Foxes (singer)

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Foxes
Foxes at Sommarkrysset in 2014
Foxes at Sommarkrysset in 2014
Background information
Birth nameLouisa Rose Allen
Also known asLou, Loui Rose[1][2]
Born (1989-04-29) 29 April 1989 (age 34)
Southampton, Hampshire, England
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • model
Instrument(s)
  • Vocals
  • guitar
  • piano
Years active2011–present
Labels
Websiteiamfoxes.com

Louisa Rose Allen (born 29 April 1989), known professionally as Foxes, is an English singer, songwriter, and model.[8] After her debut single "Youth" was noticed by Zedd in 2012, she was featured on the song "Clarity", which peaked at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 and won a Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording. She has since released three albums: Glorious (2014), All I Need (2016), The Kick (2022) as well as two EPs: Warrior (2012) and Friends in the Corner (2021). She has achieved commercial success with the singles "Youth", "Let Go for Tonight", "Holding onto Heaven", "Body Talk", and "Amazing".

Early life and education

Allen was born in Southampton, Hampshire and grew up in the city's Swaythling and St Denys areas. She attended St Denys Primary School, Cantell School, and Eastleigh College.[9] She began to write music when she was 14 years old and was a finalist in a local talent competition in 2009.[9] At 18 years old she considered training as a beauty therapist, however her sister persuaded her to move to London to pursue her singing ambitions.[10] She attended the Institute of Contemporary Music Performance but dropped out, preferring to write and perform music than study it.[11][12]

Career

2011–2014: Warrior and Glorious

Allen devised a stage name to differentiate herself from British pop singer Lily Allen. She considered the alias Foxes after a suggestion from a friend, the first song she had written being titled "Like Foxes Do"; her mother then told her that she had a dream the previous night "about these foxes running up our street and they were howling and making these beautiful noises", which she said reminded her of her daughter's music. Allen chose Foxes based on this connection.[13] She began performing gigs as Foxes in London in 2011.[9]

Foxes released her debut single, "Youth", in January 2012 on Neon Gold Records,[14][15] and the following month was signed to Sign of the Times, a Simon Fuller-owned UK imprint of Sony Music Entertainment.[16] "Youth" and its B-side, "Home", were featured in the American television series Gossip Girl and an EP, Warrior (produced by Samuel Dixon, also known as Sam Kennedy), followed in July 2012, which Foxes promoted with a US tour.[17][18][19] Paste magazine described Warrior as "a beautifully ethereal EP that warrants all sorts of comparisons, but equally manages to stand on its own two feet",[20] while PopMatters wrote that it was "a powerful, well-rounded set" and Consequence of Sound introduced the singer as "[i]f Florence Welch and Katy Perry had a beautiful, brunette love child".[21][22] Later in 2012, Foxes toured with Marina and the Diamonds on her Lonely Hearts Club Tour and released a second single, "Echo".[12]

Foxes in 2016

"Youth" caught the attention of dance producer Zedd, who invited Foxes to feature on his song "Clarity".[23] "Clarity" was released as a single in late 2012 and became a major hit during 2013, reaching number eight on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Hot Dance Club Songs.[24] The song was certified double platinum in Australia, platinum in the United States,[25][26] and gold in the United Kingdom, where it reached number 27 on the UK Singles Chart. At the 56th Annual Grammy Awards, Zedd and Foxes won the award for Best Dance Recording.[10] Also in 2013, Foxes was featured on Fall Out Boy's song "Just One Yesterday" from their album Save Rock and Roll, on the Rudimental single "Right Here" (a top 20 hit in the United Kingdom) and on the Sub Focus track "Until the End", from his album Torus.

Foxes' "teaser" single "Beauty Queen" was released in May 2013, followed by a US re-release of "Youth" in August 2013 after Foxes signed to RCA Records in the country.[23][27][28] In the United Kingdom, "Youth" reached number 12 on the singles chart in October 2013, concurrent to the song's use in a high profile advertising campaign for retailer Debenhams.[29][30][31] During late 2013, Foxes embarked on a headline tour of the United Kingdom.[9] A newly recorded version of "Let Go for Tonight", a track previously featured on the Warrior EP, was released as a single in February 2014, charting in the United Kingdom at number seven—Foxes' first top ten hit.[29]

On 17 April 2014, Foxes appeared on BBC Radio 1's Innuendo Bingo.[32] Foxes' debut album, Glorious, was released in May 2014 following the single "Holding onto Heaven" (number 14), and debuted at number five on the UK Albums Chart.[29] A fourth single, "Glorious", followed in August 2014 and was used in an ITV advertising campaign promoting the network's autumn season of programmes.[33] During September and October 2014, Foxes served as the opening act for R&B musician Pharrell's Dear Girl Tour, playing to arenas across Europe.[11] Pharrell personally offered a support slot to Foxes after hearing her cover of his hit single "Happy" for Radio 1's Live Lounge;[34] Foxes later accused producers of the televised singing competition The X Factor for copying her arrangement of "Happy" for a performance of the song by contestant Lauren Platt, as both versions interpolated the Massive Attack song "Teardrop".[35][36][37] Also in October, Foxes was featured in the eighth series of the BBC science fiction series Doctor Who, performing Queen's "Don't Stop Me Now" in the episode "Mummy on the Orient Express".[38][39] In December, Foxes toured the United Kingdom once again as a headliner.[34]

2015–2019: All I Need and four-year hiatus

Foxes stated in a late 2014 interview that she had commenced work on her second album.[34] She also collaborated with veteran dance producer Giorgio Moroder on his 2015 solo album, Déjà Vu, featuring on the track "Wildstar".[40] In subsequent interviews, Foxes announced that the album was titled All I Need and she hoped to release it in late 2015.[41] Recording sessions took place in America, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.[42][43]

All I Need was released on 5 February 2016.[44] The album's first single, "Body Talk", was released in July 2015 and reached number 25 on the UK Singles Chart.[29][45] Foxes debuted the track during a one-day tour of seven UK cities that earned her an entry to the Guinness World Records for the title of "most live concerts in 12 hours in multiple cities".[46] The album's track listing and the video for the song "Feet Don't Fail Me Now" were also released in July.[47][48] The second single, "Better Love", was released in September 2015.[49] After that Foxes embarked on a headline UK tour, supported by Izzy Bizu.[50] The third single "Amazing" was released on 4 December 2015. "Amazing" was used by ITV in an advertsiment to promote their Christmas programming. Foxes featured on Kygo's track "Oasis" from his album Cloud Nine, which was released on 13 May 2016. "Cruel" was released as the fourth single from All I Need on 19 April 2016 with an accompanying music video released on the same date. In the same month, Foxes was announced to be one of the supporting acts of British alternative rock band Coldplay in the European and North American legs of their A Head Full of Dreams Tour, alongside Alessia Cara.[51]

In March 2017, ITV used Foxes' song "Scar" to promote Grantchester's third series.[52] She performed at the Indonesian Television Awards on 20 September 2017, performing songs including "Better Love", "Let Go For Tonight", and "Clarity".[53] In February 2018, Foxes teased of new music saying, "Thank you for your patience with this next record... I will be releasing new music this year and I can't wait to share it with you".[54]

2020–present: Friends in the Corner EP and The Kick

On 15 May 2020, Foxes teased new music on her social media platforms by sharing three videos, one each day, which consisted of her asking a question. The videos were accompanied by a phone number one could ring to answer the question.[55][56][57] The lead single from her upcoming project, "Love Not Loving You", was released on 20 May 2020, marking her first song release in four years.[58][59] On the same day, it was revealed that Foxes had signed a new record deal with PIAS Recordings; it made the single her first release on the label.[60] On 29 July 2020, the second single, "Woman", was released.[61][62] It was followed by the third and fourth singles, "Friends in the Corner" and "Hollywood" which were released on 2 September 2020 and 4 December 2020 respectively.[63][64] The latter was described as a "cathartic experience" by Clash magazine.[65]

On 17 March 2021, Foxes released the single "Kathleen" and announced the release of her second EP Friends in the Corner, which would include all previously released singles and an additional two new songs.[66] The EP was released on 1 April 2021.[67]

Her third studio album, The Kick, was released on 11 February 2022, which included the single "Sister Ray", released in September 2021.[68]

Artistry

Fashion

In 2013, Foxes appeared in an advertising campaign promoting retailer Debenhams's autumn/winter collection.[30] She compiled a playlist to accompany the London Fashion Week premiere of Markus Lupfer's autumn/winter collection in 2014,[13] and later in the year advertised Adidas's Energy Boost line of running shoes.[69][70][71] For stage outfits on her 2014 tours, Foxes collaborated with fashion brand River Island citing Björk and Patti Smith as inspirations.[72] She fronted the 2015 poster campaign for Fashion Targets Breast Cancer alongside Abbey Clancy, Alice Dellal and Lily Donaldson,[73] and the same year became the face of fashion retailer H&M's H&M Loves Music collection.[74]

Foxes has said that her fashion sense has been influenced by fellow singer Cyndi Lauper and characters in films such as Empire Records (1995) and Romy and Michele's High School Reunion (1997), as well as by grunge fashions and Japanese street fashion.[72][75] In 2014, ASOS.com declared Foxes "a total fashun [sic] muse" and praised her bangs as "great for hairspiration",[76] while Elle referred to the singer as a "fashion maven" and invited her to perform for their ELLE Sessions series.[69][77] Foxes is signed to the modelling agency Premier Models, has appeared in shoots for Vogue and Nylon magazines, and has been dressed for various red carpet events[clarification needed] by Mark Fast, Markus Lupfer, and Miu Miu.[13][76][78]

Discography

Albums

EPs

Tours

Headlining

  • Glorious Tour (2014)
  • All I Need Tour (2015)
  • The Kick Tour (2022)

Supporting act

Awards and nominations

Year Ceremony Category Result Ref.
2013 2013 Video Music Awards Artist to Watch – "Clarity" (with Zedd) Nominated
2014 56th Grammy Awards Best Dance Recording – "Clarity" (with Zedd) Won [79]
2014 Billboard Music Awards Top Dance/Electronic Song – "Clarity" (with Zedd) Nominated
2014 Radio Disney Music Awards Best Musical Collaboration – "Clarity" (with Zedd) Nominated [80]
2014 iHeartRadio Music Awards EDM Song of the Year – "Clarity" (with Zedd) Nominated
2014 ASCAP Pop Awards Most Performed Song – "Clarity" (with Zedd) Won [81]
2014 International Dance Music Awards Best Electro/Progressive House Track – "Clarity" (with Zedd) Nominated [82]
Best Commercial/Pop Dance Track – "Clarity" (with Zedd) Nominated
Best Featured Vocalist Performance – "Clarity" (with Zedd) Nominated
2014 World Music Awards World's Best Song – "Clarity" (with Zedd) Nominated [citation needed]
World's Best Song – "Youth" – Herself Nominated
World's Best Video – "Clarity" (with Zedd) Nominated
World’s Best Female Artist – Herself Nominated
World’s Best Entertainer of the Year – Herself Nominated
World’s Best Live Act – Herself Nominated
Glamour Awards NEXT Breakthrough – Herself Nominated
2015 Popjustice £20 Music Prize Best British Pop Single - "Body Talk" Nominated
2016 Glamour Awards Cointreau British Solo Artist[83] Nominated
2022 Best Art Vinyl Best Vinyl Art - The Kick Nominated [84]

References

  1. ^ The Station Sessions - Loui Rose : Session 7 - Season 4. The Station Sessions. Retrieved 25 October 2015. 1:52: "Hello, I'm Loui Rose"
  2. ^ "cityshowcase.co.uk".
  3. ^ a b Wilkinson, James. "Foxes Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 14 May 2019.
  4. ^ Williamson, Jason. "Polaroids with Foxes". Retrieved 14 May 2019.
  5. ^ "Artists: BMG Music Rights Management". BMG Rights Management.
  6. ^ "Epic Records UK - Foxes". epicrecords.co.uk. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  7. ^ "Foxes | The Official RCA Records Site". Rcarecords.com. Retrieved 23 October 2013.
  8. ^ Lester, Paul (2011) "New Band of the Day: Foxes (No 1,142)", The Guardian, 4 November 2011. Retrieved 4 May 2013
  9. ^ a b c d Churchward, Sally (14 September 2013). "Former Southampton pupil is taking the states by storm". Southern Daily Echo. Retrieved 27 January 2014.
  10. ^ a b John Dingwall (27 April 2014). "Singer Foxes almost missed chance at stardom for a life with nail varnish and make-up". dailyrecord. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  11. ^ a b "Foxes singer and Grammy award winner Louisa Rose Allen talks teaming up with Pharrell and starring in Doctor Who". London Evening Standard. 10 October 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  12. ^ a b "Foxes Talks New EP, Touring, And Working with Zedd | Life+Times". Lifeandtimes.com. 22 October 2012. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  13. ^ a b c "British singer Foxes has gone from unknown to Grammy winner and red-carpet regular in less than a year". The Independent. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  14. ^ "GOLD030: FOXES " Neon Gold Records". Neongoldrecords.com. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  15. ^ Michael Cragg (21 November 2011). "New music: Foxes - Home". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  16. ^ "Foxes signs to Sony". Complete Music Update. 8 February 2012. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  17. ^ Blake, Jimmy (2012) "Neu: Foxes: ‘It Feels A Bit Like A Dream!’", This Is Fake DIY, 15 June 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2013
  18. ^ Hurwitz, Gabrielle (2012) "Lucky Listens: Louisa Rose Allen of Foxes", Lucky, 2 July 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2013
  19. ^ Tadgell, Luke (2012) "Foxes: In Demand!", Gigwise.com, 1 May 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2013
  20. ^ King, Katie (3 July 2012). "Foxes: Warrior :: Music :: Reviews :: Paste". Paste. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  21. ^ "Foxes – Warrior EP - Album Reviews". Consequence of Sound. 6 July 2012. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  22. ^ "Foxes". PopMatters. 26 July 2012. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  23. ^ a b "Foxes: 'I Don't Want To Be That 'Featured' Artist'". Billboard. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  24. ^ "Zedd Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Hot 100". Billboard Hot 100. Retrieved 23 March 2014.
  25. ^ "ARIA Australian Top 50 Singles". 19 October 2013. Archived from the original on 17 March 2014.
  26. ^ "Zedd's Clarity Goes Platinum". 7 July 2013.
  27. ^ "Foxes Signs To RCA Records, Announces 'Youth' EP". Billboard. 12 August 2013. Retrieved 23 October 2013.
  28. ^ "Foxes Releases New Track 'Beauty Queen' Released May 13th 2013". Contactmusic.com. Retrieved 5 July 2013.
  29. ^ a b c d "Foxes". officialcharts.com. Official Charts Company.
  30. ^ a b "Debenhams rethinks spend and adds in-store AR for new season". marketingmagazine.co.uk. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  31. ^ "Shop the TV Ad: Autumn/Winter '13 | Debenhams Blog". Blog.debenhams.com. Archived from the original on 20 October 2014. Retrieved 23 July 2014.
  32. ^ BBC Radio 1 (17 April 2014). "Innuendo Bingo with Foxes" – via YouTube.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  33. ^ "DigitalPianoNews.co.uk - Foxes – Chasing Her Musical Tail". DigitalPianoNews.co.uk. 16 August 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  34. ^ a b c "Final nod to Glorious youth: Foxes on new chapter in 'whirlwind' career". mancunianmatters.co.uk. 9 December 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  35. ^ "Foxes Claims X Factor Lauren Stole Her Song Idea". MTV UK. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  36. ^ "Foxes criticises Lauren Platt's X Factor song choice". Digital Spy. 12 October 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  37. ^ "Foxes accuses X Factor's Lauren Platt of copying her". 4music.com. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  38. ^ "Foxes to appear in new series of Doctor Who". BBC. 29 May 2014. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
  39. ^ "Foxes performs 'Don't Stop Me Now' on board the Orient Express - Doctor Who: Series 8 (2014)". BBC. 11 October 2014. Retrieved 13 October 2014.
  40. ^ "Giorgio Moroder details 'Déjà Vu', his first album in 30 years". DIY. 16 April 2015.
  41. ^ "Foxes: I've won a Grammy but I still help out on my mother's Brick Lane vintage stall". London Evening Standard. 13 April 2015.
  42. ^ Sam Johnson. "Foxes chats with So So Gay". sosogay.co.uk. Archived from the original on 28 July 2015.
  43. ^ Davidson, Amy (4 May 2015). "Foxes shares 10 secrets about her new album: From Tina Turner to giant gongs". digitalspy.co.uk. Hearst Entertainment (UK). Retrieved 15 July 2015.
  44. ^ Sahim, Sarah (9 February 2016). "All I Need". Pitchfork.
  45. ^ "Foxes goes disco noir on new single 'Body Talk'". Digital Spy. 4 June 2015.
  46. ^ Fenes, Victor (1 June 2015). "Foxes most live concerts in 12 hours in multiple cities". Guinness World Records. Archived from the original on 15 July 2015.
  47. ^ "H&M Life - H&M LOVES MUSIC - Upcoming artists and their music videos". hm.com. Archived from the original on 27 October 2015. Retrieved 24 July 2015.
  48. ^ @iamfoxes (28 July 2015). "FULL ALBUM. PRE ORDER COMING SOON!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  49. ^ "Playlist: 10 tracks you need to hear - Janet Jackson, The Libertines, Foxes". Digital Spy. 8 September 2015.
  50. ^ "Foxes UK Tour 2015 with Izzy Bizu". LiveNation.
  51. ^ "Foxes talks whiplash, tattoos and life on the road with Coldplay". BBC News. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  52. ^ "Foxes Scar used in ITV advertisement". 15 April 2017. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  53. ^ "Foxes set to perform at Indonesian Television Awards". YouTube. Retrieved 20 September 2017.
  54. ^ "Foxes new music post". Facebook. Retrieved 13 February 2018.
  55. ^ @iamfoxes (15 May 2020). "Tell me - http://iamfoxes.com" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  56. ^ @iamfoxes (17 May 2020). "I'm listening http://iamfoxes.com" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  57. ^ @iamfoxes (16 May 2020). "Leave your message after the tone http://iamfoxes.com" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  58. ^ "Foxes returns with new single 'Love Not Loving You'". NME. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  59. ^ "Foxes is back, with new single 'Love Not Loving You'". Dork. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  60. ^ "Foxes signs new management and recording deals". CMU. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  61. ^ "Foxes: "Living up to expectations can be difficult"". Marie Claire. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  62. ^ "British star Foxes Shares New Single 'Woman'". ON Magazine. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  63. ^ "FOXES RELEASES NEW SONG 'FRIENDS IN THE CORNER'". DIY. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  64. ^ "Foxes shares huge new dancefloor-filler, 'Friends In The Corner'". NME. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  65. ^ "Foxes Re-visits Painful Memories With New Single 'Hollywood'". Clash. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
  66. ^ "Foxes announces first single of 2021 "Kathleen"". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 17 March 2021.
  67. ^ Rabinowitz, Chloe (19 March 2021). "FOXES Shares New Track & Video 'Kathleen'". BroadwayWorld.
  68. ^ Kenneally, Cerys (16 September 2021). "Foxes announces first album in over five years with lead single "Sister Ray"". The Line of Best Fit.
  69. ^ a b "5 minutes with Foxes". Elle. 31 July 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  70. ^ "Foxes fitness health diet tips adidas collaboration (Glamour.com UK)". glamourmagazine.co.uk. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  71. ^ "Foxes and Adidas team up for new film". harpersbazaar.co.uk. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  72. ^ a b "Foxes Q&A - Fashion collaboration with River Island tour outfits (Glamour.com UK)". glamourmagazine.co.uk. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  73. ^ "Fashion Targets Breast Cancer star poster: Abbey Clancey, Alice Dellah, Foxes (Glamour.com UK)". glamourmagazine.co.uk.
  74. ^ "Foxes Is The New Face Of H&M's Loves Music Divided Collection". The Huffington Post UK. 9 June 2015.
  75. ^ "FALLING FOR FOXES". topshop.com. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  76. ^ a b "Loving Your New Holding Onto Heaven Video, Foxes!". ASOS. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  77. ^ "Foxes debut album - Fashion, Trends, Beauty Tips & Celebrity Style Magazine - ELLE UK". Elle. 12 May 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  78. ^ "Foxes". premier blog. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  79. ^ "Grammy Awards 2014 Nominations, Dance Genre". Billboard.com. Retrieved 17 January 2016.
  80. ^ "iHeartRadio Music Awards 2014 Winners List". Heavy. May 2014. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
  81. ^ "Most Performed Songs". ASCAP. Archived from the original on 11 August 2017. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  82. ^ "IDMA Winners for the year 2014 presented in 2015". Winter Music Conference. Archived from the original on 6 April 2017. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
  83. ^ "GLAMOUR WOTY voting 2016". Archived from the original on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 2 April 2016.
  84. ^ "2022 Archives - Art Vinyl".

External links