Date of Birth: February 21, 1986 Place of Birth: Cardiff, Wales (UK) Place of Residence: LLandaff, Wales
Being an "angel" at the age of 12 is divine. But angelic status at 14 is neither wicked nor cool. Just ask Charlotte Church.
"Wicked" and "cool" are currently the favourite words of the world's most successful soprano, but the "angel" tag -- earned thanks to her staggeringly successful 1998 debut album "Voice of an Angel" -- does not go down too well with her school friends.
"Me? An angel!" chuckles Charlotte. "Just ask my mum about that."
Two years is a long time in the career of a Cardiff schoolgirl. Since Charlotte's astounding voice first shook the classical music world, her albums -- "Voice Of Angel" and Charlotte Church" -- have sold in excess of 6 million copies worldwide. And now a third album, "Dream A Dream" is set to be released on 20th November.
Charlotte's new album of festive songs was recorded at Air Studios with the London Symphony Orchestra. Most of the tracks -- including "Little Drummer Boy", "Mary's Boy Child" and "Winter Wonderland" -- were recorded during the summer but Charlotte recalls: "We decorated the whole studio beforehand so it felt like Christmas. Every time I finished a song I was allowed to take a present from the tree. It was wicked."
The title track of the new album is a duet with 12-year-old American singing sensation Billy Gilman. "Billy is amazing", says Charlotte "and the track is wicked".
Charlotte refers frequently to her "friends". By that she does not mean George Michael, Elton John, the Spice Girls, Will Smith, David Bowie, Danny DeVito, All Saints, Kiri Te Kanawa , President and Mrs Clinton, The Prince of Wales and Pope John Paul II -- though she has indeed met and befriended all of them on her world travels. She means her friends at home in Cardiff, mostly at the all-girl school she attends when she's not on the road.
"My friends are all absolutely wicked, really cool. They help me keep some reality in my life, and there's no jealousy at all." She does find, inevitably, that people around her can't help from auditioning for their own slice of fame. "I find people start humming and singing when they're near me -- they think I can get them a record contract too!"
Charlotte inevitably spends time out of school -- but has a tutor when she is on the road -- three hours a day. She says Geography is her best subject, which is not surprising since she has experienced a lot of it firsthand. She's been to New York six times and Los Angeles three times.
Not to mention singing for the Pope at the Vatican, the Clintons in Washington, and -- closer to home -- for the Queen at the opening of the Welsh Assembly in Cardiff and the Prince of Wales at his 50th party in London.
It all began when she performed "Pie Jesu" on TV's "Talking Telephone Numbers" in 1997 at the age of 11. Sony Music UK Chairman and Chief Executive Paul Burger signed Charlotte on the spot to a multi-album deal within minutes of her first visit to his office.
"Voice of an Angel" made Charlotte the youngest artist ever to have a No 1 album in the UK classical charts, and also the youngest to have a top 5 hit in the UK album charts. That triumph was echoed in the US, where Charlotte became the youngest solo artist ever to achieve a Top 30 album in the US charts.
Charlotte admits that at times she wishes she could be a normal schoolgirl again. " But it passes quickly, and I really do appreciate how lucky I am," says the vocal prodigy who was voted "Artist of the Year" at the first Annual Classical Brits Awards in May this year.
Success has bred more success for Charlotte. She appeared at the last MTV Awards in New York, starred in an American TV hit show "Touched by an Angel", sung at the closing ceremony of the Rugby World Cup and made her acting debut in TV's "Heartbeat".
Charlotte entertains a balanced life. "In certain ways I've had to grow up quite quickly, but no one has forced me to do this. It's what I want. My parents tell me all the time that I can stop if I want to."
