Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman (born March 30, 1964 in Cleveland , Ohio ) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. She has sold 44 million records, over 15 million of them in her home country alone and including her debut album with 27 million units.
life and work
Chapman learned to play the guitar and piano as a child and wrote his first songs. With the help of a scholarship, she completed a private school in Connecticut and then, also thanks to a scholarship, studied anthropology and African American studies at the private Tufts University . It was at this time that she recorded her first demos. The father of the future filmmaker Brian Koppelman , then a fellow student of Chapman, worked in the record industry, and so in 1987 she got a recording contract with Elektra Records .
Chapman became known for her double appearance at the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute Concert (for the 70th birthday of the South African freedom fighter) on June 11, 1988 at Wembley Stadium in London , shortly after the release of her debut album. Since Stevie Wonder had to cancel his performance due to technical problems, she was asked by the organizer to go on stage a second time to bridge the break solo with the acoustic guitar. Through the worldwide broadcast of the concert, she also became known to an audience outside the United States. In the same year she went on a Human Rights Now! With Peter Gabriel , Bruce Springsteen , Sting and Youssou N'Dour . World Tour for Amnesty International .
From July 4, 2008 she worked with the American producer Larry Klein on her eighth album Our Bright Future, which was released on November 7 of the same year. In November 2008 a tour with 21 dates in Europe began.
Chapman performed Ben E. King's " Stand By Me " in one of the final episodes of the Late Show with David Letterman in April 2015. The performance went viral and has been the focus of various news articles, including some from Billboard and The Huffington Post .
On November 20, 2015, Chapman released the album "Greatest Hits", consisting of 18 tracks, including the live version of "Stand by Me", the album is Chapman's first global compilation.
In October 2018, Chapman sued rapper Nicki Minaj for copyright infringement , alleging Minaj sampled her song "Baby Can I Hold You" without permission. In her lawsuit, Chapman requested an injunction to prevent Minaj from releasing the song Sorry, stating that she had "repeatedly denied" "Baby Can I Hold You" could be sampled.
She has received numerous prizes and awards, including four Grammy Awards, for her mostly sparingly orchestrated pieces with socially critical texts in the folk-rock style .
Chapman's songs are often about the desolation of everyday life, social problems and the downside of the American Dream , for example in the song Fast Car .
In the mid-1990s, Chapman is said to have had a relationship with Alice Walker .
social commitment
Chapman is a politically and socially active musician. In a 2009 interview with American radio station NPR, she said, "I am approached by many organizations and people who want me to support their various charitable endeavors in some way. And I look at these requests and basically try taken to do what I can. And I have certain interests of my own, usually an interest in human rights ". She has performed at numerous socially committed events and continues to do so. In 1988 she performed in London as part of a worldwide concert tour on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights with Amnesty International . That same year, Chapman also appeared at the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute , an event that raised money for South Africa's anti-apartheid movement and seven children's charities. In 2004, Chapman appeared at the AIDS / LifeCycle event.
Chapman received an honorary doctorate from Saint Xavier University in Chicago in 1997 . In 2004 Chapman was awarded an honorary doctorate in fine arts by her alma mater , Tufts University , in recognition of her commitment to social activism .
Discography
Albums
year | title |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
DE | AT | CH | UK | US | ||||
Studio albums | ||||||||
1988 | Tracy Chapman |
DE1 × 9
(95 weeks)DE |
AT1 × 2
(76 weeks)AT |
CH1 × 4
(48 weeks)CH |
UK1 × 9
(292 weeks)UK |
US1 × 6
(61 weeks)US |
First published: April 8, 1988
Sales: + 13,915,000 |
|
1989 | Crossroads |
DE1 × 2
(38 weeks)DE |
AT3
platinum
(26 weeks)AT |
CH2 × 2
(27 weeks)CH |
UK1
platinum
(16 weeks)UK |
US9
platinum
(26 weeks)US |
First published: September 29, 1989
Sales: + 3,475,906 |
|
1992 | Matters Of The Heart |
DE13 (20 weeks) DE |
AT11 (16 weeks) AT |
CH10
gold
(17 weeks)CH |
UK19 (3 weeks) UK |
US53
gold
(11 weeks)US |
First published: April 27, 1992
Sales: + 525,000 |
|
1995 | New beginning |
DE60
gold
(10 weeks)DE |
AT9
gold
(16 weeks)AT |
CH22 (11 weeks) CH |
UK-
silver
UK
|
US4th × 7
(95 weeks)US |
First published: November 14, 1995
Sales: + 6,270,000 |
|
2000 | Telling stories |
DE5
gold
(21 weeks)DE |
AT5
gold
(20 weeks)AT |
CH2
gold
(31 weeks)CH |
UK85 (3 weeks) UK |
US33
gold
(22 weeks)US |
First published: February 14, 2000
Sales: + 782,500 |
|
2002 | Let it rain |
DE15 (12 weeks) DE |
AT6th
gold
(20 weeks)AT |
CH4th
gold
(22 weeks)CH |
UK36
silver
(3 weeks)UK |
US25 (9 weeks) US |
First published: October 11, 2002
Sales: + 300,000 |
|
2005 | Where You Live |
DE12 (7 weeks) DE |
AT7 (7 weeks) AT |
CH4th
gold
(16 weeks)CH |
UK43 (2 weeks) UK |
US49 (8 weeks) US |
First published: September 9, 2005
Sales: + 120,000 |
|
2008 | Our Bright Future |
DE28 (8 weeks) DE |
AT23 (7 weeks) AT |
CH9
gold
(21 weeks)CH |
UK75 (1 week) UK |
US57 (2 weeks) US |
First published: November 7th, 2008
Sales: + 215,000 |
|
Compilations | ||||||||
2001 | Collection |
DE3
gold
(16 weeks)DE |
AT1
platinum
(25 weeks)AT |
CH4th
gold
(26 weeks)CH |
UK3
platinum
(24 weeks)UK |
- |
First published: September 14, 2001
Sales: +1,105,000 |
|
2015 | Greatest hits | - | - |
CH64 (1 week) CH |
UK30th
silver
(4 weeks)UK |
US105 (1 week) US |
First published: November 20, 2015
Sales: + 60,000 |
|
Number one albums | DE2DE | AT2AT | CH1CH | UK2UK | US1US | |||
Top 10 albums | DE4thDE | AT7thAT | CH8thCH | UK3UK | US3US | |||
Albums in the charts | DE9DE | AT9AT | CH10CH | UK9UK | US9US |
Singles
year | Title album |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
DE | AT | CH | UK | US | ||||
1988 | Almost Car Tracy Chapman |
DE81 (1 week) DE |
- | - |
UK4th × 2
(47 weeks)UK |
US6 (21 weeks) US |
First published: April 1988
Sales: + 1,258,000 |
|
Talkin 'Bout A Revolution Tracy Chapman |
- |
AT29 (2 weeks) AT |
- |
UK85
silver
(3 weeks)UK |
US75 (4 weeks) US |
First published: August 1988
Sales: + 200,000 |
||
Baby Can I Hold You Tracy Chapman |
- | - | - |
UK94
silver
(2 weeks)UK |
US48 (12 weeks) US |
First published: October 1988
Sales: + 200,000 |
||
1989 | Crossroads Crossroads |
DE38 (17 weeks) DE |
AT21 (4 weeks) AT |
CH18 (7 weeks) CH |
UK61 (3 weeks) UK |
US90 (4 weeks) US |
First published: September 1989
|
|
1996 | Give Me One Reason New Beginning |
- | - | - |
UK95
platinum
(1 week)UK |
US3 (39 weeks) US |
First published: September 1989
Sales: + 1,070,000 |
|
2000 | Telling Stories Telling Stories |
- | - |
CH76 (3 weeks) CH |
- | - |
First published: December 1999
|
|
2008 | Sing For You Our Bright Future |
- | - |
CH48 (8 weeks) CH |
- | - |
First published: October 2008
|
|
Number one singles | DE-DE | AT-AT | CH-CH | UK-UK | US-US | |||
Top 10 singles | DE-DE | AT-AT | CH-CH | UK1UK | US2US | |||
Singles in the charts | DE2DE | AT2AT | CH3CH | UK5UK | US5US |
More singles
- 1989: All That You Have Is Your Soul
- 1992: Bang Bang Bang
- 1992: Dreaming on a World
Awards
Prices
-
Grammy Awards
- 1989:
- Best contemporary folk recording for Tracy Chapman
- Best female vocal performance for Fast Car
- Best new artist
- 1997:
- Best rock song for Give Me One Reason
- 1989:
In addition to four Grammy Awards, the songwriter can boast a number of other awards, including an American Music Award , two BRIT Awards , three SKC Boston Music Awards and four Bammy Awards.
Awards for music sales
Country / Region | silver | gold | platinum | diamond | Sales | swell |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Awards for music sales (country / region, awards, sales, sources) |
||||||
Argentina (CAPIF) | - | 2 × gold2 | 2 × platinum2 | - | 170,000 | capif.org.ar ( Memento from May 31, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) AR2 ( Memento from July 6, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) |
Australia (ARIA) | - | - | 18 × platinum18th | - | 1,400,000 | aria.com.au |
Belgium (BEA) | - | - | 3 × platinum3 | - | 110,000 | ultratop.be |
Brazil (PMB) | - | - | platinum1 | - | 250,000 | pro-musicabr.org.br |
Denmark (IFPI) | - | 2 × gold2 | 7 × platinum7th | - | 328,000 | ifpi.dk |
Germany (BVMI) | - | 5 × gold5 | 7 × platinum7th | - | 4,400,000 | musikindustrie.de |
Europe (IFPI) | - | - | platinum1 | - | (1,000,000) | ifpi.org ( Memento from January 1, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) |
Finland (IFPI) | - | gold1 | - | - | 30,906 | ifpi.fi |
France (SNEP) | - | 4 × gold4th | 3 × platinum3 | diamond1 | 2,200,000 | infodisc.fr snepmusique.com |
Hong Kong (IFPI / HKRIA) | - | gold1 | platinum1 | - | 30,000 | Individual evidence |
Italy (FIMI) | - | gold1 | 6 × platinum6th | - | 350,000 | fimi.it |
Canada (MC) | - | - | 13 × platinum13 | - | 1,260,000 | musiccanada.com |
New Zealand (RMNZ) | - | gold1 | 6 × platinum6th | - | 97,500 | nztop40.co.nz |
Netherlands (NVPI) | - | gold1 | 2 × platinum2 | - | 230,000 | nvpi.nl |
Austria (IFPI) | - | 2 × gold2 | 4 × platinum4th | - | 225,000 | ifpi.at |
Poland (ZPAV) | - | - | 4 × platinum4th | - | 60,000 | bestsellery.zpav.pl |
Sweden (IFPI) | - | 3 × gold3 | 6 × platinum6th | - | 380,000 | sverigetopplistan.se |
Switzerland (IFPI) | - | 6 × gold6th | 6 × platinum6th | - | 425,000 | hitparade.ch |
Spain (Promusicae) | - | - | 3 × platinum3 | - | 240,000 | promusicae.es ES2 |
United States (RIAA) | - | 2 × gold2 | 14 × platinum14th | - | 15,000,000 | riaa.com |
United Kingdom (BPI) | 5 × silver5 | - | 16 × platinum16 | - | 6,890,000 | bpi.co.uk |
All in all | 5 × silver5 | 31 × gold31 | 123 × platinum123 | diamond1 |
Individual evidence
- ↑ MJD: Tracy Chapman albums and songs sales. In: ChartMasters. June 25, 2019, Retrieved April 20, 2020 (American English).
- ↑ About-Tracy-Chapman.net: Biography
- ^ The Rolling Stone: Tracy Chapman
- ↑ Tracy Chapman: "Mandela Changed My Life". Interview by Alex Gernandt. Spiegel Online, June 11, 2017; Tracy Chapman: "The university saved me from the ghetto". Photo gallery on Spiegel Online, June 11, 2017.
- ↑ Rock's Conscience spotlights Mandela. On: top40-charts.com, May 25, 2002.
- ^ Nico Pitney: Tracy Chapman Singing 'Stand By Me' Will Break Your Heart. May 1, 2015, accessed April 20, 2020 .
- ↑ FOCUS Online: Tracy Chapman's "Greatest Hits". Retrieved April 20, 2020 .
- ^ Copyright dispute: Singer Tracy Chapman is suing rapper Nicki Minaj. October 24, 2018, accessed on April 20, 2020 (German).
- ↑ theguardian.com: No retreat
- ^ Without Further Ado, Singer Tracy Chapman Returns. Retrieved April 20, 2020 (English).
- ^ To Activist Remembers the Concert That Moved a Generation. January 24, 2014, accessed April 20, 2020 (American English).
- ^ Live Aid's legacy of charity concerts . June 30, 2005 ( bbc.co.uk [accessed April 20, 2020]).
- ↑ Previous Honorary Degree Recipients | Saint Xavier University. Retrieved April 20, 2020 .
- ↑ 2004 - Tracy Chapman, Doctor of Fine Arts. In: About Tracy Chapman. May 23, 2004, Retrieved April 20, 2020 (American English).
-
↑ a b chart sources:
- Tracy Chapman in the German charts on OfficialCharts.de
- Tracy Chapman in the Austrian charts on AustrianCharts.at
- Tracy Chapman in the Swiss charts on Hitparade.ch
- Tracy Chapman in the Official UK Charts (English)
- Tracy Chapman American US in the single and album charts of Billboard magazine
Web links
- Official website (English)
- "Mandela has changed my life" , interview + commented photo series by Alex Gernandt, one day , June 11, 2017
- Tracy Chapman on discogs.com
- Charts and data on chartsurfer.de
personal data | |
---|---|
SURNAME | Chapman, Tracy |
BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American singer and songwriter |
DATE OF BIRTH | March 30, 1964 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Cleveland , Ohio |