Charlotte Church
Occupation : Actress, Musician
Birth Date : February 21, 1986
Birth Place : Llandaff, Cardiff, Wales, UK
Birth Name : Charlotte Maria Church
Nationality : British
Height : 5' 2"
Sex : F
Relationship : Gavin Henson (Welsh International Rugby player)
Father : Michael Reed (separated)
Mother : Maria
Half Brother : Luke Reed (younger)
Step Father : James Church
Charlotte Church hails from the Welsh town of Llandaff, Cardiff. She had wanted to sing ever since she was 3 and a half years old, when she belted out "Ghostbusters" at a holiday camp and had to be dragged off the stage.
By the time she was 8, she was performing at local karaoke competitions, and building her reputation as an incredible vocalist along the way. When she heard an announcement by TV personalities Richard and Judy that they were looking for children with talent, Charlotte called them and volunteered herself.
Once she sang "Pie Jesu" on the phone to the producers, they immediately invited her onto the show. Not long after, she appeared on TV yet again, on The Big, Big Talent Show. When the host asked her to perform, audiences were blown away.
Her vocal chords spread like wildfire, and she was in demand, most importantly by music producer/manager Jonathan Shalit. He introduced Charlotte to the Sony Music UK Chairman, who signed her to a multi-album contract on the spot.
Her first album was released in 1998, when she was a mere 12 years of age. Voice of an Angel reached double platinum status in the UK, and Charlotte became the youngest artist to have a number one hit on the classical charts, and the youngest to have a Top 5 hit in the UK -- beating out Vanessa Mae by a few years.
Once the album crossed the pond and "Charlotte buzz" hit North America, she was making her rounds on talk shows such as The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Late Show with David Letterman and The Oprah Winfrey Show.
Voice of an Angel, which includes songs such as the one that got it all started, "Pie Jesu", as well as "Ava Maria", "When at Night I Go to Sleep", "A Lullaby", and "Amazing Grace", reached the Top 30 on the US charts, again making her the youngest artist to reach such success in America.
By the time Voice of an Angel was released, audiences had the chance to see the young soprano live in concert, at Cardiff Arms Park in Wales, the London Palladium, and Royal Albert Hall. She was even invited to perform at the Vatican and for the Prince of Wales.
Her sophomore album, the self-titled, Charlotte Church, was released in 1999, while her latest album, 2000's Dream a Dream, is a collection of Christmas songs, and even features a duet with fellow prodigy Billy Gilman.
Making waves in America as well as the UK, Charlotte was invited to perform at the Presidential Inauguration of George W. Bush (she was also invited to perform for former president Bill Clinton for a Christmas Special), along with Ricky Martin, Jessica Simpson and Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber.
Charlotte also performed with Wyclef Jean for a special fundraising concert in New York, the same month as the Bush Inauguration, sharing the bill with Mary J. Blige, Whitney Houston, Destiny's Child, and Eric Clapton.
Although Charlotte's vocals precede her age, she likes to live the life of a normal young woman, loves shopping (she has a wide array of shoes), and listens to singers such as Puff Daddy, Natalie Imbruglia, The Corrs, and Gloria Estefan.
She performed at Pavarotti's last UK concert, the summer of 2001 in Hyde Park.
While she has already broken music records, performed for royalty, and has wowed critics and audiences alike with her gifted voice, Charlotte still aspires to sing Madame Butterfly (her favorite opera) in Milan, and get a standing ovation. That doesn't sound like it will be too hard to achieve.
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