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American singer-songwriter Tracy Chapman received wide fame in the late 1980s and '90s with songs like "Give Me One Reason" and "Fast Car."
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Play NowTracy Chapman. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 07:50, May 19, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/tracy-chapman-20872547.
Tracy Chapman. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/tracy-chapman-20872547 [Accessed 19 May 2013].
"Tracy Chapman." 2013. The Biography Channel website. May 19 2013, 07:50 http://www.biography.com/people/tracy-chapman-20872547.
"Tracy Chapman," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/tracy-chapman-20872547 [accessed May 19, 2013].
"Tracy Chapman," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/tracy-chapman-20872547 (accessed May 19, 2013).
Tracy Chapman [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 May 19] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/tracy-chapman-20872547.
Tracy Chapman, http://www.biography.com/people/tracy-chapman-20872547 (last visited May 19, 2013).
Tracy Chapman. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/tracy-chapman-20872547. Accessed May 19, 2013.
Synopsis
Born in Cleveland, Ohio, on March 30, 1964, Tracy Chapman began writing music and performing in Boston, where she recorded songs at the WMFO radio station. She caught her big break in 1986, when a friend's father introduced her to a manager at Elektra Records, and soon recorded Tracy Chapman (1988). The album's most popular single, "Fast Car," landed at No. 5 on the U.K. charts and No. 6 on the U.S. charts. Several years later, Chapman released New Beginning (1995),
Contents
another widely acclaimed album, which was carried by the hit song "Give Me One Reason." Though her 1995 success has yet to be matched, Chapman stays busy as an activist, speaking and performing on behalf of various organizations.
Early Life
Tracy Chapman was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on March 30, 1964, and at a young age, she moved with her family to Connecticut. While attending Tufts University in Massachusetts, studying anthropology and African studies, Chapman began writing music and performing in Boston, and recorded songs at the local WMFO radio station.
Musical Career
Chapman caught her big break in 1986, when a friend's father introduced her to a manager at Elektra Records—with whom she recorded her first, self-titled album, which was released in 1988. Tracy Chapman rose to No. 1 in both the United States and the United Kingdom, and its popular single, "Fast Car," landed at No. 5 on the U.K. charts and No. 6 on the U.S. charts. That same year, Chapman performed at Nelson Mandela's 70th Birthday Tribute Concert, which was held in Great Britain. The album's second single, "Talkin' 'Bout a Revolution," also met with wide acclaim, and ranked competitively on Billboard's music charts.
Chapman received several honors following the release of Tracy Chapman, including three Grammy Awards in 1989—for best new artist, best female pop vocal performer and best contemporary folk album.
Though becoming a three-time Grammy winner is quite an accomplishment for any musician's first project, Chapman didn't waste any time before working on her next one. Between performing songs from her Grammy Award–winning album, she continued to write and make rounds back to the studio to record Crossroads (1989), which she also co-produced. Chapman dedicated one song on the album, "Freedom Now," to former South African President Nelson Mandela. Though the album didn't receive the same acclaim as her first, it did find a place on Billboard's 200, as well as other industry charts.
The singer-songwriter's musical success again sloped slightly downward in 1992, with the release of Matters of the Heart, an album that peaked at No. 53 on the Billboard 200 and failed to receive any real international fame. Matters of the Heart included less memorable songs than Chapman's previous projects, and fans were put off by her straying from folk and blues to a more upbeat, alternative-rock sound. It was likely difficult for Chapman to predict, at that time, what was to come three years later, upon the release of her fourth studio album.
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