Des'ree was born in Croydon, South East London,[7] on 30 November 1968.[8][9] Her mother is from British Guiana (now Guyana), and her father is from Barbados. She was introduced to reggae, calypso, and jazz music by her parents.[6] The family lived in Barbados for three years before returning to the UK when Des'ree was a teenager.[10] Prior to entering the music business, her parents had hoped she would study law at university.[6]
Career
1990s: Career beginnings and international success
In 1991, at the age of 22 and with no connections in the music industry, Des'ree was signed to Sony 550, having been encouraged by her then-boyfriend to send a demo tape to the label.[11][2] Her debut single, "Feel So High", was released in August 1991, just twelve weeks after her signing with Sony. The song did not initially reach the UK top 40, but hit number 13 when it was re-released in January the following year. Her debut album, Mind Adventures, was released in February 1992, peaking at number 26 in the UK. She toured the country with Simply Red in July that same year, featuring as their opening act.[12] In 1993, Des'ree collaborated with Terence Trent D'Arby on the song "Delicate", which hit the UK top 20. Next, she performed for Pope John Paul II at the Vatican City's inaugural concert of secular music,[10] which aired on Italian television in December 1993; the event, Concerto di Natale, has been held with different artists every Christmas in the years since.
In 1994, Des'ree's single "You Gotta Be" entered the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 5. It became the most-played music video on VH1 that year, and remained on the Billboard Recurrent Airplay Chart for nineteen months.[10] Released a total of three times in the UK, it finally reached the top 10 in 1999 after a Ford Focus advertising campaign renewed its popularity.[13] Her many live performances of the song include a 1995 episode of Saturday Night Live and the closing ceremony of the 1996 Summer Olympics.[14][15]
Des'ree's second album, I Ain't Movin', was released in May 1994, selling in excess of 2.5 million copies worldwide and earning positive reviews, with the Chicago Tribune commending its lyrical content and Des'ree's "beautiful, dusky voice".[16] The record's success led to a tour with Seal, which took place across North America between November 1994 and July 1995.[12] Next, she was approached by Australian filmmaker Baz Luhrmann to write a song for the soundtrack of his 1996 romance, Romeo + Juliet.[2] She appeared in a cameo role as "Diva" during one of the film's most iconic sequences,[17] performing said track, "Kissing You", as Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes' characters meet for the first time.[18] "Kissing You" was roundly praised by critics,[19][20] and went on to receive a Satellite Award nomination for Best Original Song.[21]
In 1997, Des'ree provided vocals for the Steve Winwood track "Plenty Lovin'". The following year, her single "Life" became a hit in Europe, reaching number 1 in many countries, as well as in Japan. In 2007, a BBC Radio 6 listeners' poll declared the song as featuring the "worst lyric in pop", its offending lines being, "I don't want to see a ghost / it's the sight that I fear most / I'd rather have a piece of toast / watch the evening news".[22] The album from which the single was taken, Supernatural, was released in June 1998 to positive reviews,[23] with American music critic J. D. Considine calling it "exquisitely listenable".[24]Supernatural was successful across Europe, hitting the top 5 in Italy and the Netherlands, and peaking at number 16 in the UK. It was less successful in the United States, reaching #185 on the Billboard 200.
2000s–present: Hiatus, other ventures, and return to music
Following the 2000 release of Endangered Species, a collection of B-sides and live tracks, Des'ree contributed vocals to the charity single "Wake Up the Morning", which was released in November 2001 to mark the first anniversary of the killing of Damilola Taylor.[27] Next, she performed a sung sonnet from Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice on the compilation album When Love Speaks. Her fourth album, Dream Soldier, was released in March 2003, with lead single "It's Okay" reaching #69 in the UK. Dream Soldier was not a commercial or critical success, which led to her parting ways with Sony,[28] instead exploring her interest in naturopathy and training as a nutritionist.[29][28]
In 2008, Des'ree performed at the O2 Arena for Young Voices' "Big Sing" charity concert, where she helped break the world record for "most people simultaneously singing the same song" by leading 600,000 schoolchildren across the UK in singing her hit, "You Gotta Be".[30] In 2011, she sang a lullaby on the sleep therapy CD, Sleep Talk Lullaby.[31]
Des'ree's first album in sixteen years, A Love Story, was released by her own label, Stargazer Records, on 11 October 2019. She had begun work on the album in 2014, but took an extended break to care for her mother.[28][32]MusicOMH's Nick Smith awarded it four stars out of five, noting the "subtle beauty and emotional power" of Des'ree's voice, and calling the album "a solid and engaging return".[33]
In 1997, Des'ree's hit "Feel So High" was interpolated into the Janet Jackson song "Got 'til It's Gone" (from Jackson's album The Velvet Rope), without due credit being given to Des'ree as a contributor.[34] Subsequent releases containing the track would list Des'ree as one of its writers,[35] following a successful lawsuit against Jackson.[36]
In 2007, Des'ree filed a lawsuit against Beyoncé, claiming that the singer's cover of her song "Kissing You"—retitled "Still in Love (Kissing You)" and featured on the album B'Day—was released without permission.[37] The case was later dismissed, but not before editions of the album featuring the song were pulled from sale.[28]
"—" denotes releases that were not released in that country or did not chart.
Notes
1 "Feel So High" originally peaked at number 51 on the UK singles chart in 1991. It was re-released in 1992 and peaked at number 13. In the US, the single featured on I Ain't Movin' and did not chart until 1995.
3 "Fire" was included on the 1998 edition of Supernatural as track 11.[1] "You Gotta Be" replaced it when a new edition of the album was released in 1999.
^Considine, J. D. (7 November 1996). "CD Reviews – William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet Music from the Motion Picture". The Baltimore Sun (Final ed.). p. 7. The tremulous intensity of Des'ree's 'Kissing You' has more emotional impact than many films
^Lipper, Kate (13 December 1996). "'Romeo & Juliet' Soundtrack". Richmond Times-Dispatch. p. F9. An excellent slow song that you can play nonstop.
^"Des'ree". Apple Music. Retrieved 8 August 2024. She managed six Top 40 hits—including two Top 10 singles—between 1992 and 2003, when she took a break from music to focus on naturopathy.
