Charlotte Church

Welsh soprano Charlotte Church achieved instant classical stardom in November 1998 upon issuing her first album, Voice of an Angel, at the age of twelve. Born in Llandaff, Cardiff, Wales, she had already begun singing publicly by age three, soon appearing on television and performing at such landmark sites as the London Palladium and the Royal Albert Hall. After signing with Sony Classical, she issued Voice of an Angel amid widespread press coverage, then followed it with a self-titled album in 1999. Both records reached the U.K. Top Ten before attaining platinum certification in the U.S. In 2000 her Christmas collection Dream a Dream entered the U.S. Top Ten and also earned platinum status. Her fourth album, Enchantment, arrived in 2001 and incorporated Broadway and jazz material. She further appeared in the motion picture A Beautiful Mind.

Following the 2005 best-of set Prelude, Church made her initial foray into pop with the dance- and R&B-focused Tissues and Issues in 2006, aiming for a complete crossover. Around the same time she launched her own variety program, The Charlotte Church Show, on Great Britain’s Channel 4. Her sixth studio album and second full-length pop project, Back to Scratch, came out in October 2010. Two years afterward she issued One, the opening installment of a planned EP series.