Ana Kirby (; born August 14, 1974), known by her stage name Ana Matronic, is an American singer, best known as the co-lead singer for the pop rock band

Scissor Sisters Scissor Sisters are an American pop rock band formed in 2000. The band's current line-up consists of Jake Shears (vocals), Babydaddy (various instruments), Del Marquis (guitar, bass) and Randy Real (drums). Former members include vocalist A ...

Career

Matronic joined Scissor Sisters, founded by

Jake Shears Jason Sellards (born October 3, 1978), known professionally by the stage name Jake Shears, is an American singer, songwriter, musician and actor. He is best known as the co-lead vocalist of New York City pop-rock band Scissor Sisters, who achi ...

and Babydaddy, after they played their first live gig at club Knockoff on the

Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Historically, it w ...

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

. She has stated that, in her eyes, the objective of the band is "about people displaying their fantasies on the outside, trying to break out of the everyday, and look like their dreams." In The Scissorhood, the fan community for Scissor Sisters, those fans who hold a special affinity for Ana are known as "nuns". Fans who are attracted to Ana, even if they might not usually be attracted to women, term themselves "Anasexual". Ana Matronic

In 2005, she was featured on the New Order single "

Jetstream Jet streams are fast flowing, narrow air currents in the Earth's atmosphere. The main jet streams are located near the altitude of the tropopause and are westerly winds, flowing west to east around the globe. The northern hemisphere and th ...

", taken from the band's album ''

Waiting for the Sirens' Call ''Waiting for the Sirens' Call'' is the eighth studio album by English rock band New Order, released on 28 March 2005 by London Records. The album was preceded by the single " Krafty". Two additional singles from the album were released: "Jets ...

''. In 2009, Matronic performed on the

glass harmonica The glass harmonica, also known as the glass armonica, glass harmonium, bowl organ, hydrocrystalophone, or simply the armonica or harmonica (derived from , ''harmonia'', the Greek language, Greek word for harmony), is a type of musical instr ...

at the New Museum in NYC in ''Auroville'', a multimedia ritual tribute to an experimental community dedicated to the guru

Sri Aurobindo Sri Aurobindo (born Aurobindo Ghose; 15 August 1872 – 5 December 1950) was an Indian Modern yoga gurus, yogi, maharishi, and Indian nationalist. He also edited the newspaper Bande Mataram (publication), ''Bande Mataram''. Aurobindo st ...

. Ana appears as a guest vocalist on the

Mark Ronson Mark Daniel Ronson (born 4 September 1975) is a British-American DJ, record producer, and songwriter. He has won nine Grammy Awards, including Producer of the Year for Amy Winehouse's album '' Back to Black'' (2006), as well as two for Record ...

-produced track "Safe (In the Heat of the Moment)" from the December 21, 2010, release '' All You Need Is Now'' from the band

Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English pop rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. After several early changes, the band's line-up settled ...

. In 2012, Matronic appeared as an advisor on ''

The Voice UK ''The Voice UK'' is a British singing reality competition television series. Created by John de Mol and Roel van Velzen, it premiered on BBC One on 24 March 2012. Based on the original Dutch singing competition '' The Voice of Holland'', and ...

'', pairing up to assist

Jessie J Jessica Ellen Cornish (born 27 March 1988), known professionally as Jessie J, is an English singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, she began her career on stage, aged 11, with a role in the West End musical '' Whistle Down the Wind ...

. The following year, she served as commentator of the

BBC Three BBC Three is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It was first launched on 9 February 2003 with programmes for a 16 to 34-year-old target aud ...

broadcast of the

Eurovision Song Contest 2013 The Eurovision Song Contest 2013 was the 58th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Malmö, Sweden, following the country's victory at the with the song "Euphoria (Loreen song), Euphoria" by Loreen. Organised by the Europea ...

semi-finals in

Malmö Malmö is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, sixth-largest city in Nordic countries, the Nordic region. Located on ...

, Sweden, for the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, replacing

Sara Cox Sara Joanne Cyzer ( born 13 December 1974), better known as Sara Cox, is an English broadcaster and author. A presenter on BBC Radio 2, she has been hosting the station's drivetime show since January 2019. She previously presented BBC Radio 1's ...

. Matronic returned in 2014 as radio commentator on Radio 2 Eurovision, a pop-up DAB station, for the second semi-final of the

Eurovision Song Contest 2014 The Eurovision Song Contest 2014 was the 59th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Copenhagen, Denmark, following the country's victory at the with the song "Only Teardrops" by Emmelie de Forest. Organised by the European B ...

in Copenhagen, Denmark. Matronic appeared on '' Strictly Come Dancing: It Takes Two'' on November 15, 2013, alongside

Jason Donovan Jason Sean Donovan (born 1 June 1968) is an Australian actor and singer. He initially achieved fame in the Australian soap ''Neighbours'', playing Scott Robinson, before beginning a career in music in 1988. In the UK he has sold over 3 millio ...

and

Jodie Prenger Jodie Christine Prenger (born 12 June 1979) is an English actress and singer, best known for winning the second series of ''The Biggest Loser'' in 2006 and the BBC talent show '' I'd Do Anything'' in 2008, the latter of which subsequently laun ...

. She presented a weekly show on

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the List of most-listened-to radio programs, most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 14 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the sta ...

from 00:00 to 02:00 on Sunday overnights. The show was titled ''Disco Devotion'' from April 2017, before changing its name to ''Dance Devotion''. In 2022, she announced she will be leaving the station due to changes of the weekend schedule; the final edition of ''Dance Devotion'' aired on June 19. The final show contained 'anything with a repetitive beat', songs of which include Deep Inside by Hardrive, You Got The Love by Candi Staton, and Professional Widow by Tori Amos and Armand van Helden. From July 24–27, 2017, she covered for

Jo Whiley Johanne Whiley-Morton (born 4 July 1965), better known professionally as Jo Whiley, is an English radio DJ and television presenter. She was the host of the long-running '' Jo Whiley Show'' on BBC Radio 1 and has since been presenting her weekd ...

and presented a special programme alongside

Scott Mills Scott Robert Mills (born 28 March 1973) is an English radio DJ, television presenter and occasional actor. He is best known for presenting the '' Scott Mills'' show on BBC Radio 1 from 2004 to 2022 and since then, on BBC Radio 2, where he has be ...

on July 29 celebrating the 50th anniversary of the decriminalisation of male homosexual activity in the UK. She performed a live DJ set at Radio 2 Live in Hyde Park on September 10, 2018, and has hosted a New Year's Eve 2018 show for the channel. Matronic covers when

regular presenters are on holiday. Her punning stage name is said to be due to "a deep and abiding love of robots". In January 2019 she appeared on the BBC TV show ''

Mastermind Mastermind, Master Mind or The Mastermind may refer to: Fictional characters * Mastermind (Jason Wyngarde), a fictional supervillain in Marvel Comics, a title also held by his daughters: ** Martinique Jason, the first daughter and successor of the ...

'' with ''

The Bionic Woman ''The Bionic Woman'' is an American science fiction film, science fiction Action-adventure fiction, action-adventure television series created by Kenneth Johnson (producer), Kenneth Johnson based on the 1972 novel Cyborg (novel), ''Cyborg'' by ...

'' as her specialist subject and Beyond Reflections (then known as Chrysalis) as her chosen charity. The Scissor Sisters announced a reunion in October 2024, but Matronic chose not to take part. Shears told ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'': "I think it just didn't line up. It's not something that she wanted to do at this moment in time. And I didn't want that to keep us from coming out and playing these songs." Addressing her absence from the reunion tour, Matronic wrote on

Instagram Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...

People familiar with my story and career arc will know that in the heart of this Showgirl lies a giant Nerd. In the past decade my Nerd self has taken the wheel and is now driving my career. I am currently finishing production on the first season of my history podcast ''Good Time Sallies'', which has grown into several long-term research and writing projects. With contracts signed and schedules agreed on these commitments, the timing of a Scissor reunion does not allow me to join my former bandmates for this tour. I wish the band and our fans all the best… I will be there in spirit to kiki with you!

Matronic was featured in '' Disco: Soundtrack of a Revolution'', a 2024

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

and

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

co-production and three-part documentary about the rise of

disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...

music in the

1970s File:1970s decade montage.jpg, Clockwise from top left: U.S. President Richard Nixon doing the V for Victory sign after his resignation from office following the Watergate scandal in 1974; The United States was still involved in the Vietnam War ...

Book

In 2015, she penned a book entitled ''Robot Universe: Legendary Automatons and Androids from the Ancient World to the Distant Future''; published by Sterling New York.

Personal life

Matronic described herself as having a " Cornish, Welsh and Irish heritage". During a performance in

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, Matronic "

Came out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...

" as Welsh stating that "Some people in England have told me I don't want to be telling people about it" adding "It's true. Generations back the Matronics originally came from Wales. There were just a few more 'w's and 'g's and 'l's in the name in the past." Matronic has a tattoo on her ankle of a

Celtic knot Celtic knots (, , , ) are a variety of knots and Style (visual arts)#Stylization, stylized graphical representations of knots used for decoration, used extensively in the Celtic style of Insular art. These knots are most known for their adapta ...

to signify her roots, as well as a large tattoo on her right shoulder of

bionic Bionics or biologically inspired engineering is the application of biological methods and systems found in nature to the study and design of engineering systems and modern technology. The word ''bionic'', coined by Jack E. Steele in August 19 ...

circuitry An electronic circuit is composed of individual electronic components, such as resistors, transistors, capacitors, inductors and diodes, connected by conductive wires or traces through which electric current can flow. It is a type of electric ...

. Matronic married her long-time boyfriend and fiancé Seth Kirby in April 2010 at

New York City Hall New York City Hall is the Government of New York City, seat of New York City government, located at the center of City Hall Park in the Civic Center, Manhattan, Civic Center area of Lower Manhattan, between Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway, Park R ...

after they had been together for seven years. She has had relationships with women, but stated in a 2013 interview with ''

Diva Diva (, ) is the Latin word for a goddess. Diva is a name from Roman mythology, and is associated with the nouns divus, diva, which means god, goddess, and the adjective divinius, which means divine or heavenly. It has often been used to refer t ...

'' she " oesn'tlike identifying as

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

straight Straight may refer to: Slang * Straight, slang for heterosexual ** Straight-acting, normal person * Straight, a member of the straight edge subculture Sport and games * Straight, an alternative name for the cross, a type of punch in boxing * Str ...

or even

bisexual Bisexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior toward both males and females. It may also be defined as the attraction to more than one gender, to people of both the same and different gender, or the attraction t ...

" but rather as "a human being", saying "I believe in human rights. We should treat each other exactly the same whoever we are. The rigid constructs put into place to define us don't really work."

Discography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Matronic, Ana 1974 births Living people 21st-century American women singers American expatriates in England American people of Cornish descent American people of Irish descent American people of Welsh descent American women pop singers American women rock singers American women in electronic music BBC Radio 2 presenters Singers from Portland, Oregon Scissor Sisters members American women radio hosts 21st-century American singers American LGBTQ singers