Eliza (English Singer)
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Eliza Sophie Caird (born 15 April 1988), better known by her former stage name Eliza Doolittle and now Eliza, is an English singer and songwriter from
Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...
, London. After performing her music in live venues around
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
from the age of 15, Eliza signed to
Parlophone Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 1923 as the Parloph ...
in 2008. Her debut album was released on 12 July 2010 and went platinum. The album produced two UK top-40 hits, " Skinny Genes" and " Pack Up", the latter of which peaked within the top five on the UK Singles Chart. In 2013, Eliza contributed writing and vocals to " You & Me", a single from British
electronic music Electronic music broadly is a group of music genres that employ electronic musical instruments, circuitry-based music technology and software, or general-purpose electronics (such as personal computers) in its creation. It includes both music ...
duo
Disclosure Disclosure may refer to: Arts and media Film and television *'' CBC News: Disclosure'', a television newsmagazine series in Canada * ''Disclosure'' (1994 film), an American erotic thriller film based on the 1994 novel by Michael Crichton * ''Dis ...
's number one debut album ''
Settle Settle or SETTLE may refer to: __NOTOC__ Places * Settle, Kentucky, United States, an unincorporated community * Settle, North Yorkshire, a town in England ** Settle Rural District, a historical administrative district Music * Settle (band), an in ...
''. On 7 June 2013, she premiered a single called " Big When I Was Little", which was released in July 2013. It subsequently joined
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 Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...
's and Radio 2 playlist. It was later included on her second studio album, titled '' In Your Hands''. In 2018, Eliza released the album ''A Real Romantic'', which included tracks like "Wasn't Looking", "Livid" and "Alone & Unafraid". In 2022, she released the album ''A Sky Without Stars'', which included tracks like "Straight Talker", "Heat of the Moon" and "Everywhere I'll Ever Be".


Early life

Eliza was born in
Westminster, London Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...
. She comes from a family with a successful and varied musical background. Her father is John Caird, a stage director and writer of plays, musicals and operas who is also an honorary associate director of the
Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratf ...
. Her paternal grandfather G. B. Caird, was the theologian and principal of
Mansfield College, Oxford Mansfield College, Oxford is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. The college was founded in Birmingham in 1838 as a college for Nonconformist students. It moved to Oxford in 1886 and was renamed Mansfield Coll ...
. Her mother is musical theatre actress and artist
Frances Ruffelle Frances Ruffelle (born 29 August 1965) is an English musical theatre actress and singer. She won a Tony Award in 1987, and represented the United Kingdom in the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest with the song " Lonely Symphony (We Will Be Free)", ...
, who won a
Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...
for her role of
Éponine Éponine Thénardier (; ), also referred to as "Ponine", the "Jondrette girl" and the "young working-man", is a fictional character in the 1862 novel ''Les Misérables'' by Victor Hugo. The character is introduced as a spoiled and pampered child, ...
in the English-language version of ''
Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' (, ) is a 19th-century French literature, French Epic (genre), epic historical fiction, historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published on 31 March 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. '' ...
'' and represented the United Kingdom in the
1994 Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest 1994 was the 39th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest, held on 30 April 1994 at the Point Theatre in Dublin, Ireland. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and host broadcaster (RTÉ), and presented ...
. Eliza is the granddaughter of Sylvia Young, founder of the eponymous theatre school. She is one of nine siblings. Her parents divorced when she was four years old. Eliza had a brief career on stage playing Young
Cosette Cosette () is a fictional character in the 1862 novel ''Les Misérables'' by Victor Hugo and in the many adaptations of the story for stage, film, and television. Her birth name, Euphrasie, is only mentioned briefly. As the orphaned child of an ...
in ''Les Misérables'' in London's West End in 1996–1997. Her parents had met and began their relationship during the original production, when her father was the co-director and her mother played Eponine. Eliza went on to play the lead role in Lucy Simon's Tony Award-winning musical version of ''
The Secret Garden ''The Secret Garden'' is a children's novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett first published in book form in 1911, after serialisation in ''The American Magazine'' (November 1910 – August 1911). Set in England, it is seen as a classic of English c ...
'' in 2001 when the
Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratf ...
premiered the show in London.


Musical career


Career beginnings

Before entering the charts, Eliza toured the UK with her band. She released an EP including songs Naive produced by Al Shux (A New York State of Mind), Ego and Piano Song produced by Truth & Soul (Lee Fields, El Michels Affair). On 29 November 2009, a further EP release featuring the tracks "Rollerblades", "Moneybox", "Police Car", and "Go Home" (produced by Craigie Dodds, Johnny Dollar, Matt Prime and Phil Thornaley). Tracks from the EP were remixed by Plastic Little ("Rollerblades"), Sam Young and
Jamie xx James Thomas Smith (born 28 October 1988), known professionally as Jamie xx, is an English musician, DJ, record producer, and remixer. He is known for both his solo work and as a member of the indie pop band the xx. He has been described as a " ...
from
The xx The xx are an English indie rock band from Wandsworth, London, formed in 2005. The band consists of Romy Madley Croft (guitar, vocals), Oliver Sim (bass guitar, vocals), Jamie Smith, also known as Jamie xx (beats, MPC, record production), ...
("Money Box"). The EP received radio plays from
Rob Da Bank Robert John Gorham (born 24 June 1973 in Portsmouth, Hampshire), known by the pseudonym Rob da Bank, is an English DJ and co-founder of music festivals Bestival, originally on the Isle of Wight and now moved to Lulworth, Dorset and Camp Bes ...
,
Nick Grimshaw Nicholas Peter Andrew Grimshaw (born 14 August 1984), nicknamed "Grimmy", is an English broadcaster and author. He became known for having hosted a variety of shows on BBC Radio 1. He is also known as a television presenter for his Channel 4 rol ...
,
Fearne Cotton Fearne Cotton (born 3 September 1981) is an English broadcaster and author. She began her career in the late 1990s as a children’s television presenter for GMTV, CITV and CBBC. She went on to present various television shows, including ''To ...
, and
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 ...
. She recorded the song 'Running For Life", which was featured on the soundtrack of the 2008 cult British film ''
Adulthood An adult is an animal that has reached full growth. The biological definition of the word means an animal reaching sexual maturity and thus capable of reproduction. In the human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social an ...
''. Later that year, she performed at
Glastonbury Glastonbury ( , ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbury is less than across the River ...
on the Pussy Parlour stage, her first festival performance.


2010–2013: ''Eliza Doolittle''

In early 2010, she took part in musician
Shane MacGowan Shane Patrick Lysaght MacGowan (25 December 195730 November 2023) was a British-born Irish singer-songwriter and musician, best known as the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of Celtic punk band the Pogues. He won acclaim for his lyrics, whic ...
's charity single "
I Put a Spell on You "I Put a Spell on You" is a 1956 song recorded by "Screamin' Jay" Hawkins and co-written with Herb Slotkin. The selection became a classic cult song, covered by a variety of artists. It was Hawkins's greatest commercial success, reportedly su ...
", in aid of the
2010 Haiti earthquake The 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic Moment magnitude scale, magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake that struck Haiti at 16:53 local time (21:53 UTC) on Tuesday, 12 January 2010. The epicenter was near the town of LĂ©ogâne, Ouest (departm ...
. Her debut single " Skinny Genes" was released on 12 April 2010, reaching No. 22 in the UK Singles Chart. She told
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 ...
's
Steve Lamacq Stephen Paul Lamacq (born 16 October 1964), sometimes known by his nickname Lammo (given to him by John Peel), is an English disc jockey, currently working with BBC Radio 6 Music. Lamacq was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire ( ...
the song is "a funny scenario if you didn't like someone, if they were really annoying, but you had a good time under the sheets." Eliza's second release " Pack Up" was released on 5 July 2010, reaching No. 5 on the Official UK Singles Chart on 11 July 2010. In March 2011, she performed at the
South by Southwest South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has conti ...
festival in
Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...
as well at
Coachella Coachella (officially called the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and sometimes known as Coachella Festival) is an annual music festival, music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valle ...
in
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
. In April 2011, Eliza was touring the UK. On 19 April 2011, Eliza's self-titled album was released in the United States almost one year from the UK date. In 2013, Eliza collaborated with
Disclosure Disclosure may refer to: Arts and media Film and television *'' CBC News: Disclosure'', a television newsmagazine series in Canada * ''Disclosure'' (1994 film), an American erotic thriller film based on the 1994 novel by Michael Crichton * ''Dis ...
on the track " You & Me" from their debut album, ''
Settle Settle or SETTLE may refer to: __NOTOC__ Places * Settle, Kentucky, United States, an unincorporated community * Settle, North Yorkshire, a town in England ** Settle Rural District, a historical administrative district Music * Settle (band), an in ...
''. Early that year, she began recording new material for her second album. In an interview with ''
Elle Elle may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Elle (magazine), ''Elle'' (magazine), a fashion publication ** Elle Style Awards * Elle (India), ''Elle'' (India), the Indian edition * Elle (film), ''Elle'' (film), a 2016 French film * ''Elle: ...
'' magazine in April 2013, she stated "I'm definitely showing more of myself than I ever have before. I feel like on my last album, I hadn't experienced very much of anything really, and it's been three years or more since then and I have felt and seen things I hadn't before, and I know things I didn't know before. In a way I have answers to questions, but then those answers open up a thousand other questions. I guess I've gone through things that so many people go through at the age I am. I've written almost every day about my every thought and emotion and the album is made up of the songs that mean the most to me".


2013–2016: ''In Your Hands''

On 7 June 2013, she premiered a new single called " Big When I Was Little", which was released in July 2013. It subsequently joined
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 Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...
's playlist, and features on her second studio album. On 17 June 2013 the video for the single premiered on her YouTube channel. Eliza and UK garage artist Wookie wrote a song called "The Hype" in 2013. Wookie contributed a remix to her album ''In Your Hands'' for her track "Walking on Water". She featured on "YNSP", a track from hip hop artist
Vic Mensa Victor Kwesi Mensah (born June 6, 1993), known professionally as Vic Mensa, is an American rapper. Born and raised in Chicago, he was a member of the regional hip hop groups Kids These Days (band), Kids These Days and Savemoney prior to releasing ...
's '' Innanetape'' mixtape produced by
DJ Dahi Dacoury Dahi Natche (born March 10, 1983), known professionally as DJ Dahi or simply Dahi, is an American record producer, songwriter, disc jockey and singer from Inglewood, California. Working primarily in hip hop and R&B music, he has been ...
. She had a cameo role as a
nightclub singer A nightclub act is a production, usually of nightclub music or comedy, designed for performance at a nightclub, a type of drinking establishment, by a nightclub performer such as a nightclub singer or nightclub dancer, whose performance may ...
in '' The Great Train Robbery'', a drama series on
BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...
in December 2013. In 2014, Eliza was invited by
Burt Bacharach Burt Freeman Bacharach ( ; May 12, 1928 â€“ February 8, 2023) was an American composer, songwriter, record producer, and pianist who is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential figures of 20th-century popular music. Start ...
to sing with him at
Henley Festival The Henley Festival of Music and the Arts is held, at Henley on Thames, each July, on the Berkshire bank of the River Thames, at the same spot and using adapted facilities from the Henley Royal Regatta, which is held the week before. The festiva ...
in the summer of 2014.


2016: Rebrand, ''A Real Romantic'' and ''A Sky Without Stars''

In 2017, she rebranded her name from Eliza Doolittle to Eliza and changed her sound. On 12 December 2018, her album ''A Real Romantic'' was released. In 2022, Eliza released a couple of new singles ("Straight Talker" and "Heat of the Moon") after signing to IASs Different Recordings and a new album, ''A Sky Without Stars'', was announced. ''A Sky without Stars'' received praise and acclaim from reviewers. Dom Taylor of R&B website The Pit wrote that the album "let the music lead" and "can be boiled down to an irreplaceable feeling of soul. The foot-tapping, transformative, time-loses-all-meaning kind of soul." Haste magazine's Becca Hemens summarised a live performance by ELIZA following the release of the album as "An Enigmatic and Sensual Performance for an Album of Melodic Reinvention and Feminine Power" and was struck by the "aura of mystique" in ELIZA's performance.


Discography


Studio albums


Extended plays


Singles


As lead artist


Promotional singles


As featured artist


Music videos


Filmography


References


Footnotes


Sources


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Eliza 1988 births Living people Parlophone artists Singers from the City of Westminster People educated at Bedales School English soul singers English women pop singers English people of Canadian descent 21st-century English women singers 21st-century English singers British indie pop musicians People from Westminster