Amy Lee Grant (born November 25, 1960) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, writer and personality. He is known for featuring contemporary Christian music (CCM) and for a successful crossover for pop music in the 1980s and 1990s. He has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop".
In 2009, he has sold more than 30 million albums worldwide, won six Grammy Awards, and 22 Gospel Music Association Dove Awards, and has the first ever Christian album ever to reach Platinum. She was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2006 for her contribution to the entertainment industry. She debuted as a teenager, and gained fame in Christian music during the 1980s with hits such as "Mata Ayah", "El Shaddai", and "Angels". In the mid-1980s, he began expanding his audience and soon became one of the first CCM artists to cross into mainstream pop on the heels of Hatiarded's Lead Me On Mosaic: Pieces of My Life So Far , and a book based on the popular Breath of Heaven (Mary's Song) he wrote together.
Video Amy Grant
Early life and career
Born in Augusta, Georgia, Grant is the youngest of four siblings. His family settled in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1967. He is the great-grandson of Nashville philanthropist, AM Burton (founder of Life and Casualty Insurance Company, eponymous of the Tower of Life & Towers of Nashville, WLAC Radio and WLAC-TV) and Lillie Burton. He has acknowledged Burtons influence on his development as a musician, beginning with their general membership at Ashwood's Christ Church in Nashville.
In 1976, Grant wrote his first song ("Mountain Top"), performing publicly for the first time at Harpeth Hall School, a girls' school he attended in Nashville. He recorded a demo tape for his parents with church youth leader, Brown Bannister. When Bannister recovered copies of the tape, Chris Christian, the owner of the recording studio, overheard a demo and called Word Records. She turned it over the phone, and she was offered a recording contract, five weeks before her 16th birthday. In 1977, he recorded his first album, Amy Grant , produced by Brown Bannister, who will also produce the next 11 albums. It was released in early 1978, one month before her high school graduation. Towards the end of 1978 he made his first ticket concert after starting his first year at Furman University. In May 1979, during the album release party for her second album, My Father's Eyes, Grant met Gary Chapman, who had written the title song and would be her first husband. Grant and Chapman toured together in mid-1979. In the late 1980s, he moved to Vanderbilt University, where he became a member of the college student Kappa Alpha Theta. Grant then made several more albums before quitting college to pursue a career in music - Never Alone, followed by a couple of live albums in 1981 ( In Concert and In Concert Volume Two ), both supported by additional editions of DeGarmo & amp; Key tape. It was during the early show that Grant also established one of his trademark concerts: performing barefoot. Until now, Grant keeps his shoes off in the middle of the show, because he says "it's just more comfortable."
1982 saw the release of his breakthrough album Age to Age . The album contains the signature, "El Shaddai" (written by Michael Card) and a song written by Grant-Chapman, "In a Little While". "El Shaddai" was then awarded one of the "Songs of the Century" by the RIAA in 2001. Grant received his first Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Gospel Performance, as well as two Dove GMA Awards for Gospel Artists of the Year and Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year. Age to Age became the first Christian album by a solo artist awarded a gold certificate (1983) and the first Christian album to be certified platinum (1985).
In the mid-1980s, Grant began touring and recording with young songwriter Michael W. Smith. Grant and Smith continue to have strong creative and friendship relationships, often writing songs for or contributing vocals to their respective albums. During the 1980s, Grant was also a backup singer for Bill Gaither.
Grant followed this album with his first Christmas album, which would later become the basis for his holiday event. In 1984, he released another pop-oriented Christian hit, Straight Ahead, earning Grant his first appearance at the Grammy Awards in 1985. The NBC chief noticed Grant's performance and called his manager to order for his own Christmas specials.
Maps Amy Grant
Audience widening
Barely Grant establishes himself as "Queen Christian Pop" when he changes direction to expand his fan base (and hence his music message). The goal is to become the first Christian singer-songwriter who is also successful as a contemporary pop singer. Hatiarded (1985) surprised some fans because of the main sound (and Grant's leopard-print jacket, in four poses for four different covers). "Find a Way", from Hatiarded , became the first non-Christmas Christian song to be on Billboard's Top 40 list, also reached No. 1. 7 on the Adult Contemporary chart. He also scored No. 18 on Air Billboard in 1986 with "Stay for Awhile". Grant printed his first song Billboard . 1 in 1986 with "The Next Time I Fall", a duet with former singer/bassist Chicago, Peter Cetera. That year, he also recorded a duet with singer Randy Stonehill for his Love Beyond Reason album, titled "I Could Never Say Goodbye", and recorded The Animals' Christmas with Art Garfunkel.
Lead Me On (1988) contains many songs related to Christianity and love affairs, but some interpret it as not a clear "Christian" recording. Years later, Lead Me On will be selected as the greatest contemporary Christian album of all time by CCM Magazine . The mainstream song "Saved by Love" is a small hit, receiving played on radio stations featuring the newly emerging Contemporary Adult format. The album's title track received several pop radio broadcasts and crossed into No. 96 on Billboard Hot 100, and "1974 (We Were Young)" and "Saved By Love" were also mapped as Contemporary Adult songs. In 1989, it appeared in a Target ad campaign, displaying songs from an album.
In main stream
When Heart In Motion was released in 1991, many fans were surprised that the album was clearly one of contemporary pop music. Grant's desire to expand his audience was criticized by the limitations of popular definitions of ministry at the time. The song "Baby Baby" (written for Millie's new Grant daughter, among whom Grant wrote, "her six-week face is my inspiration") became a hit pop (hitting Number 1 on Billboard Hot 100) , and Grant was founded as a name in the world of mainstream music. "Baby Baby" received a Grammy nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, as well as Record and Song of the Year (though it failed to win those categories). Four other hits from this album make the top 20 Pop: "Every Heartbeat" (No. 2), "That's What Love Is To" (No. 7), "Good for Me" (No. 8), and "I'll Remember You "(No. 20). On the Contemporary Adult graph, all five songs are the top 10 hits, with two out of five ("Baby Baby" and "That's What Love Is For") reached No. 1. 1. Many Christian fans remain loyal, placing albums on Billboard Contemporary Christian Charts for 32 weeks. Heart in Motion is Grant's best-selling album, selling over five million copies according to the RIAA. Grant followed the album with his Christmas album, Home For Christmas in 1992, which included the song "Breath of Heaven (Mary's Song)", written by Chris Eaton and Grant, and later to be covered by many artists , including Donna Summer, Jessica Simpson (who recognizes Grant as one of her favorite artists), Vince Gill, Sara Groves, Point of Grace, Gladys Knight, and Broadway star Barbara Cook.
House of Love in 1994 continued in the same vein, boasting an interesting pop song mixed with spiritual lyrics. The album was a multi-platinum success and produced a hit pop "Lucky One" (No. 18 pop and No. 2 AC; No. 1 on Radio & Records) as well as a song title (duet with country music star and Vince Gill's future husband) (No. 37 pop) and the cover of Joni Mitchell that often covers the "Big Yellow Taxi" (No. 67 pop) (where she changes the line "And they accuse people a dollar and a half just for see'em "to" And then they charge people <25> just to see'em ").
After he covered the 10cc song "The Things We Do for Love" for the Mr. The wrong soundtrack, Behind the Eyes was released in September 1997. The album featured a much darker tone, more leaning towards acoustic downtempo, acoustic songs, with more mature (yet optimistic) lyrics. He calls it the "blade razor and Prozac" album. Although "Take a Little Time" was a moderate hit single, the album failed to sell like the two previous albums, which both use multi-platinum. Behind The Eyes finally certified Gold by RIAA. The video for "Take a Little Time" is a new direction for Grant; with blue light filters, acoustic guitars, street and New York City characters, and plots, Grant is again featured as an adult rocker. She followed up on "Behind The Eyes" with A Christmas To Remember , her third Christmas album, in 1999. The album was certified Gold in 2000.
In 2001, Grant sang "God Bless America" ​​in front of a sell-out crowd at the Owen County Fair Grounds in Spencer, Indiana. He dedicated his achievements to the victims of 9/11, and officially started the Demolition Derby. After the 9/11 attacks, Grant's "I Will Remember You" saw a resurgence in popularity as many DJ radio mixed versions of the special awards of the song. That same year, Grant won $ 125,000 for a charity on "Rock Star Edition" from Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Back to the root
Grant returned to its roots with the release of a 2002 hymn album titled Legacy... Himne and Faith . The album featured bluegrass and pop blends influenced by Vince Gill and marked Grant's 25th birthday in the music industry. Grant followed this up with Simple in 2003. This album did not have the success of previous pop or gospel attempts. Immediately after Simple Things , Grants and Interscope/A & amp; M split up. That same year, Grant was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame by the Gospel Music Association, an industry trade organization in which he was a longtime member, in his first year of eligibility. Grant released a sequel in 2005 titled Rock of Ages... Hymns and Faith .
Looking ahead
Grant joined the reality television phenomenon by hosting the Three Wishes, an event in which he and a team of maids made hope come true for the townspeople. The show debuted on NBC in the fall of 2005 but was canceled at the end of its first season due to high production costs. After Three Wishes was canceled, Grant won his 6th Grammy Award for Rock of Ages... Hymns & amp; Faith In the February 2006 webchat, Grant stated he believed "his best music is still ahead".
In April 2006, a live CD/DVD titled Time Again... Amy Grant Live was recorded in Fort Worth, Texas, at Bass Performance Hall. (The first public performance that Grant paid was at the Will Rogers Auditorium in Fort Worth.) The concert was released on September 26, 2006. In addition to receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, media appearances included writing on the CCM Magazine, and performances at The View .
In a February 2007 web chat on his website, Grant discussed a book he was working on titled Mosaic: Pieces of My Life So Far , saying, "This is not an autobiography, but more collection of memories, song lyrics, poetry , and some photos. "The book was released on October 16, 2007. In November, it debuted at No. 1. 35 in the New York Times Best Seller list. In the same web chat, Grant noted that he "really wanted to go back to the studio after the book was over, and reinvent myself as a woman who performed almost 50".
2007 is Grant's 30th year in music. He left Word/Warner, and was contracted with CMG EMI who reweased its regular studio album as a remastered version on August 14, 2007. Marking the start of Grant's new contract was the biggest hit album of his career, with all the songs remastered digitally. The album was released as a single-disc CD edition, and CD-DVD Special Edition, a DVD featuring music videos and interviews.
Grant appeared with Gill at The Oprah Winfrey Show for a special holiday in December 2007. Grant has plans to appear in CMT, the special Food Network, Gospel Music Channel, and The Hour of Power.
In February 2008, Grant joined the composing team of Compassionart as a guest vocalist at Abbey Road studios, London, to record a song entitled "Very Favored", which was included in the CompassionArt album.
On June 24, 2008, Grant re-released his 1988 album, Lead Me On , in honor of his 20th birthday. The two disc releases include the original album and the second disc with new acoustic recordings, live performances from 1989, and an interview with Amy. Grant re-created the Lead Me On tour in the fall of 2008.
On June 27, 2008, Grant surprised everyone at the Northeast Creation Festival by being a special guest. He performed "Lead Me On" and several other songs supported by the Hawk Nelson band. At the end of the concert, Grant returned to the stage and sang "Your Word". She appeared on the 2008 album Anne Murray Duets: Friends & amp; Legend sang "Could I Have This Dance".
On May 5, 2009, Grant released an EP containing two new songs, "She Colors My Day", and "Unafraid", as well as previously released songs "Baby Baby" and "Oh How the Years Go By". EP, exclusively through iTunes, benefits the Women's Technology Foundation Foundation's Foundation for Industrial Technology (EIF).
In 2010, Grant released Somewhere Down the Road, featuring hit singles "Better Than a Hallelujah", which reached number 8 on the Billboard Top Christian Songs charts. When asked about a new album during an interview with CBN.com, Grant said, "... my only hope is for the songs to give friendship, remind me and anyone who listens to what matters, I feel like a song has the ability to connect we with ourselves and each other, and with our faith, to the love of Jesus, in a way that is not conversational. "Such songs slip and move you before you realize it."
In September 2012, Grant took part in a campaign called "30 Songs/30 Days" to support Half Sky: Transforming Oppression into Opportunities for Women Worldwide , a multi-platform media project inspired by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn's Book.
Grant's next album, titled How Mercy Looks from Here , was released on May 14, 2013. The album was produced by Marshall Altman. This album reached No. 12 on the Billboard 200 chart, making it the highest charting album since 1997's Behind the Eyes . Two singles were released from the album: "Do not Try So Hard" and "If I Could See", both charted on the US Billboard Hot Christian Songs chart.
On August 19, 2014, he released a hits album diremix by renowned engineers and DJs. The album is titled In Motion: The Remixes . It charted at 110 on the US Billboard 200 chart and at No. 1. 5 on the US Dance chart. To promote the album, some new EP remixes are released in iTunes next month including "Find a Way," Stay for a While "," Baby Baby, "Every Heartbeat" and "That's What Love Is For". Due to the club games from remixes "Baby Baby" and "Every Heartbeat", they charted at No. 3 and 13, respectively in the U.S. Dance Chart. This marked his first appearance on the chart in 23 years. On September 30, 2014, Grant released a new single titled "Welcome Yourself". To honor Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the results of a single breast cancer study.
On February 12, 2015, he announced a new compilation album titled Be Still and Know... Hymns & amp; Faith , will be released. The album was released on April 14, 2015 and mapped in No. 7 in the US on the album charts Billboard Christian Albums..
Grant released a Christmas album on October 21, 2016, Tennessee Christmas , which is a combination of classic Christmas songs and original material. It's mapped in the US in No. 31 on Billboard 200 and at No. 3 on Billboard Top Holiday Album Album. The single from the album, "To Be Together", reached No. 32 on the Hot Christian Songs and No. 2 charts. 19 on the Digital Song Sales chart. She supported the album with a series of Christmas concerts with Vince Gill at the Ryman Auditorium. She also toured the US and Canada with a Christmas concert accompanied by Michael W. Smith and the season 9 winner of The Voice Jordan Smith.
In February 2017, he released a new song, "Say It With A Kiss", with an accompanying video. During November and December 2017, Grant performed another series of Christmas concerts with Vince Gill at the Ryman and embarked on another US and Canadian Christmas tour with Michael W. Smith and Jordan Smith.
Personal life
On June 19, 1982, Grant married fellow Christian musician Gary Chapman. Their marriage produces three children. In March 1999, he filed for divorce from Chapman, citing "irreconcilable differences," and the divorce settled three months later.
On March 10, 2000, Grant was a country singer-songwriter Vince Gill, who had previously married country singer Janis Oliver of Sweethearts of the Rodeo. Grant and Gill had one daughter, Corrina Grant Gill, born March 12, 2001.
In November 1999 CCM Magazine , Grant explained why he left Chapman and married Gill:
I'm not divorced because "I had a great marriage and then came Vince Gill". Gary and I have rocky roads from day one. I think what's so hard - and this (what) one of our counselors says - sometimes an innocent party can come into a situation, and they're like a big spot. What they do is to express, in comparison, the painful dynamics that already exist.
Public views and perceptions
Among the praise for his contribution to the Contemporary Christian genre, Grant has also caused controversy within the Christian community, from "complaints that he is too worldly and too sexy" to "barrage of condemnation" after divorce and remarriage.
In an interview early in his career, Grant stated, "I have a healthy feeling about right and wrong, but sometimes, for example, using dirty and fun words among friends can be a good thing to laugh." The article based on the interview was built in such a way that it made it seem as if Grant pardoned premarital sex. Then Grant reflected on how the article misrepresented his view, stating: "We may talk for two hours about sexual purity, but when the interview finally comes out, he says it in a way that sounds like I let prenup sex, so I picked Up the article and thought, 'You have made me say something I never said, and you completely ignore two hours of Scripture incorporating an obscene comment I made about a groan.' "
Awards and achievements
Grammy Grammy Awards
Win
- 1982: Best Gospel, Contemporary or Inspirational Appearance - Aged to Age
- 1983: Best Gospel Appearance, Woman - "Ageless Medley"
- 1984: Best Gospel Appearance, Woman - "Angels"
- 1985: Best Gospel Appearances, Women - Weaken
- 1988: Best Gospel Appearance, Woman - Lead Me On
- 2005: Best Southern, Country, or Bluegrass Gospel album - Rock of Ages... Hymn & amp; Faith
Nominated
Dove GMA Awards
Appreciation and special recognition
- 1992: Young Youth Chamber of Tennessean of the Year
- 1994: St. John University Pax Christi
- 1994: Nashville Symphony Harmony Award
- 1996: Sarah Cannon Humanitarian Award - TNN Awards
- 1996: Minnie Pearl Humanitarian Award - Columbia Hospital
- 1996: Voice of America Award - ASCAP
- 1996: Academy of Achievement Golden Plate Award
- 1999: "The Night with Art" of Honor - The Nashville Chamber of Commerce, Nashville Symphony, and Tennessee Performing Arts Center
- 1999: Amy Grant Room for Music and Entertainment - Target House at Children's Hospital St. Jude
- 2001: Easter Seals Nashvillian of the Year Award
- 2003: Inaugurated as GMA Gospel Music Hall of Fame
- 2003: Peak Award - Seminar in the Rockies
- 2006: Performance Platform Amy Grant - Nashville Schermerhorn Symphony Center
- 2006: Hollywood Star Walk of Fame launches
- 2007: Member of the Tiffany Circle Charter - Red Cross
- 2007: Inaugurated as the Christian Music Hall of Fame
- 2008: 1966 Class Friend of West Point Award with Vince Gill
- 2012: Honorary Doctorate of Music and Performance - Grand Canyon University
- 2015: No. 52 at 100 Top Female Artists from the Stone Age (1955-2015) Discussion
Bibliography
- Heart Stories from Amy Grant to Bible Stories ; Worthy Pub (1985), ISBN 978-0-8344-0130-3
- Breath of Heaven ; W Publishing Group (2001), ISBNÃ, 0-8499-1732-8
- "The Creation" (narrator), in Rabbit Ears Beloved Bible Stories: Creation, Noah and Ark (audiobooks); Listening to Reader (Audio) (2006), ISBN 978-0-7393-3709-7
- Mosaic: Pieces of My Life So Far ; Flying Dolphin Press (2007), ISBNÃ, 0-385-52289-4
References
External links
- Official website
- Amy Grant on IMDb
- Amy Grant at AllMusic
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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