|
| website = | signature = File:Brandys signatur.jpg | signature_alt = Brandys signatur.jpg | signature_size = 125px }} Brandy Rayana Norwood (born February 11, 1979), better known mononymously as Brandy, is an American recording artist and actress. Born into a musical family in McComb, Mississippi and raised in Carson, California, she enrolled in performing arts schools as a child and performed as a backing vocalist for teen groups. From 1993 to 1994, Norwood appeared in a supporting role on the short-lived ABC sitcom ''Thea'' and signed with Atlantic Records. The following year, she released her self-titled debut album. Norwood starred in the UPN sitcom ''Moesha'' as the title character, which lasted six seasons and resulted in numerous other roles. She resumed her music career in 1998 with the widely successful duet with Monica, "The Boy Is Mine", and her second album, ''Never Say Never''; it sold 16 million copies, featured two number one singles, and earned Norwood her first Grammy award. Throughout the 2000s, Norwood held a precarious position in the pop industry. In 2002, she starred in the reality series ''Brandy: Special Delivery''. Her third and fourth albums, ''Full Moon'' (2002) and ''Afrodisiac'' (2004), were released to critical success; however, they were not as commercially successful as her previous two albums in the 1990s. She served as a judge on the first season of ''America's Got Talent'' before being involved in a widely-publicized car accident in 2006. After several lawsuits stemming from the accident, Norwood's fifth album ''Human'' (2008) was released to commercial failure. In the 2010s, Norwood received a critical and commercial resurgence. In 2010, she returned to television as a contestant on the eleventh season of ''Dancing with the Stars'' and starred in the reality series ''Brandy & Ray J: A Family Business'' and the BET series ''The Game''. She released her sixth album ''Two Eleven'' in 2012 to critical praise and in April 2015, Norwood made her Broadway debut in the musical ''Chicago''. She is also set to star in her new sitcom Zoe Ever After in 2016. Within pop music, Norwood has become known for her distinctive sound, characterized by her peculiar timbre, voice-layering, intricate riffs, and beat-driven R&B. She has since been signed to both Epic Records and RCA Records, where she has acquired a catalogue of hits with singles such as "What About Us?", "Talk About Our Love", and "Put It Down" being her most successful. She has sold over 40 million records worldwide.〔(), "Brandy Will Make Broadway Debut in 'Chicago', 2015-24-03〕 The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) lists Norwood as one of the top selling artists in the United States, with 10.5 million certified albums.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Top Selling Artists )〕 Her work has earned her numerous awards and accolades, including a Grammy Award, three American Music Awards, and seven ''Billboard'' Music Awards. ==Early life== Norwood was born on February 11, 1979, in McComb, Mississippi, the daughter of Willie Norwood, a former gospel singer and choir director, and his wife, Sonja Norwood (née Bates), a former district manager for H&R Block. She is the older sister of entertainer Ray J, as well as a first cousin of rapper Snoop Dogg. Raised in a Christian home, Norwood started singing through her father's work as part of the local church choir, performing her first gospel solo at the age of two. In 1983, her parents relocated to Los Angeles, California, where Norwood was schooled at the Hollywood High Performing Arts Center.〔 Norwood's interest in music and performing increased after becoming a fan of singer Whitney Houston at the age of seven,〔 but at school, she experienced trouble with persuading teachers to send her on auditions as she found no support among the staff. Norwood began entering talent shows by the time she was eleven, and, as part of a youth singing group, performed at several public functions. In 1990, her talent led to a contract with Teaspoon Productions, headed by Chris Stokes and Earl Harris, who gave her work as a backing vocalist for their R&B boy band Immature, and arranged the production of a demo tape.〔 In 1993, amid ongoing negotiations with East West Records, Norwood's parents organized a recording contract with the Atlantic Recording Corporation after auditioning for the company's director of A&R Darryl Williams.〔 To manage her daughter, Norwood's mother soon resigned from her job,〔 while Norwood herself dropped out of Hollywood High School later, and was tutored privately from tenth grade on.〔 During the early production stages of her debut album, Norwood was selected for a role in the ABC sitcom ''Thea'', portraying the daughter of a single mother played by comedienne Thea Vidale.〔 Broadcast to low ratings, the series ran for only one season, but earned her a Young Artists Award nomination for Outstanding Youth Ensemble alongside her co-stars.〔(【引用サイトリンク】publisher=IMDb )〕 Norwood recalled that she appreciated the cancellation of the show as she was unenthusiastic about acting at the time, and the taping caused scheduling conflicts with the recording of her album. She stated, "I felt bad for everybody else but me. It was a good thing, because I could do what I had to do, because I wanted to sing." 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Brandy Norwood」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|