Joscelyn Eve Stoker (born 11 April 1987), known professionally as Joss Stone, is an English singer, songwriter and actress. She rose to prominence in late 2003 with her multi-platinum debut album, ''
The Soul Sessions
''The Soul Sessions'' is the debut studio album by English singer and songwriter Joss Stone, released on 16 September 2003 by S-Curve Records. The album consists of cover versions of soul songs from the 1960s and 1970s, in addition to a cover ...
'', which made the 2004
Mercury Prize
The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album released in the United Kingdom by a British or Irish act. It was created by Jon Webster and Robert Chandler in association with the ...
shortlist. Her second album, ''
Mind Body & Soul
''Mind Body & Soul'' is the second studio album by English singer and songwriter Joss Stone, released on 15 September 2004 by S-Curve Records. The album received generally favourable reviews from music critics and earned Stone three Grammy Aw ...
'' (2004), topped the
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...
and spawned the top-ten single "
You Had Me
"You Had Me" is a song by English singer and songwriter Joss Stone from her second studio album, ''Mind Body & Soul'' (2004). It was released on 13 September 2004 as the album's lead single. The song was written by Stone, Francis "Eg" White, W ...
", Stone's most successful single on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
to date. Both the album and single received one nomination at the
2005 Grammy Awards
The 47th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 13, 2005, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles honoring the best in music for the recording of the year beginning from October 1, 2003, through September 30, 2004. They were hosted by Queen Lati ...
, while Stone herself was nominated for
Best New Artist, and in an annual
BBC poll of music critics,
Sound of 2004,
was ranked fifth as a predicted breakthrough act of 2004.
She became the youngest British female singer to top the UK Albums Chart. Stone's third album, ''
Introducing Joss Stone'', released in March 2007, achieved gold record status by the
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...
(RIAA) and yielded the second-ever highest debut for a British female solo artist on the
''Billboard'' 200, and became Stone's first top-five album in the US.
She released her fourth album, ''
Colour Me Free!'', in 2009, which reached the top 10 on ''Billboard''. Stone released her fifth album, ''
LP1'', in 2011, which reached the top 10 on ''Billboard''. Throughout her career, Stone has sold 15 million records worldwide, establishing herself as one of the best-selling soul artists of the 2000s, and the best-selling British artists of her time. Her first three albums have sold over 2,722,000 copies in the US, while her first two albums have sold over 2 million copies in the UK.
Stone has earned several awards including two
Brit Awards and one
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
out of five nominations. She made her film acting debut in 2006 with the fantasy adventure film ''
Eragon'', and made her television debut portraying
Anne of Cleves
Anne of Cleves (german: Anna von Kleve; 1515 – 16 July 1557) was Queen of England from 6 January to 12 July 1540 as the fourth wife of King Henry VIII. Not much is known about Anne before 1527, when she became betrothed to Francis, Duke of ...
in the
Showtime series ''
The Tudors
''The Tudors'' is a historical fiction television series set primarily in 16th-century England, created and written by Michael Hirst and produced for the American premium cable television channel Showtime. The series was a collaboration among ...
'' in 2009.
Stone was the youngest woman on the 2006 ''
Sunday Times Rich List
The ''Sunday Times Rich List'' is a list of the 1,000 wealthiest people or families resident in the United Kingdom ranked by net wealth. The list is updated annually in April and published as a magazine supplement by British national Sunday new ...
''—an annual list of the UK's wealthiest people—with £6 million. In 2012, her net worth was estimated to be £10 million, making her the fifth richest British musician under 30. ''
The Soul Sessions Vol. 2'' (2012) is her fourth consecutive album to reach the top 10 on the ''Billboard'' 200.
Early life
Joscelyn Eve Stoker was born on 11 April 1987 at
Buckland Hospital in
Dover
Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maids ...
,
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
, and spent her teenage years in
Ashill, a small village near
Cullompton in Devon. She is the third of four children born to Wendy (née Skillin) and Richard Stoker. Her father owns a fruit and
nut import–export business;
her mother worked as Stone's manager until October 2004. Stone made her first public appearance at the
Uffculme Comprehensive School—which she attended—in
Uffculme, Devon, with a cover version of
Jackie Wilson's 1957 song "
Reet Petite". Stone has
dyslexia
Dyslexia, also known until the 1960s as word blindness, is a disorder characterized by reading below the expected level for one's age. Different people are affected to different degrees. Problems may include difficulties in spelling words, r ...
and left school at age sixteen with only three
GCSE
The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a particular subject, taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. Private sc ...
qualifications. "It wasn't that I was stupid. I'm just a little bit
dyslexic
Dyslexia, also known until the 1960s as word blindness, is a disorder characterized by reading below the expected level for one's age. Different people are affected to different degrees. Problems may include difficulties in spelling words, r ...
and I wasn't very academic. I'm more artistic", she says.
Stone grew up listening to a wide variety of music including 1960s and 1970s American R&B and soul music performed by such artists as
Dusty Springfield and
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in '' Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Wit ...
. As a result, she developed a soulful style of singing like her idols. "My first CD that I owned was ''Aretha Franklin:
Greatest Hits''. And I saw the advert on TV and it was just like little clips of her songs. I had no idea who she was—I was only like 10 so. I said, 'Oh yeah, that looks really good', so I wrote it down and I said to my mum, 'Can I have that for Christmas?' So she told my friend Dennis, who always gets me good music anyway, and he got that for me. So that was one of my first albums that I loved." She would later tell
MTV News
MTV News is the news production division of MTV. The service is available in the US with localized versions on MTV's global network. In February 2016, MTV Networks confirmed it would refresh the MTV News brand in 2016, to compete with the likes ...
: "I kind of clicked into soul music more than anything else because of the vocals. You've got to have good vocals to sing soul music and I always liked it ever since I was little."
Career
2001–2003: Beginnings and ''The Soul Sessions''
In 2001, at the age of thirteen, Stone auditioned for the
BBC Television
BBC Television is a service of the BBC. The corporation has operated a public broadcast television service in the United Kingdom, under the terms of a royal charter, since 1927. It produced television programmes from its own studios from 193 ...
talent show, ''
Star for a Night'' in London, singing Franklin's 1968
Goffin-
King
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen regnant, queen, which title is also given to the queen consort, consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contempora ...
hit "
(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" and
Whitney Houston
Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer and actress. Nicknamed "Honorific nicknames in popular music, The Voice", she is Whitney Houston albums discography, one of the bestselling music artists ...
's 1999 single, "
It's Not Right but It's Okay
"It's Not Right but It's Okay" is the third single from American singer Whitney Houston's fourth studio album, ''My Love Is Your Love''. It was written by LaShawn Daniels, Rodney Jerkins, Fred Jerkins III, Isaac Phillips, Toni Estes, and produ ...
".
After passing her audition, she sang
Donna Summer
LaDonna Adrian Gaines (December 31, 1948May 17, 2012), known professionally as Donna Summer, was an American singer and songwriter. She gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s and became known as the " Queen of Disco", while her musi ...
's "
On the Radio" for the broadcast, and eventually won the contest. She also appeared on and won ''Steps to the Stars'' (a TV programme hosted by H & Claire of the group
Steps).
Stone then performed on a charity show, where she drew the attention of the Boilerhouse Boys, composed of London-based producers Andy Dean and Ben Wolfe, who contacted
S-Curve Records
S-Curve Records was founded in 2000 by former Mercury Records executive Steve Greenberg. It is based in New York City. In 2001 the label established a distribution and licensing agreement with EMI Records. Among the hits released by S-Curve be ...
founder and CEO,
Steve Greenberg in December 2001 telling him that "they had just heard the greatest singer they'd ever heard from their country."
In early 2002, Greenberg flew Stone to New York for an audition, in which she sang to backing tracks of classic soul songs:
Otis Redding's 1968 "
(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay
"(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" is a song co-written by soul singer Otis Redding and guitarist Steve Cropper. It was recorded by Redding twice in 1967, including once just three days before his death in a plane crash on December 10, 1967. Th ...
",
Gladys Knight & the Pips' 1973 "
Midnight Train to Georgia
"Midnight Train to Georgia" is a song by Gladys Knight & the Pips, their second release after departing Motown Records for Buddah Records. Written by Jim Weatherly, and included on the Pips' 1973 LP ''Imagination'', "Midnight Train to Georgia" ...
", and Franklin's "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman";
Greenberg instantly signed her to his label.
After being signed by
S-Curve Records
S-Curve Records was founded in 2000 by former Mercury Records executive Steve Greenberg. It is based in New York City. In 2001 the label established a distribution and licensing agreement with EMI Records. Among the hits released by S-Curve be ...
, her US market album was released by S-Curve Records and in the international market her album was released by
EMI Music
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 2012 ...
. Stone flew to Miami and Philadelphia to start work on her debut album, ''
The Soul Sessions
''The Soul Sessions'' is the debut studio album by English singer and songwriter Joss Stone, released on 16 September 2003 by S-Curve Records. The album consists of cover versions of soul songs from the 1960s and 1970s, in addition to a cover ...
'', released on 16 September 2003. She collaborated with people with solid credentials in the Miami soul scene such as
Betty Wright
Bessie Regina Norris (December 21, 1953 – May 10, 2020), better known by her stage name Betty Wright, was an American soul and R&B singer, songwriter and background vocalist. Beginning her professional career in the late 1960s as a teen ...
,
Benny Latimore,
Timmy Thomas and
Little Beaver as well as contemporary acts
Angie Stone and
the Roots. The album, produced by
Steve Greenberg, Mike Mangini and
Betty Wright
Bessie Regina Norris (December 21, 1953 – May 10, 2020), better known by her stage name Betty Wright, was an American soul and R&B singer, songwriter and background vocalist. Beginning her professional career in the late 1960s as a teen ...
, consists of little-known soul tracks by Franklin,
Laura Lee,
Bettye Swann
Betty Barton (born Betty Jean Champion, October 24, 1944), better known by the stage name Bettye Swann, is a retired American soul singer. She is best known for her 1967 hit song " Make Me Yours".
Career
Swann was born in Shreveport, Louisiana ...
and others. Released in late 2003, it reached the top five on the
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...
as well as the top forty of the US
''Billboard'' 200 chart. The lead single, "
Fell in Love with a Boy", a reworking of
the White Stripes' 2001 "
Fell in Love with a Girl", reached the top 20 of the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
, as did the second single, a cover version of Sugar Billy's 1974 song "
Super Duper Love (Are You Diggin' on Me)
"Super Duper Love (Are You Diggin' on Me)" is a song by Willie "Sugar Billy" Garner, released in 1975 as a single from his 1975 album ''Super Duper Love''. It interpolates parts of Aretha Franklin's 1968 version of Young Rascals' song "Groovin'" ...
". The album eventually went triple platinum by the
British Phonographic Industry
British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with ...
in mid-April 2005 and gold by the
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...
in late March 2004.
2004–2006: ''Mind Body & Soul'' and film debut
After achieving critical acclaim with ''The Soul Sessions'', Stone worked on new material, and recorded her second album, ''
Mind Body & Soul
''Mind Body & Soul'' is the second studio album by English singer and songwriter Joss Stone, released on 15 September 2004 by S-Curve Records. The album received generally favourable reviews from music critics and earned Stone three Grammy Aw ...
'', which was released on 28 September 2004, produced by the same team as her first album. She called the album her real debut. It debuted at No. one in the UK, breaking the record for the youngest female ever to top the UK Albums Chart, and just missed the top ten of the US
''Billboard'' 200 after peaking at No. 11. The lead single, "
You Had Me
"You Had Me" is a song by English singer and songwriter Joss Stone from her second studio album, ''Mind Body & Soul'' (2004). It was released on 13 September 2004 as the album's lead single. The song was written by Stone, Francis "Eg" White, W ...
", became her biggest hit to date when it rose to No. 9 in the UK. Follow-up singles "
Right to Be Wrong
"Right to Be Wrong" is a song by English singer and songwriter Joss Stone from her second studio album, ''Mind Body & Soul'' (2004). Written by Stone, Desmond Child and Betty Wright, the track was released in the United Kingdom on 29 November 20 ...
" and "
Spoiled" both made the top 40, and "
Don't Cha Wanna Ride", the top 20. "Spoiled" landed just outside the top 50 of US
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...
, peaking at No. 54. In early September 2005, ''Mind, Body & Soul'' was certified triple platinum by the BPI and platinum by the RIAA.
In April 2004, Stone performed during the
VH1's benefit concert
Divas Live 2004 alongside
Ashanti,
Cyndi Lauper,
Gladys Knight,
Jessica Simpson
Jessica Ann Simpson (born July 10, 1980) is an American singer, actress, entrepreneur and philanthropist. After performing in church choirs as a child, Simpson signed with Columbia Records in 1997, aged seventeen. Her debut studio album, ''Swee ...
and
Patti LaBelle
Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American R&B singer, actress and businesswoman.
LaBelle is referred to as the " Godmother of Soul".
She began her career in the early 1960s as lead singe ...
, in support of the Save the Music Foundation. Stone joined
Band Aid 20
Band Aid 20 was the 2004 incarnation of the charity supergroup Band Aid. The group, which included Daniel Bedingfield, Dido, Justin Hawkins of The Darkness, Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead, Chris Martin of Coldplay, Bono of U2, and ...
on 14 November 2004 in benefit of
Sudan
Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...
's troubled
Darfur
Darfur ( ; ar, دار فور, Dār Fūr, lit=Realm of the Fur) is a region of western Sudan. ''Dār'' is an Arabic word meaning "home f – the region was named Dardaju ( ar, دار داجو, Dār Dājū, links=no) while ruled by the Daju ...
region. The group, which included
Coldplay lead singer
Chris Martin and U2 lead singer
Bono
Paul David Hewson (born 10 May 1960), known by his stage name Bono (), is an Irish singer-songwriter, activist, and philanthropist. He is the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the rock band U2.
Born and raised in Dublin, he attended ...
, re-recorded the 1984 song "
Do They Know It's Christmas?", written by
Band Aid organisers
Bob Geldof
Robert Frederick Zenon Geldof (; born 5 October 1951) is an Irish singer-songwriter, and political activist. He rose to prominence in the late 1970s as lead singer of the Irish rock band the Boomtown Rats, who achieved popularity as part o ...
and
Midge Ure
James Ure (born 10 October 1953) is a Scottish musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. His stage name, Midge, is a phonetic reversal of Jim, the diminutive form of his actual name. Ure enjoyed particular success in the 1970s and 1980 ...
. Stone, who was born two years after the release of the original single, was not initially aware of who Bob Geldof was, with media reporting that she repeatedly referred to him as Bob
Gandalf. Despite some criticism, the single became the UK's biggest-selling single of 2004 as well as the 2004
Christmas number-one single.
At the
2005 BRIT Awards
Brit Awards 2005 was the 25th edition of the Brit Awards, an annual pop music awards ceremony in the United Kingdom, which for this 25th edition was marketed as "Brits 25 - The 25th Show". A Special BRITs 25 Award for the best single from the pa ...
, Stone won for British Female Solo Artist and British Urban Act—entering the ''
Guinness World Records
''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
'' as the youngest BRIT Award solo winner at age seventeen, and was nominated for British Breakthrough Act.
She also received a nomination for Best UK Act of the Year at the 2005
MOBO Awards,
as well as three nominations for the
2005 Grammy Awards
The 47th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 13, 2005, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles honoring the best in music for the recording of the year beginning from October 1, 2003, through September 30, 2004. They were hosted by Queen Lati ...
—
Best New Artist,
Best Female Pop Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance was a Grammy Award recognizing superior vocal performance by a female in the pop category, the first of which was presented in 1959. It was discontinued after the 2011 Grammy season. The awar ...
for "You Had Me", and
Best Pop Vocal Album for ''Mind Body & Soul'',
where she sang with rock performer
Melissa Etheridge, in tribute to blues-rock singer
Janis Joplin. Their performance of "Cry Baby/
Piece of My Heart" was released as a single, and through the aid of strong digital download sales, became Stone's first single to enter the US
''Billboard'' Hot 100, when it debuted and peaked at No. 32 the week of 2 April 2005.
In March 2005, Stone was named the spokesperson for the
Gap clothing company, replacing the actress
Sarah Jessica Parker
Sarah Jessica Parker (born March 25, 1965) is an American actress and television producer. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including six Golden Globe Awards and two Primetime Emmy Awards. ''Time'' magazine named her one of the 100 ...
. She appeared in a television advertisement for that store chain singing a cover of
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...
's 1958 song "
Night Time Is the Right Time
"Night Time Is the Right Time" or "The Right Time" is a rhythm and blues song recorded by American musician Nappy Brown in 1957. It draws on earlier blues songs and has inspired popular versions, including those by Ray Charles, Rufus and Carla, ...
" (retitled "The Right Time"). Stone also appeared in one of Gap's Fall 2005 "Favorites" commercials, singing
the Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American rock band that formed in Hawthorne, California, in 1961. The group's original lineup consisted of brothers Brian, Dennis, and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Distinguished by the ...
' 1966 song "
God Only Knows". By that time, rumours circulated about her being dropped from the campaign because she was living with then-25-year-old songwriter and producer Beau Dozier (son of Motown producer and composer
Lamont Dozier) in Los Angeles while she was only 17. However, Gap later denied the rumours, stating that they were very happy with Stone and telling
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance ...
that the claims were "absolute tosh" and "a complete fabrication". On 11 April 2005, Stone performed "Spoiled",
Rufus' 1974 song "
Tell Me Something Good" with John Legend,
Otis Redding's 1966 song "
Try a Little Tenderness" with
Donna Summer
LaDonna Adrian Gaines (December 31, 1948May 17, 2012), known professionally as Donna Summer, was an American singer and songwriter. She gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s and became known as the " Queen of Disco", while her musi ...
, and 1977's "
Hot Legs
"Hot Legs" is a single by Rod Stewart released in 1978 as the second single for his 1977 album ''Foot Loose & Fancy Free''. The single performed moderately on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, reaching at number 28 but performed better on the UK Sing ...
" with
Rod Stewart
Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the best-selling ...
at "Save the Music: A Concert to Benefit the VH1 Save the Music Foundation", in benefit of
VH1's Save the Music Foundation.
Three months later, on 2 July 2005, Stone performed "Super Duper Love", "I Had a Dream", and "Some Kind of Wonderful" at the
Live 8 concert at
Hyde Park, London. Stone was an opening act for
the Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically dr ...
during their 2005
A Bigger Bang tour
A Bigger Bang was a worldwide concert tour by the Rolling Stones which took place between August 2005 and August 2007, in support of their album ''A Bigger Bang''. At the time, it was the highest grossing tour of all time, earning $558,255,524 ...
.
Stone performed a
medley
Medley or Medleys may refer to:
Sports
*Medley swimming, races requiring multiple swimming styles
* Medley relay races at track meets
Music
* Medley (music), multiple pieces strung together
People
* Medley (surname), list of people with this n ...
of "
It's a Man's World" and "
Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" with
James Brown
James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the hono ...
on
BBC One
BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...
's chat show ''
Friday Night with Jonathan Ross'' on 1 July 2005.
Stone collaborated with
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
pianist
Herbie Hancock
Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he hel ...
and
blues
Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the ...
singer-guitarist
Jonny Lang on a cover of
U2's 1988 song "
When Love Comes to Town" for Hancock's 2005 album ''
Possibilities''. That same year, Stone was featured along with
Sean Paul on
Santana's "
Cry Baby Cry", and worked on a remake of
Patti LaBelle
Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American R&B singer, actress and businesswoman.
LaBelle is referred to as the " Godmother of Soul".
She began her career in the early 1960s as lead singe ...
's 1985 song "
Stir It Up" for the soundtrack to the
Disney
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
animated film ''
Chicken Little''.
She also collaborated with
Lemar in 2006 on his third studio album, ''
The Truth About Love'', on the track "Anniversary".
On 5 February 2006, Stone joined
Stevie Wonder
Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, pop, s ...
,
India.Arie, and John Legend during the
Super Bowl XL pre-game ceremonies to perform a medley of Wonder's hits. Three days later, on 8 February, on the night of the
2006 Grammy Awards, she helped perform a medley of
Sly & the Family Stone's hits alongside Legend,
Ciara
Ciara Princess Wilson ( ; Harris; born October 25, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, model and entrepreneur. She released her debut studio album, '' Goodies'' in 2004, which spawned four singles: " Goodies" (featuring Petey Pa ...
,
Maroon 5
Maroon 5 is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. It currently consists of lead vocalist Adam Levine, keyboardist and rhythm guitarist Jesse Carmichael, lead guitarist James Valentine (musician), James Valentine, drummer Matt ...
,
will.i.am,
Robert Randolph,
Steven Tyler
Steven Victor Tallarico (born March 26, 1948), known professionally as Steven Tyler, is an American singer, best known as the lead singer of the Boston-based rock band Aerosmith, in which he also plays the harmonica, piano, and percussion. ...
and
Joe Perry. Stone made her film debut in the fantasy adventure film ''
Eragon'' (based on the
2003 novel of the same name by
Christopher Paolini), directed by
Stefen Fangmeier and released on 15 December 2006, playing the fortune teller
Angela
Angela may refer to:
Places
* Angela, Montana
* Angela Lake, in Volusia County, Florida
* Lake Angela, in Lyon Township, Oakland County, Michigan
* Lake Angela, the reservoir impounded by the source dam of the South Yuba River
Fiction
* An ...
. At the
2007 Grammy Awards
The 49th Annual Grammy Awards was a ceremony honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning October 1, 2005 and ending September 30, 2006 in the United States. The awards were handed out on Sunday, February 11, 2007 at the Staples Ce ...
, Stone shared the award for
Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals The Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal was awarded between 1970 and 2011. From 1967 to 1969 and in 1971 the award included instrumental performances. The award had several minor name changes:
*From 1967 to 1968 th ...
for her collaboration with
John Legend and
Van Hunt on their 2005 cover of
Sly & the Family Stone's 1971 chart-topper "
Family Affair
''Family Affair'' is an American sitcom starring Brian Keith and Sebastian Cabot that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966, to March 4, 1971. The series explored the trials of well-to-do engineer and bachelor Bill Davis (Keith) as he attemp ...
".
2007–2008: ''Introducing Joss Stone''
Stone caused controversy at the
2007 BRIT Awards
Brit Awards 2007 was the 27th edition of the Brit Awards, an annual pop music awards ceremony in the United Kingdom. It was organised by the British Phonographic Industry and took place on 14 February 2007 at Earls Court in London. The show, wh ...
ceremony on 14 February 2007 while presenting the award for British Male Solo Artist (won by
James Morrison). Speaking in an
American accent, she circled the podium and gave a speech about
Robbie Williams
Robert Peter Williams (born 13 February 1974) is an English singer and songwriter. He found fame as a member of the pop group Take That from 1990 to 1995, and achieved commercial success after launching a solo career in 1996. His debut stud ...
, who had been the target of earlier jokes made by host
Russell Brand
Russell Edward Brand (born 4 June 1975) is an English comedian and actor known for his flamboyant, loquacious style and manner. Brand has received three British Comedy Awards: Best Newcomer (2006), Best Live Stand-Up (2008), and the award for ...
. Williams had been reported as going into
rehabilitation
Rehabilitation or Rehab may refer to:
Health
* Rehabilitation (neuropsychology), therapy to regain or improve neurocognitive function that has been lost or diminished
* Rehabilitation (wildlife), treatment of injured wildlife so they can be retur ...
that same week. As her speech continued, she made remarks about Brand, implying that he was heading for rehabilitation himself (while singing a passage of
Amy Winehouse's hit "
Rehab"). In response to the British media's reaction, Stone responded, "At the end of the day, I don't give a fuck if people have a problem with my accent. That's all I can say about it. The words I say do not change. If the way that it sounds is skew-wiff and you don't like it, don't listen. I'm not being a cruel person by sounding a different way. And I can't help it. I've been
n America workingsince I was, like, 14." Stone later claimed that her record label cancelled all her upcoming press appearances to publicise her upcoming third album as a result of the backlash.
Stone began work on her third studio album, ''
Introducing Joss Stone'', at
Compass Point Studios in
Nassau
Nassau may refer to:
Places Bahamas
*Nassau, Bahamas, capital city of the Bahamas, on the island of New Providence
Canada
*Nassau District, renamed Home District, regional division in Upper Canada from 1788 to 1792
*Nassau Street (Winnipeg), ...
, Bahamas, in May 2006. Released on 12 March 2007, the album was coordinated by A&R
Chris Anokute, produced by
Raphael Saadiq, and included collaborations with
Lauryn Hill,
Common
Common may refer to:
Places
* Common, a townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland
* Boston Common, a central public park in Boston, Massachusetts
* Cambridge Common, common land area in Cambridge, Massachusetts
* Clapham Common, originally ...
, and
Joi.
Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a world ...
describes the album as "an electrifying mix of warm vintage soul, 1970s-style R&B,
Motown
Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...
girl-group harmonies
In music, harmony is the process by which individual sounds are joined together or composed into whole units or compositions. Often, the term harmony refers to simultaneously occurring frequencies, pitches ( tones, notes), or chords. Howev ...
, and
hip-hop grooves".
Stone herself describes it as "truly me. That's why I'm calling it ''Introducing Joss Stone''. These are my words, and this is who I am as an artist."
She also revealed on ''
The Tavis Smiley Show'' that her break-up with Beau Dozier was a source of inspiration while writing ''Introducing Joss Stone''. The album debuted and peaked at No. 12 on the UK Albums Chart, not managing to match the success of Stone's two previous albums. It nevertheless debuted at No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' 200 selling 118,000 copies in its first week, becoming the highest debut for a British solo female artist on the US chart, surpassing the record previously held by
Amy Winehouse with ''
Back to Black'' (which in turn would later be outdone by
Leona Lewis
Leona Louise Lewis (born 3 April 1985) is a British singer, songwriter, actress and activist. Born and raised in the London Borough of Islington, she attended the BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology in Croydon. Lewis achieved natio ...
, whose album ''
Spirit'' debuted at No. 1 the week of 26 April 2008).
"
Tell Me 'Bout It", the album's lead single, debuted and peaked at No. 28 on the UK Singles Chart. The second single, "
Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now", a collaboration with rapper Common, failed to chart inside the UK top seventy-five. Stone and Common turned the single's music video into a
Product Red, reverting 100% of the gains from copies of the video purchased from iTunes to
the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Stone is the first Product Red artist to do so. Stone also sampled Franklin's "
Respect", taking the texture and sound of the song, but keeping her own composition. "
Baby Baby Baby" was released digitally in December 2007 and physically in January 2008 as the third single. In support of the album, Stone embarked on a North American tour which began on 27 April at
Foxwoods Resort Casino
Foxwoods Resort Casino is a hotel and casino complex owned and operated by the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation on their reservation located in Ledyard, Connecticut. Including six casinos, the resort covers an area of . The casinos have more ...
in
Ledyard, Connecticut and ended on 13 June at the Filene Center in
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
, Virginia, visiting sixteen cities in total including Philadelphia, San Francisco, Vancouver, Chicago, Toronto, New York and Boston. Two months later, she went on a North American late-summer tour which kicked off on 27 August at the
Greek Theatre
Ancient Greek theatre was a theatrical culture that flourished in ancient Greece from 700 BC. The city-state of Athens, which became a significant cultural, political, and religious place during this period, was its centre, where the theatre w ...
in Los Angeles and ended on 29 September at the Crossroads in Kansas City, Missouri, covering twelve cities—this time including Mexico City.
2009–2010: ''Colour Me Free!'' and departure from EMI
Stone was photographed by Canadian singer-guitarist and photographer
Bryan Adams for
Phonak's ''Hear the World'' initiative, whose main goal is to raise global awareness for the topic of
hearing and
hearing loss
Hearing loss is a partial or total inability to hear. Hearing loss may be present at birth or acquired at any time afterwards. Hearing loss may occur in one or both ears. In children, hearing problems can affect the ability to acquire spoken l ...
. On 7 July 2007, Stone performed at the
South African leg of the
Live Earth concerts at the
Coca-Cola Dome
The WeBuyCars Dome, previously known as the Ticketpro Dome is an indoor arena and car showroom located in Johannesburg, South Africa. The showroom accommodates over 1,000 vehicles and covers about 11,000 square metres. The Dome opened on 8 April ...
in
Johannesburg
Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a Megacity#List of megacities, megacity, and is List of urban areas by p ...
, to promote awareness of
global warming
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...
. She sang the ''Introducing Joss Stone'' tracks "Girl They Won't Believe It", "Headturner", "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now", "Music", and "Tell Me 'bout It", as well as ''Mind, Body & Souls "Right to Be Wrong" and "Gimme Shelter", the latter with
Angélique Kidjo. Stone covered
Nat King Cole's 1965 song "
L-O-V-E" for an advertising campaign for
Chanel
Chanel ( , ) is a French high-end luxury fashion house founded in 1910 by Coco Chanel in Paris. Chanel specializes in women's ready-to-wear, luxury goods, and accessories and licenses its name and branding to Luxottica for eyewear. Chane ...
's
Coco Mademoiselle fragrance.
On 29 November 2007, Stone joined
Jeff Beck
Geoffrey Arnold Beck (born 24 June 1944) is an English rock guitarist. He rose to prominence with the Yardbirds and after fronted the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice. In 1975, he switched to a mainly instrumental style, with a fo ...
on a duet of
the Impressions's 1965 song "
People Get Ready" as part of his series of concerts at London's
Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club, documented on the DVD ''Performing This Week: Live at Ronnie Scott's''. To raise the awareness of AIDS,
Annie Lennox joined forces with twenty-three female acts (including Stone) and recorded the song "
Sing
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...
", which was released on
World AIDS Day
World AIDS Day, designated on 1 December every year since 1988, is an international day dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection and mourning those who have died of the disease. The acquired imm ...
on 1 December 2007, when Lennox performed at one of
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (; ; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African anti-apartheid activist who served as the first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. He was the country's first black head of state and the ...
's
46664 concerts at
Johannesburg
Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a Megacity#List of megacities, megacity, and is List of urban areas by p ...
's
Ellis Park Stadium
Ellis Park Stadium (known as Emirates Airline Park for sponsorship reasons) is a rugby union and association football stadium in the city of Johannesburg, Gauteng Province, South Africa. It hosted the final of the 1995 Rugby World Cup, which was ...
. In mid-December 2007, Stone was named the new
Flake
Flake or Flakes may refer to:
People
* Floyd H. Flake (born 1945), A.M.E. minister, university administrator, former U.S. representative
* Jeff Flake (born 1962), American politician
* Christian "Flake" Lorenz, German musician and member of th ...
girl to star in a series of television adverts for the
Cadbury Schweppes product in the spring of 2008. According to the company, she is the first non-model to take the role.
In March 2008, Stone landed the role of lesbian
bingo caller Stephanie in the British romantic comedy film ''Snappers'', for which she also wrote music. However, the film was never released. Stone made her television debut portraying
Henry VIII
Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...
's fourth wife
Anne of Cleves
Anne of Cleves (german: Anna von Kleve; 1515 – 16 July 1557) was Queen of England from 6 January to 12 July 1540 as the fourth wife of King Henry VIII. Not much is known about Anne before 1527, when she became betrothed to Francis, Duke of ...
in the third season of the
Showtime series ''
The Tudors
''The Tudors'' is a historical fiction television series set primarily in 16th-century England, created and written by Michael Hirst and produced for the American premium cable television channel Showtime. The series was a collaboration among ...
''.
She reprised the role in the show's final season in 2010, appearing in two episodes.
Stone launched a legal battle in a bid to leave her record label,
EMI, and free her of her current three-album deal with the record label in April 2008. Stone performed at the 19th Annual
GLAAD Media Awards
The GLAAD Media Award is an accolade bestowed by GLAAD to recognize and honor various branches of the media for their outstanding representations of the lesbian, gay, Bisexuality, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community and the issues that affe ...
at the
Kodak Theatre
The Eastman Kodak Company (referred to simply as Kodak ) is an American public company that produces various products related to its historic basis in analogue photography. The company is headquartered in Rochester, New York, and is incorpor ...
in Hollywood, Los Angeles on 26 April 2008. She also performed "Right to Be Wrong" at the LA PRIDE 2008—produced by Christopher Street West, a non-profit organisation in
West Hollywood
West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. It is considered one of the most prominent gay villages ...
, California, on 7 June 2008. On 26 October 2008, Stone sang the British national anthem, "
God Save the Queen", before the
NFL match between the
San Diego Chargers and the
New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...
, held at
Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...
in London.
On 7 December 2008, Stone performed
the Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...
's 1965 song "
My Generation" on
CBS's
Kennedy Center Honors
The Kennedy Center Honors are annual honors given to those in the performing arts for their lifetime of contributions to American culture. They have been presented annually since 1978, culminating each December in a gala celebrating five hono ...
TV special at the
Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C., honouring
Pete Townshend
Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is co-founder, leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s.
Towns ...
and
Roger Daltrey
Roger Harry Daltrey (born 1 March 1944) is an English singer, musician and actor. He is a co-founder and the lead singer of the rock band The Who.
Daltrey's hit songs with The Who include " My Generation", " Pinball Wizard", " Won't Get Fooled ...
. In 2010, Stone also appeared on
Ringo Starr
Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...
's album, ''Y Not'' on the song "Who's Your Daddy" in which she sang and co-wrote with the ex-Beatle; appeared on Jeff Beck's album, ''Emotion and Commotion'' on the songs "There's No Other Me" and "
I Put a Spell on You", being the last one nominated for the
at
53rd Grammy Awards. In late 2010, Stone's voice and likeness were used for the "
Bond girl" character of Nicole Hunter, a jewellery designer and MI6 agent, in the video game ''
James Bond 007: Blood Stone''. In addition to portraying the character, she also performed the game's theme song, "I'll Take It All", which was co-written and performed with
Dave Stewart.
In 2010, Stone provided vocals on two songs for the charity-focused audio drama production, ''A Voyage For Soldier Miles''. The songs are "Lover Earth" written by
Dave Stewart and
Mark Warford and "Never Gonna Be The Same" written and performed by
Mark Warford and Niels Lan Doky.
Stone's fourth studio album was written and recorded in about a week in Devon in early 2008. She said: "It's very, very raw. It's a bunch of musicians, writers and myself, and we're just jamming, basically."
In promotion of the album, entitled ''
Colour Me Free!'', Stone played concerts throughout the UK in February and March. Originally scheduled for release in April 2009, ''
Colour Me Free!'' was finally released on 20 October 2009. Stone said that her record company also fought her about the original cover of her new album, calling it "offensive". It was changed to simple text and no picture of Stone on the American edition. The original cover was used on the other editions worldwide. In late August 2010, it was reported that Stone had left EMI and formed her own independent record label,
Stone'd Records. EMI announced in late December that they would be releasing a greatest hits album, ''
The Best of Joss Stone 2003–2009''. The compilation was released on 30 September 2011.
In 2010, Stone collaborated with
Puerto Rican recording artist
Ricky Martin for "
The Best Thing About Me Is You
"The Best Thing About Me Is You" is a song by the Puerto Rican recording artist Ricky Martin, taken from his ninth studio album, '' Música + Alma + Sexo'' (2011). It was digitally released as the lead single from the album on November 2, 2010 ...
", and peaked at No. 74 on the U.S
''Billboard'' Hot 100 and which topped the ''Hot Latin Songs'' and ''Latin Pop Songs'' chart, this was Stone's first number-one on all two charts, which also made her the first Briton of non-Hispanic origin to reach No. 1 on the ''Hot Latin Tracks'' and ''Latin Pop Songs'' chart.
2011–2018: ''LP1'', ''The Soul Sessions Vol. 2'' and ''Water for Your Soul''
On 14 June 2011, police arrested two men in
Cullompton, Devon, near Stone's home, for plotting to rob and murder her. After a trial at
Exeter
Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol.
In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...
Crown Court
The Crown Court is the court of first instance of England and Wales responsible for hearing all indictable offences, some either way offences and appeals lied to it by the magistrates' courts. It is one of three Senior Courts of England and W ...
for conspiracy to rob, murder and commit grievous bodily harm against her, they were found guilty and convicted on 3 April 2013.
Stone partnered with
Surfdog Records to release ''
LP1'' on 26 July 2011, through her own label Stone'd Records.
The album was recorded in
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...
in six days, where Stone co-wrote and co-produced the album with
Eurythmics co-founder,
David Stewart The lead single, "
Somehow", was released on 24 June 2011. Stone also joined the supergroup
SuperHeavy
SuperHeavy was a one-off supergroup project consisting of Mick Jagger, Joss Stone, Dave Stewart, A. R. Rahman, and Damian Marley. Stone and Stewart have collaborated in the past with Jagger. Jagger said of the band, "We wanted a convergence ...
which was formed by
Mick Jagger
Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...
of the
Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...
, together with
Dave Stewart (credited by Mick with the original idea of SuperHeavy),
Damian Marley (the youngest son of
Bob Marley
Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981; baptised in 1980 as Berhane Selassie) was a Jamaican singer, musician, and songwriter. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, his musical career was marked by fusing elements ...
) and the Indian musician and producer
A.R. Rahman
Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967) is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer and songwriter, popular for his works in Indian cinema; predominantly in Tamil and Hindi films, with occasional forays in int ...
. The album was recorded at
Jim Henson Studios
The Jim Henson Company (formerly known as Muppets, Inc., Henson Associates, Inc., and Jim Henson Productions, Inc.; commonly referred to as Henson) is an American entertainment company located in Los Angeles, California. The company is known f ...
in Los Angeles and was released on 20 September 2011 by
A&M Records. The debut single, "Miracle Worker", was released on 19 July 2011.
Released in July 2012, ''
The Soul Sessions Vol. 2'' saw Stone return to her original label,
S-Curve Records
S-Curve Records was founded in 2000 by former Mercury Records executive Steve Greenberg. It is based in New York City. In 2001 the label established a distribution and licensing agreement with EMI Records. Among the hits released by S-Curve be ...
, who released the album jointly with the artist's Stone'd Records, and features production from
Steve Greenberg (producer of the first "Soul Sessions"). The album finds Stone largely covering lesser-known soul songs from the 1970s and 1980s by acts including
the Chi-Lites,
the Honey Cone,
the Dells,
Sylvia,
Labi Siffre and
Linda Lewis. The album reached the top 10 on the US
''Billboard'' 200 and the
UK album chart. In the UK it was her first top 10 album since 2004's ''Mind Body & Soul''. In 2013 she performed live shows including Indonesia and the Philippines. She also made an appearance on UK television series ''
Top Gear''.
Stone announced to newspaper ''La Vanguardia'' in July 2012 that she would work on a reggae album. She stated that it would be recorded and produced by her and Damian Marley, who previously worked in SuperHeavy. In March 2014, she elaborated that the new album would be a little bit different and "more eclectic" with a "little bit more hip-hop and reggae". On 31 July 2015 her album ''
Water for Your Soul'' was released, and was the number-one reggae album the week it came out. In April 2014 she began ''The Total World Tour'' with the intention of performing in as many countries as possible. In November 2017 Stone, along with
Nitin Sawhney, Jonathan Shorten, Jonathan Joseph and Cameroonian multi-instrumentalist Étienne M'Bappé released the ''Project Mama Earth'', an 11-track EP comprising full-length songs and interludes, inspired by
Mother Nature concept and African rhythms. In the same month, she was co-headliner in
Night of the Proms in Nederland and Belgium. In October 2018, Stone was cast as a guest-star in season 5 of
musical
Musical is the adjective of music.
Musical may also refer to:
* Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance
* Musical film
Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwo ...
drama television series ''
Empire
An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...
''.
2019–present: Finishing of ''The Total World Tour'' and '' Never Forget My Love''
At the beginning of 2019 Stone sang with
James Morrison on the song "My Love Goes On", making it four years since both singers last released studio albums.
In March 2019 Stone embarked on her first full world tour. As part of her Total World Tour to perform in every country of the world, she crossed into
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
illegally to perform at
Al-Malikiyah
Al-Malikiyah ( ar, ٱلْمَالِكِيَّة, al-Mālikīyah; ku, دێرکا حەمکۆ, translit=Dêrika Hemko; ) also known as Derik, is a small Syrian city and the center of an administrative district belonging to Al-Hasakah Governorate. ...
. Later the same month, she performed in
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the s ...
and
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...
. In July 2019, Stone was denied entry into
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
, the last stop on her tour.
In April 2020, Stone's single "Lean On Me" was released, the song was sung with
Beverley Knight
Beverley Knight (born Beverley Anne Smith, 22 March 1973) is an English recording artist and musical theatre actress. She released her first album, '' The B-Funk'', in 1995. Heavily influenced by American soul music icons such as Sam Cooke and ...
, for which a music video was made showing the work of
National Health Service
The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...
helpers.
In August 2020, Stone became the host of a podcast, ''A Cuppa Happy'', in which she aims to better understand the elusive, fleeting nature of happiness.
In February 2021, Stone won the
second series of ''
The Masked Singer'' masked as Sausage. Stone gave a live interview on ITV's ''
This Morning'', beamed from her Nashville, Tennessee, home on 15 February 2021, to discuss her winning performance on Series 2 of ''
The Masked Singer'', which attracted 8.6 million viewers over Valentine's weekend. The finale was recorded while she was heavily pregnant in September 2020. Her singing character was disguised in a sausage and chips suit, with her true identity kept secret until she was revealed as the second series winner.
On 11 November 2021, she released "Never Forget My Love", for which a video was shot immediately, the lead single and title track from her new album, released on 11 February 2022.
Artistry
Stone possesses the vocal range of a
mezzo-soprano
A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middl ...
and
contralto
A contralto () is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range is the lowest female voice type.
The contralto's vocal range is fairly rare; similar to the mezzo-soprano, and almost identical to that of a countertenor, typica ...
. She often performs barefoot and has been described as "the white
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in '' Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Wit ...
" since her debut in music industry.
However, Stone was the subject of some contention in the United States, according to
Alexis Petridis
Alexis Petridis ( el, Αλέξης Πετρίδης; born 13 September 1971) is a British journalist, head rock and pop critic for the UK newspaper ''The Guardian'', as well as a regular contributor to the magazine '' GQ''. In addition to his mus ...
, writing in ''The Guardian'' in 2003, where, he claims, her audience expected soul artists "to have been born in poverty and have had a rough and painful life" in order to sing soul music due to its emotional nature.
Personal life
In 2004, Stone began dating Beau Dozier, with whom she co-wrote the song "Spoiled". Dozier is the son of Motown producer
Lamont Dozier, part of the team
Holland-Dozier-Holland. The couple ended their relationship in November 2005.
In a 2016 interview, Stone revealed that she had been in a relationship with music promoter SiChai for three years.
Stone is a lifelong
vegetarian
Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter.
Vegetariani ...
and has taken part in various campaigns for animal rights group
PETA. Stone owns a number of
rescue dogs.
The Joss Stone Foundation ultimately supported more than 200 charities across the globe as Stone completed her world tour. The primary aim was to help raise public awareness and support for these charities.
In September 2020, Stone announced via
Instagram
Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
that she was pregnant with her first child with boyfriend Cody DaLuz. She gave birth to a daughter on 29 January 2021. In April 2022, Stone announced via Instagram that she was pregnant with her second child with DaLuz.
Stone settled in
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...
, in 2022.
Discography
* ''
The Soul Sessions
''The Soul Sessions'' is the debut studio album by English singer and songwriter Joss Stone, released on 16 September 2003 by S-Curve Records. The album consists of cover versions of soul songs from the 1960s and 1970s, in addition to a cover ...
'' (2003)
* ''
Mind Body & Soul
''Mind Body & Soul'' is the second studio album by English singer and songwriter Joss Stone, released on 15 September 2004 by S-Curve Records. The album received generally favourable reviews from music critics and earned Stone three Grammy Aw ...
'' (2004)
* ''
Introducing Joss Stone'' (2007)
* ''
Colour Me Free!'' (2009)
* ''
LP1'' (2011)
* ''
The Soul Sessions Vol. 2'' (2012)
* ''
Water for Your Soul'' (2015)
* ''
Never Forget My Love'' (2022)
* ''
Merry Christmas, Love'' (2022)
Concert tours
* Mind, Body & Soul Sessions Tour (2003–05)
* Introducing Joss Stone World Tour (2007–08)
* Colour Me Free! World Tour (2009–11)
*
LP1 World Tour (2011–12)
* The Total World Tour (2014–19)
* 20 Years of Soul (2023–)
Filmography
Awards and nominations
During her career, Stone won nine awards, including one
Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...
and two
Brit Awards.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Stone, Joss
1987 births
21st-century English actresses
21st-century English women singers
21st-century English singers
Actresses from Devon
Actresses from Kent
Brit Award winners
British contemporary R&B singers
English child singers
English contraltos
English film actresses
English soul singers
English television actresses
English women singer-songwriters
Grammy Award winners
Living people
Masked Singer winners
Musicians from Devon
Musicians from Kent
Neo soul singers
People from Dover, Kent
People from Mid Devon District
People with dyslexia
Relentless Records artists
SuperHeavy members
Third British Invasion artists
Virgin Records artists