordings had been passed on to her by another record producer. This led to him co-writing and producing two songs on her 2007 album X
X (Kylie Minogue album)
X is the tenth studio album by Australian recording artist Kylie Minogue. It is her first release since the greatest hits compilation Ultimate Kylie , and her first studio album since Body Language . X was preceded by lead single "2 Hearts" and released worldwide in November 2007...

—"Heart Beat Rock" and "In My Arms
In My Arms (Kylie Minogue song)
"In My Arms" is a song by Australian pop singer-songwriter Kylie Minogue from her tenth studio album, X . The track was written by Minogue, Calvin Harris, Richard "Biff" Stannard, Paul Harris and Julian Peake. It was produced by Calvin Harris and Stannard...

", the latter a top ten hit in the UK. Harris said that working with Minogue was "surreal, but fun" although he admitted to Mixmag in 2007 to "needing a few drinks before meeting her". Harris returned to work with Minogue on her album Aphrodite (2010), co-producing the track "Too Much".

In 2008, Harris collaborated with rapper Dizzee Rascal
Dizzee Rascal
Dylan Kwabena Mills , better known by his stage name Dizzee Rascal, is a Ghanaian British rapper, songwriter and record producer. His music is a blend of garage, hip hop, grime, ragga, pop and electronic music, with eclectic samples and more exotic styles...

 on his single "Dance wiv Me
Dance Wiv Me
Dance wiv Me is a single by Ghanaian British rapper Dizzee Rascal, from his fourth studio album Tongue n' Cheek. It was released on 22 June 2008 and features guest vocals from Scottish DJ Calvin Harris and English R&B singer Chrome...

", producing the track and singing the hook. The single reached number one in the UK and has been certified platinum by the BPI, selling 300,000 copies. It was shortlisted for the 2008 Popjustice £20 Music Prize
Popjustice £20 Music Prize
The Popjustice £20 Music Prize is an annual prize awarded by a panel of judges organised by music website Popjustice to the singer of the best British pop single of the past year....

 and, in 2009, received a BRIT Award nomination for British Single and an Ivor Novello Award nomination for Best Contemporary Song. In 2009, he produced Dizzee Rascal's next single entitled "Holiday
Holiday (Dizzee Rascal song)
"Holiday" is a song by Ghanaian British rapper Dizzee Rascal, released as the third single from his fourth studio album Tongue n' Cheek. It was produced by Calvin Harris, with chorus vocals by R&B singer Chrome. Harris originally wrote the song for girl group, The Saturdays, but it was rejected...

", which also reached number one. He was supposed to make an appearance in its music video, but objected to dancing along in some scenes, wearing a certain shirt for the video and not wearing his "fly eye" glasses. Also in 2009, Harris made a guest appearance on Tiësto
Tiësto
Tijs Michiel Verwest, , known as Tiësto , is a Dutch musician, DJ and record producer of electronic dance music. Although he has used many aliases in the past, he is best known for his work as DJ Tiësto...

's song "Century" on the Dutch producer's album Kaleidoscope
Kaleidoscope (Tiësto album)
Kaleidoscope is the fourth studio album by Dutch trance artist Tiësto, released on 6 October 2009 on Musical Freedom, Tiësto's new label in association with PIAS Recordings...

. Harris produced a track for English singer/rapper Example
Example (rapper)
Elliot John Gleave , better known by his stage name Example, is an English singer and rapper signed to Data Records. His name arose due to his initials being E.G., which is an abbreviation of the Latin phrase "exempli gratia", which means, "for example".Example's third album Playing In The Shadows...

 for his second album Won't Go Quietly
Won't Go Quietly
-Singles:* The first single to be released from the album was "Watch The Sun Come Up" and was released on 20 September 2009. The single peaked at number 19 on the UK Singles Chart and number 3 on the UK Dance Chart....

(2010), "Time Machine", and mixed The Ting Tings
The Ting Tings
The Ting Tings are an English music duo comprising Jules de Martino and Katie White . They formed in December 2007 while based at Islington Mill Studios in Salford...

' UK top forty single "Hands
Hands (The Ting Tings song)
"Hands" is the first single by the English band The Ting Tings second studio album Sounds from Nowheresville. The song was written by both Katie White and Jules De Martino and mixed by label-mate Calvin Harris. The song is a fast paced indie pop '80s sound, similar to the duo's previous songs...

", having previously remixed the band's singles "Great DJ
Great DJ
"Great DJ" is the second single by English Indie pop band The Ting Tings. Vocalist Katie White states that the song was written by "playing a D chord on the guitar for hours, because that's all I could play. And then I put my finger on the wrong string, and got what I discovered was an augmented...

" (2008) and "We Walk" (2009).

In 2011, Harris featured on LMFAO's
LMFAO (band)
LMFAO is an American electro pop duo consisting of rappers, producers, dancers, and DJs Redfoo and SkyBlu . The group formed in 2006 in Los Angeles, California. Redfoo is SkyBlu's uncle. Redfoo is also the son of music mogul Berry Gordy, SkyBlu a grandson...

 album Sorry for Party Rocking
Sorry for Party Rocking
Sorry for Party Rocking is the second full-length studio album by LMFAO. It was released June 21, 2011 physically and digitally by Interscope Records. The album debuted at number 12 on the Billboard 200 with 27,100 copies sold in its first week. "Party Rock Anthem" was the first single released...

, appearing on the track "Reminds Me of You" which is based on Harris's own song "Awooga". Harris produced 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...

's second single, "Off the Record
Off the Record (Tinchy Stryder song)
"Off the Record" is a 2011 single by Ghanaian British recording artist, Tinchy Stryder. The single features Scottish disc jockeys and record producers, Calvin Harris and Matt Burns . It is the second single from his fourth studio album entitled, Full Tank...

" from his fourth studio album, Full Tank. The track had its première on 15 September 2011, and was released in the UK on 6 November 2011. Following a stint as her support act on the Australian leg of her tour, Harris produced "We Found Love
We Found Love
"We Found Love" is a song by Barbadian recording artist Rihanna, from her sixth studio album Talk That Talk . The song features Scottish singer-songwriter Calvin Harris. "We Found Love" was released as the lead single from the album and premiered on September 22, 2011, in the United Kingdom on the...

" for Barbadian singer Rihanna
Rihanna
Robyn Rihanna Fenty , better known as simply Rihanna, is a Barbadian recording artist. Born in Saint Michael, Barbados, Rihanna moved to the United States at the age of 16 to pursue a recording career under the guidance of record producer Evan Rogers...

. The song is the lead single from her sixth studio album, Talk That Talk
Talk That Talk
Talk That Talk is the sixth studio album by Barbadian recording artist Rihanna and was released on November 18, 2011, through Def Jam Recordings. The lead single from the album, "We Found Love" featuring Calvin Harris, premiered on Capital FM radio on September 22, 2011, and was released on iTunes...

, and was premiered in September 2011. It has reached number one in countries such as the UK and the United States, becoming Harris's first charting appearance on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

.

Failed collaborations

In 2007, Harris contributed the song "Off & On
Off & On
"Off & On" is a pop song released by British singer-songwriter Sophie Ellis-Bextor as the fifth overall single from her fourth studio album, Make a Scene. It was released on 11 April 2011, exclusively in the Russian Federation as a digital download, a week before the release of the album there...

" to Róisín Murphy
Róisín Murphy
Róisín Marie Murphy is an Irish singer-songwriter and record producer, known for her electronic style.Murphy first came to note as part of the electronic music duo Moloko. Her partner in the band was then-boyfriend Mark Brydon. After the two ended their romantic relationship, Murphy released her...

's album Overpowered
Overpowered
Overpowered is the second solo studio album by Irish recording artist Róisín Murphy, released in Ireland on 12 October 2007 and in the United Kingdom and rest of Europe on 15 October 2007. The album was to be released in the United States in late 2008 or early 2009, but was cancelled by EMI due to...

, but it was cut from the album; Harris later gave the song to Sophie Ellis-Bextor
Sophie Ellis-Bextor
Sophie Michelle Ellis-Bextor is an English singer, songwriter, model and occasional DJ. She first came to prominence in the late 1990s, as the lead singer of the indie rock band Theaudience. After the group disbanded, Ellis-Bextor went solo, achieving widespread success in the early 2000s...

 to record for her 2011 album Make a Scene. He said that Murphy was "a bit mental", "crazy" and a "twat" not to use the songs, though subsequently apologised in person to Murphy "for throwing my toys out of the pram because I said things that weren't very nice. She said: 'That's all right, we all say silly things sometimes.'" Harris also produced a remix of Dragonette
Dragonette
Dragonette is a Canadian electropop group active since 2005. Dragonette consists of singer-songwriter Martina Sorbara, bassist and producer Dan Kurtz and drummer Joel Stouffer....

's debut single "I Get Around
I Get Around
"I Get Around" is a song written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love for The Beach Boys. The song features Love on lead vocal for the verse, and Wilson for the chorus. It is noteworthy for its back-to-front structure - it starts with a chorus and has two short verses...

" that was rejected by the band, whom he said "weren't very nice to me [...] they said, 'by the way, it's shit', and then asked me to change everything about it. I told them I couldn't because I was on a bus and that they could basically F--- OFF. That's where we left it."

Harris has said that in early 2008, he turned down the opportunity to work with American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 singer Lady Gaga
Lady GaGa
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta , better known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to...

 before the release of her top-selling debut album, The Fame
The Fame
The Fame is the debut studio album by American recording artist Lady Gaga. It was released on August 19, 2008 through Interscope Records. After joining Kon Live Distribution and Cherrytree Records in 2008, Gaga began working on the album with different producers, primarily RedOne, Martin...

. He recalled: "When Lady Gaga first came out, her name rang a bell, so I checked my emails—and it turns out that on 1 January 2008, I got an email asking to work with her. I thought, 'Lady Gaga, what sort of name is that?' So I replied saying, 'Nah, I’m not into that.' Fast forward a year and she's the biggest thing. But I don't regret turning her down as I didn't think the song I heard then was that good." In a later interview, Harris stated he considers Gaga to be a "good artist".

In 2007, Kelis discussed plans to work with Harris on her fifth studio album, Flesh Tone
Flesh Tone
Flesh Tone is the fifth studio album by American recording artist Kelis, first released on May 14, 2010. Recorded while the singer was an unsigned artist and while pregnant with her first child, the record is an ode to motherhood and is a distinct departure from the urban sound of her previous...

(2010), saying that he was "very creative and exciting [...] very, very talented". Although she said they were "looking at doing something together" for the album, this did not materialise; Harris did, however, produce a remix of Flesh Tones second single, "4th of July (Fireworks)
4th of July (Fireworks)
"4th of July " is the second single from Kelis' fifth album, Flesh Tone. It samples "You're My Heart " by Lioness. The song was listed at #51 on the list of the NME's best tracks of 2010...

". In 2009, following reports that Amelle Berrabah
Amelle Berrabah
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...

 had left girl group 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...

, Harris publicly offered himself as a replacement, but this too did not come to pass.

American singer Katy Perry
Katy Perry
Katy Perry is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Born in Santa Barbara, California, and raised by Christian pastor parents, Perry grew up listening to only gospel music and sang in her local church as a child. After earning a GED during her first year of high school, she began to pursue a...

 expressed an interest in working with Harris in 2009, and at one point they had pencilled recording sessions for her second album, Teenage Dream
Teenage Dream (Katy Perry album)
Teenage Dream is the third studio album by American recording artist Katy Perry. It was released on August 24, 2010, through Capitol Records. The album's inspiration came from dance, pop, and rock by 1980s artists, including ABBA and The Cardigans. Perry worked with several writers and producers on...

(2010), but no material was released. Harris worked with boyband JLS on songs for their second album, Outta This World
Outta This World
The album has received generally mixed reviews from music critics. In his review for The Independent, Andy Gill reviewed the album poorly and said "For most of its 14 tracks, Outta This World is boy-band R&B at its most formulaic, tracks like "That's My Girl" and over-autotuned opener "The Club Is...

(2010), but none of his work appeared on the released LP. The third single from that album, "Eyes Wide Shut
Eyes Wide Shut (song)
"Eyes Wide Shut" is a dance-pop song by English boy band JLS from their second studio album, Outta This World. The song, written by JLS, and Tim McEwan and Lars Halvor Jensen of Danish production team DEEKAY, was released as the third single from the album on 13 February 2011. The single version of...

", was said to copy heavily from Harris's own single "I'm Not Alone", but Harris said that it "wasn't [JLS's] fault and had nothing to do with them".

Concert tours

  • Groove Armada: Soundboy Rock tour (2007)
  • Faithless: To All New Arrivals tour (2007)
  • Ready for the Weekend tour (2009–2010)
  • Deadmau5
    Deadmau5
    Joel Thomas Zimmerman , better known by his stage name deadmau5 , is a Canadian progressive, electro, and house producer based in Toronto...

     & Skrillex: 'Unhooked' tour (2010)
  • Rihanna: Loud Tour
    Loud Tour
    The Loud Tour is the fourth concert tour by Barbadian recording artist Rihanna. Performing in over twenty countries in the Americas and Europe, the tour supports Rihanna’s fifth studio album, Loud...

     (2011)

Studio albums

  • I Created Disco
    I Created Disco
    I Created Disco is the debut album by Scottish recording artist Calvin Harris. It was released in the United Kingdom on 18 June 2007 by Fly Eye Records and Columbia Records, preceded by the singles "Acceptable in the 80s" and "The Girls", which reached numbers ten and three on the UK Singles Chart,...

    (2007)
  • Ready for the Weekend (2009)
  • Untitled (2012)

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Title Result
2007 BT
BT Group
BT Group plc is a global telecommunications services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is one of the largest telecommunications services companies in the world and has operations in more than 170 countries. Through its BT Global Services division it is a major supplier of...

 Digital Music Awards
Best Electronic Artist or DJ
Q Awards
Q Awards
The Q Awards are the UK's annual music awards run by the music magazine Q. Since they began in 1990, the Q Awards have become one of Britain's biggest and best publicised music awards, helped in no small part by the often boisterous behavior of the celebrities who attend the event...

Best Breakthrough Artist
2008 Xfm
Xfm
Xfm is a brand of two commercial radio stations focused on alternative music, primarily indie pop, and owned by Global Radio.-History:Xfm was created in London in 1992 by Sammy Jacob, who later co-founded NME Radio in 2008. Xfm subsequently expanded to a network of four stations; there are...

 New Music Award
I Created Disco
I Created Disco
I Created Disco is the debut album by Scottish recording artist Calvin Harris. It was released in the United Kingdom on 18 June 2007 by Fly Eye Records and Columbia Records, preceded by the singles "Acceptable in the 80s" and "The Girls", which reached numbers ten and three on the UK Singles Chart,...

Shortlist Music Prize
Shortlist Music Prize
The Shortlist Music Prize, stylized as , was an annual music award for the best album released in the United States that had sold fewer than 500,000 copies at the time of nomination...

I Created Disco
Popjustice £20 Music Prize
Popjustice £20 Music Prize
The Popjustice £20 Music Prize is an annual prize awarded by a panel of judges organised by music website Popjustice to the singer of the best British pop single of the past year....

"Dance Wiv Me
Dance Wiv Me
Dance wiv Me is a single by Ghanaian British rapper Dizzee Rascal, from his fourth studio album Tongue n' Cheek. It was released on 22 June 2008 and features guest vocals from Scottish DJ Calvin Harris and English R&B singer Chrome...

"
2009 The Music Producers Guild
The Music Producers Guild
The Music Producers Guild promotes and represents all individuals in the music production and recording professions. It is a professional organisation that embodies collective and individual creative contributions to the production and recording of all genres of music and media related...

 Awards
Best Remixer
2009 BRIT Awards
2009 BRIT Awards
The 2009 BRIT Awards ceremony took place on Wednesday 18 February 2009. It was the 29th edition of the British Phonographic Industry's annual pop music awards. The awards ceremony was held at Earls Court Exhibition Centre in London, and was broadcast live on ITV1 on 18 February at 8pm...

British Single "Dance Wiv Me"
NME Awards
NME Awards
The NME Awards is an annual music awards show in the United Kingdom, founded by the music magazine, NME .The first awards show was held in 1953 as the NME Poll Winners Concerts, shortly after the founding of the magazine....

Best Dancefloor Filler "Dance Wiv Me"
Ivor Novello Awards
Ivor Novello Awards
The Ivor Novello Awards, named after the Cardiff born entertainer Ivor Novello, are awards for songwriting and composing. They are presented annually in London by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors and were first introduced in 1955.Nicknamed The Ivors, the awards take place...

Best Contemporary Song "Dance Wiv Me"
Popjustice £20 Music Prize
Popjustice £20 Music Prize
The Popjustice £20 Music Prize is an annual prize awarded by a panel of judges organised by music website Popjustice to the singer of the best British pop single of the past year....

Best Contemporary Song "I'm Not Alone"
2010 2010 BRIT Awards
2010 BRIT Awards
The 2010 BRIT Awards took place on Tuesday 16 February 2010. It was the 30th edition of the British Phonographic Industry's annual pop music awards. The awards ceremony was held at Earls Court Exhibition Centre in London. The ceremony was broadcast live on ITV1, hosted by Peter Kay with Fearne...

Best British Male

External links

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