Rock On The Net: Tracy Chapman Info Page (original) (raw)

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ROCK ON THE NET: Tracy Chapman BIRTHDAY: March 30, 1964 BIGGEST POP SINGLE: "Give Me One Reason" (1996) BIGGEST LP:Tracy Chapman (1988) GRAMMY AWARDS: 4 VH1: '100 Greatest Women of Rock & Roll': 54 "We're at a place right now, approaching the new century where we could find new solutions to old problems that are still plaguing society." - Tracy Chapman, 1996 Tracy Chapman was born March 20, 1964, in Cleveland, Ohio. In her childhood, Tracy learned to play the ukulele, the piano, and eventually the guitar and started writing her own songs. She attended a private school in Connecticut after receiving a scholarship and then Tufts University in Boston after winning a minority placement scholarship. While studying African culture and anthropology at Tufts, Tracy began performing her folk sound at local coffeehouses on the streets of Harvard Square. She recorded some demos that eventually made their way to the right people, and Tracy singed with Elektra Records in 1987. An important musical artist had emerged from the ashes of the 80s. In 80s, when the pop radio airwaves were filled with synthesizers and video-generated pop stars, Tracy emerged with her debut LP filled with a raw, calming folk sound that was welcomed by music fans. Her subtle lyrics and sound made her a hit with critics, and her landmark single "Fast Car" introduced her to a legion of fans. Tracy has a knack for singing about a disenfranchised environment with an overtone of ultimate optimism for change. April 5: Tracy released Tracy Chapman. The LP was applauded for its potent lyrics and simple melodies. Tracy reminded the Reagan-era, pop-culture that life wasn't carefree for everyone. The first single, "Fast Car" became a Top 10 smash. Her debut LP went on to sell over 6 million copies in the U.S. (10 million world-wide) and also contained the tracks classic Tracy-anthem, "Talkin' 'Bout A Revolution" and Top 40, "Baby Can I Hold You." Tracy was invited on many touring performances and appeared at the Freedomfest concert for Nelson Mandela and Amnesty International's tour. June 22: Tracy Chapman was certified gold. July 9: Tracy hit the ARC Weekly Top 40 with "Fast Car." July 27: Tracy Chapman was certified platinum. August 13: Tracy hit the Top 10 with "Fast Car." August 27: Tracy topped the Billboard 200 LP chart for 1 week with Tracy Chapman. September 22: Tracy graced the cover ofRolling Stone. September 27: Tracy Chapman was certified 2x platinum. December 31: Tracy hit the ARC Weekly Top 40 with "Baby Can I Hold You." January 30: Tracy won an American Music Award for Favorite Pop/Rock New Artist and was nominated for Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist. February 22: Tracy took home 3 Grammy Awards for Best New Artist, Best Vocal Performance - Female ("Fast Car"), and Best Contemporary Folk Recording (Tracy Chapman) and was nominated for Album of the Year (Tracy Chapman), Record of the Year and Song of the Year (songwriter) ("Fast Car"). March 29: Tracy Chapman was certified 3x platinum. September 6: The video for "Fast Car" was nominated for a MTV Video Music Award for Best Female Video. October 3: Tracy released Crossroads. The LP was also applauded by critics, but seemed too political and darker for radio. November 21: Crossroads was certified platinum. February 22: Tracy was nominated for aGrammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Recording (Crossroads). April 28: Tracy released Matters Of The Heart, which was also not very successful with record buyers. Critics of Tracy's new LP were also mixed in their praise of the music. The track "Bang Bang Bang" was one of the more popular songs on the LP. November 14: Tracy returned to the spotlight with the LP, New Beginning. Tracy described the theme of the LP as "change, growth, and renewal" which many felt also represented her career in music. New Beginninggave Tracy her first #1 pop hit, "Give Me One Reason." The LP also contains the favorites, "Smoke And Ashes," "I'm Ready," and "The Promise." March 22: New Beginning was certified gold. April 13: Tracy returned to the ARC Weekly Top 40 with "Give Me One Reason." May 3: New Beginning was certified platinum. May 4: Tracy hit the Top 10 with "Give Me One Reason." June 22: Tracy hit #1 for 3 weeks on the ARC Weekly Top 40with "Give Me One Reason." June 29: Tracy topped the Billboard Adult Top 40 chart for 8 weeks with "Give Me One Reason." July 9: New Beginning was certified 2x platinum. August 19: Tracy Chapman was certified 4x platinum. August 27: New Beginning was certified 4x platinum. September 4: The video for "Give Me One Reason" was nominated for a MTV Video Music Award for Best Female Video. February 26: Tracy took home another Grammy Award for Best Rock Song (songwriter) ("Give Me One Reason") and was nominated for Best Rock Vocal Performance - Female, Record of the Year and Song of the Year ("Give Me One Reason"), and Best Pop Album (New Beginning). Tracy toured with the successful Lilith Fair tour throughout North America. December 10:Tracy continued her support of Amnesty International at a concert held in France which also included Bruce Springsteen, Alanis Morissette, Radiohead, Peter Gabriel, Shania Twain, Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, and Youssou N'dour. The concert was held to mark the 50th anniversary of the United Nation's Universal Declaration of Human Rights. February 14: Tracy released Telling Stories. February 19: Tracy hit the Top 40 on the ARC Weekly Top 40with the "Telling Stories." May 5: Telling Stories was certified gold. November 15: Tracy Chapman was certified 6x platinum, New Beginning was certified 5x platinum, and Matters Of The Heart was certified gold. October 15: Tracy released Let It Rain with the first single "You're The One." September 13: Tracy released Where You Live. November 11: Tracy released Our Bright Future. January 31: Tracy was nominated for aGrammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album (Our Bright Future). November 20: Tracy released Greatest Hits. July 1: Tracy made chart history when the remake of her classic "Fast Car" was covered by country singerLuke Combs and topped the Billboard Country Airplay chart - the first black female to top the chart. Tracy told Billboard "I never expected to find myself on the country charts, but I'm honore to be there. I'm happy for Luke and his success and grateful that new fans have found and embraced "Fast Car"." February 17: After a memorable performance at the Grammy Awards with Luke Combs, Tracy topped the Billboard Digital Songs chart for 1 week with "Fast Car." Tracy ChapmanReleased: April 5, 1988 US: 6x Platinum Billboard Top 200 LPs peak: # 1 (for 1 week) Billboard # 1: Top Pop Compact Disk Grammy Winner: Best Contemporary Folk Recording Grammy Nominee: Album of the Year Rolling Stone: Rolling Stone: '500 Greatest Albums of All-Time': # 261 Rolling Stone: '50 Essential 'Woman In Rock' Albums': # 28 Tracks: "Talkin' Bout A Revolution" - "Fast Car" - "Across The Lines" - "Behind The Wall" - "Baby Can I Hold You" - "Mountains O' Things" - "She's Got Her Ticket" - "Why?" - "For My Lover" - "If Not Now" - "For You" CrossroadsReleased: October 3, 1989 US: Platinum Billboard Top 200 LPs peak: # 9 Grammy Nominee: Best Contemporary Folk Recording Rolling Stone: Tracks: "Crossroads" - "Bridges" - "Freedom Now" - "Material World" - "Be Careful Of My Heart" - "Subcity" - "Born To Fight" - "A Hundred Years" - "This Time" - "All That You Have Is Your Soul" Matters Of The HeartReleased: April 28, 1992 US: Gold Billboard Top 200 LPs peak: # 53 Rolling Stone: - Entertainment Weekly:A- Tracks: "Bang Bang Bang" - "So" - "I Used To Be A Sailor" - "Love That You Had" - "Woman's Work" - "If These Are The Things" - "Short Supply" - "Dreaming On A World" - "Open Arms" - "Matters Of The Heart" New BeginningReleased: November 14, 1995 US: 5x Platinum Billboard Top 200 LPs peak: # 4 Grammy Nominee: Best Pop Album Rolling Stone: - Entertainment Weekly: B Tracks: "Heaven's Here On Earth" - "New Beginning" - "Smoke And Ashes" - "Cold Feet" - "At This Point In My Life" - "The Promise" - "The Rape Of The World" - "Tell It Like It Is" - "Give Me One Reason" - "Remember The Tinman" - "I'm Ready" Telling StoriesReleased: February 14, 2000 US: Gold Billboard Top 200 LPs peak: # 33 Rolling Stone: Tracks: "Telling Stories" - "Less Than Strangers" - "Speak The Word" - "It's OK" - "Wedding Song" - "Unsung Psalm" - "Nothing Yet" - "Paper & Ink" - "Devotion" - "The Only One" - "First Try" Let It RainReleased: October 15, 2002 Billboard Top 200 LPs peak: # 25 Rolling Stone: - Entertainment Weekly: B Tracks: "Let It Rain" - "Another Sun" - "You're The One" - "In The Dark" - "Almost" - "Hard Wired" - "Say Hallelujah" - "Broken" - "Happy" - "Goodbye" - "Over In Love" - "I Am Yours" Where You LiveReleased: September 13, 2005 Billboard Top 200 LPs peak: # 49 Tracks: "Change" - "Talk To You" - "3,000 Miles" - "Going Back" - "Don't Dwell" - "Never Yours" - "America" - "Love's Proof" - "Before Easter" - "Taken" - "Be And Be Not Afraid" Our Bright FutureReleased: November 11, 2008 Billboard Top 200 LPs peak: # 57 Grammy Nominee: Best Contemporary Folk Recording Tracks: "Sing For You" - "I Did It All" - "Save Us All" - "Our Bright Future" - "For A Dream" - "Thinking Of You" - "A Theory" - "Conditional" - "Something To See (No War)" - "The First Person On Earth" - "Spring" Greatest HitsReleased: November 20, 2015 Billboard Top 200 LPs peak: # 105 Tracks: "Telling Stories" - "Baby Can I Hold You" - "Change" - "The Promise" - "Open Arms" - "Subcity" - "Fast Car" - "Bang Bang Bang" - "Crossroads" - "Speak The Word" - "Smoke And Ashes" - "Sing For You" - "You're The One" - "Save Us All" - "All That You Have Is Your Soul" - "Talkin' 'Bout A Revolution" - "Give Me One Reason" - "Stand By Me" (live)

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