Wynter Gordon
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Diana Gordon, formerly known as Wynter Gordon (born August 25, 1985), is an American singer and songwriter. She began her career writing music for other artists, later signing with
Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...
where she started to work on her own album. Her debut album '' With the Music I Die'' was released in 2011, with its lead single " Dirty Talk" receiving triple platinum and platinum certifications in Australia and the United Kingdom respectively, and topping the
ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...
in the former country. She began going by her birth name in 2016, and released the extended plays ''Pure'' (2018) and ''Wasted Youth'' (2020) Gordon has co-written and performed backing vocals on many popular songs including " Sorry" by
Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman. With a career spanning over three decades, she has established herself as one of the most Cultural impact of Beyoncé, ...
, "
Electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter possessing an electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by Maxwel ...
" by Silk City and
Dua Lipa Dua Lipa ( ; born22 August 1995) is an English and Albanian singer, songwriter and actress. List of awards and nominations received by Dua Lipa, Her accolades include seven Brit Awards and three Grammy Awards. Lipa worked as a model before v ...
, and "
Bad Habit A bad habit is a behaviour pattern perceived as negative. Common examples include: procrastination, overspending and nail-biting. Development Research on habit formation generally suggests an individual can acquire a new habit on average over ...
" by
Steve Lacy Steve Thomas Lacy-Moya (born May 23, 1998) is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and record producer. He gained recognition as the guitarist of the alternative R&B band the Internet, which he joined in 2015. His self-produced debut EP, '' ...
. Most recently, she provided vocals for several tracks on
Lil Yachty Miles Parks McCollum (born August 23, 1997), known professionally as Lil Yachty, is an American rapper. He first gained recognition in August 2015 for his viral hit "One Night (Lil Yachty song), One Night", the lead single from his debut extend ...
's
psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...
album ''
Let's Start Here ''Let's Start Here'' is the fifth studio album by the American rapper Lil Yachty, released on January 27, 2023, through Motown and Quality Control Music. The album was recorded over the course of six months between 2021 and 2022, with sessions ...
'' (2023).


Early life

Diana Gordon was born on August 25, 1985 in
Queens, New York City Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...
, and was brought up in
South Jamaica South Jamaica (also commonly known as "Southside") is a residential neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens. It is located south of downtown Jamaica. Although a proper border has not been established, the neighborhood is a subsectio ...
, where she was the middle child of six siblings. Gordon began singing at a young age. She and her siblings would perform together in church. It was during high school that Gordon decided that she was going to pursue a music career. She was later accepted to the Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts and interned at a record company. Gordon wrote her first complete song, "Daddy's Song", at the age of 15. She has described song writing as an "escape from poverty"


Career


2004–2010: Career beginnings

Gordon worked closely with the producer D'Mile since 2004; her first track to fame, "Gonna Breakthrough", written by Gordon and produced by D'Mile, was used as the title track to
Mary J. Blige Mary Jane Blige ( ; born January 11, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, actress, and entrepreneur. Often referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Hip-Hop Soul" and "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Qu ...
's 2005 album ''
The Breakthrough ''The Breakthrough'' is the seventh studio album by American singer Mary J. Blige. It was released by Geffen Records on December 20, 2005. Initially expected to be released in 2006, it switched release dates with Blige's first greatest hits albu ...
''. Soon after, Wynter was given an opportunity to sign with
Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...
, through Don Pooh Music Group, where she began work on her debut album in 2004. In 2008, Gordon wrote two tracks for
Danity Kane Danity Kane is an American music group whose most recent line-up consisted of Aubrey O'Day, Dawn Richard, and Shannon Bex. The group originally had five members, but D. Woods, Wanita "D. Woods" Woodgett left the group in 2008, and Aundrea Fimbre ...
's second album ''
Welcome to the Dollhouse ''Welcome to the Dollhouse'' is a 1995 American coming-of-age black comedy film written and directed by Todd Solondz. An independent film, it won the Grand Jury Prize at the 1996 Sundance Film Festival and launched the careers of Solondz and H ...
'', "2 of You" and "Do Me Good". She co-wrote the single "
Sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose Glucose is a sugar with the Chemical formula#Molecular formula, molecul ...
", a track that she was featured on with rapper
Flo Rida Tramar Lacel Dillard (born September 16, 1979), known professionally as Flo Rida ( ), is an American rapper and singer. His 2007 debut and breakout single "Low (Flo Rida song), Low" was number one for 10 weeks in the United States and broke the ...
on his album '' R.O.O.T.S.'' (2009) after laying down a reference vocal. The track became an international hit and peaked at number five on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Gordon also co-wrote and sang on the dance track "Toyfriend" from French DJ
David Guetta Pierre David Guetta (; born 7 November 1967) is a French DJ and record producer. He has sold over 10 million albums and 65 million singles globally, with more than 30 billion streams on Spotify. Guetta was voted the number one DJ in the DJ Mag ...
's album '' One Love'' (2009). She worked closely with
Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Lopez (born July 24, 1969), also known by her nickname J.Lo, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, dancer and businesswoman. Lopez is regarded as one of the most influential entertainers of her time, credited with breaking ...
, writing four tracks including "What Is Love", "What Is Love Part II", "Starting Over" and "Everybody's Girl" for her seventh studio album '' Love?'' (2011).


2011–2013: ''With the Music I Die'' and ''Human Condition'' EPs

Gordon released her debut album, '' With the Music I Die'', on June 17, 2011. The lead single from the album, " Dirty Talk", topped the US
Hot Dance Club Songs The Dance Club Songs (also known as National Disco Action, Hot Dance/Disco Club Play, and Hot Dance Club Play) was a chart published weekly between 1976 and 2020 by ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. It used club disc jockeys set list ...
. "Dirty Talk" also topped the charts in
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, where it was certified 3× Platinum. The song was released in the UK and
Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
on February 18, 2011, where it peaked at No. 25 in the UK and No. 8 in Ireland. The song spent a total of eleven weeks inside the UK Top 40. The second single, " Til Death", peaked at No. 3 on the US
Hot Dance Club Songs The Dance Club Songs (also known as National Disco Action, Hot Dance/Disco Club Play, and Hot Dance Club Play) was a chart published weekly between 1976 and 2020 by ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. It used club disc jockeys set list ...
chart, and No. 16 on the
ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...
. The album later produced a further two singles, " Buy My Love" and "Still Getting Younger". In August 2011, Wynter began a two-month stint as the supporting act for
Patrick Stump Patrick Martin Stumph (born April 27, 1984), known professionally as Patrick Vaughn Stump, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Rock music, rock band Fall Out Boy ...
's second US tour. On June 20, 2012, she premiered a new song, "Stimela", the first promotional single from her collection of ''Human Condition'' extended plays, which she decided to self-release to avoid label control. The first EP, ''Human Condition: Doleo'', was released on July 9, 2012. The second EP, ''Human Condition: Sanguine'', was released on January 15, 2013.


2011–2015: The Righteous Young and ''Five Needle'' EP

In early 2014, Gordon formed a quintet called The Righteous Young, of which she is the lead singer. However, she clarified in a Q&A on Facebook that The Righteous Young does not mean the end of Wynter Gordon as a solo act, but is rather an extension of her own music. "The Righteous Young is my band ... My music, WYNTER and THE RIGHTEOUS YOUNG". She released her first single with The Righteous Young, "Everything Burns", on June 3, 2014. The music video, directed by Harrison Boyce, was exclusively released on
Idolator An idolator is a practitioner of idolatry. Idolator or Idolater may also refer to: * Idolator (website), an American music blog * ''Idolator'' (album), a 2005 album by Blood Stain Child * ''Idolator'', a 1986 album by Ole Evenrud * "Idolater", a ...
and
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on the same day. Wynter embarked on a tour with the band in July 2014, and they were revealed to have been working on their first album alongside producer
Mike Elizondo Michael A. Elizondo Jr. (born October 22, 1972) is an American producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. A protégé of Dr. Dre, Elizondo has worked with 50 Cent, Eminem, Linkin Park, Carrie Underwood, Fiona Apple, Mastodon, Ry Cooder ...
, however, no further music ever eventuated. On July 29, a new solo Wynter track, "The Hard Way", was released on Kitty Cash's "Love the Free Vol. II" mixtape. The song was later released as a promotional single from the mixtape, with a music video being released on April 23, 2015. On May 5, 2015, Wynter released "Bleeding Out", the lead single from her ''Five Needle'' EP. The EP itself was later released on June 2, 2015.


2016: Co-writing and producing with Beyoncé

On April 23, 2016, Beyoncé released her sixth album ''
Lemonade Lemonade is a sweetened lemon-flavored drink. There are many varieties of lemonade found throughout the world. In some parts of the world, lemonade refers to an un-carbonated, traditionally, homemade drink, using lemon juice, water, and a sw ...
'' featuring several tracks where Diana Gordon (credited with her real name, and not her stage name) received a writing and producing credit, including " Don't Hurt Yourself" (which also samples
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...
's "
When the Levee Breaks "When the Levee Breaks" is a country blues song written and first recorded by Memphis Minnie and Kansas Joe McCoy in 1929. The lyrics reflect experiences during the upheaval caused by the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927. "When the Levee Brea ...
"), " Sorry", and " Daddy Lessons". A few months after the release of Lemonade, on July 22, 2016, Gordon announced that she was no longer using her stage name Wynter Gordon. Instead, she decided to be going by her birth name, Diana Gordon. On July 25, 2016, Diana Gordon shared her first single under her own name, "The Legend Of". Her first EP released under her own name and titled, ''Pure'', was released on August 3, 2018. In a
capsule review A capsule review or mini reviewThe Word, 1976, issue 12, page 1Google Books/ref> is a form of appraisal, usually associated with journalism, that offers a relatively short critique of a specified creative work (movie, music album, restaurant, pain ...
for ''
Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, Habit (psychology), habit or item generally considered morally wrong in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character trait, a defect, an infirmity, or a bad or unhe ...
'',
Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became a ...
gave the EP a three-star honorable mention () and summed it up as "five proofs of a Beyoncé cowriter's hard-won, unembittered self-reliance—too modest to be 'inspirational,' and stronger for it"; the tracks "Wolverine" and "Too Young" were cited as highlights. On April 3, 2020, Gordon released a new eight track EP called ''Wasted Youth'' featuring acoustic versions of "Rollin" and "Once A Friend."


Discography

* '' With the Music I Die'' (2011)


Awards and nominations


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gordon, Diana Living people 21st-century American singer-songwriters 21st-century American women singers African-American women singer-songwriters American women singer-songwriters American dance musicians American women pop singers American hip-hop singers American house musicians American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters American women in electronic music Singers from New York City Musicians from Queens, New York People from Jamaica, Queens Atlantic Records artists 1985 births 21st-century African-American women singers 20th-century African-American musicians Singer-songwriters from New York (state) 20th-century African-American women