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Corinne Bailey Rae: Rising star who shuns the limelight
Leeds-based singer Corinne Bailey Rae has won both commercial success and critical acclaim since she made her chart debut in late 2005.
The singer-songwriter, who has been compared by some to Billie Holiday, has achieved platinum sales, numerous British awards and three Grammy nominations.
The 29-year-old released her self-titled debut album two years ago, becoming only the fourth female British act in music history to reach the top of the charts with a first album.
Despite her profile, she has remained out of the gossip columns whilst much has been made of her choirgirl and jazz club background.
The eldest of three daughters born to a Yorkshire mother and West Indian father, Bailey Rae grew up playing the violin at school and singing in church.
In her late teens she formed an indie band called Helen with her friends, was made head girl at school and went on to take a degree in English Literature at Leeds University.
She took a job as a cloakroom attendant at a Leeds jazz club, taking to the stage when the venue wasn't busy and writing her own music.
It was at the club that she met Jason Rae, a saxophonist, whom she married in 2001 when she was 22.
She recently said of her marriage: "When I got married, I felt like I was older in my head.
"I knew Jason was the right one for a mixture of reasons. I really liked him, and I think that's a good place to start from.
"And I really liked hanging around with him. With Jason it was like I couldn't see enough of him."
His band, the Haggis Horns, are described on their Myspace page as "an eight-piece live funk extravaganza".
The group has performed and recorded with top artists including Amy Winehouse, Mark Ronson and Bailey Rae herself.
Ronson has called them the "best horn section in the world", according to the website of the band's record company, First Word Records.
They released their debut album, Hot Damn!, last September.
Bailey Rae has spoken of how her marriage inspired her songwriting, saying previously: "I focus on the fact that it's not all just warm and fluffy feelings and that it's work.
"It's great to argue with someone and know that there's a real commitment underneath it all - it's not about slamming doors and walking away, but about working things out. I do write a lot about love, I guess, from all these different angles, because it's a complicated thing and I think it's worth a couple of songs."
She continued: "I feel really lucky that I found someone that I want to spend my life with at such an early age. It's great. We're both musicians and we have a lot of friends and feel part of a community - we're not just watching TV on our own together like a lot of people, so I think it's cool."
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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