Adele

Adele (born Adele Laurie Blue Adkins on May 5, 1988, in Tottenham, London, England) is a British singer, songwriter, and musician. She has become synonymous with success. Her second studio album, 21, has been certified at least 17-times Platinum in the UK, and certified Diamond in the United States. With 31 million copies sold, it’s been dubbed the best-selling album of the 21st century.

Career:

Adele’s story starts in Tottenham. Raised by her mother after her father abandoned them, Adele began singing at age four. In 1999, she and her mother moved to London. This time would be influential in her music, with songs “Hometown Glory” and “Million Years Ago” reflecting her time spent in South London’s West Norwood district. After graduating from the BRIT School for Performing Arts & Technology, Adele began her musical journey. She published two songs on PlatformsMagazine.com in 2006. Her three-song demo was published to MySpace, which caught the ear of XL Recordings’ boss Richard Russell.

She signed with XL that year, and in 2007, she made her television debut, performing “Daydreamer” on Later…with Jools Holland. Her debut single, “Hometown Glory,” was released in October that year. It peaked at No. 19 on the UK Singles Chart. In 2008, Adele released her debut album, 19, named for her age at the time that she wrote and composed the songs, was released in January 2008. It entered the British charts at No. 1, and her second single, ‘Chasing Pavements,” reached No. 2 on the UK Charts. The buzz around her caught the attention of Columbia Records, who signed her to a deal to help bring her music to the United States.

She was booked on a short North American tour in the spring of 2008, but she canceled the US tour dates to reunite with a now-former boyfriend. It seemed as if her attempt to break into the American market was over before it began, but her salvation came from an unlikely place: Saturday Night Live. Adele was booked as the musical guest on the Oct. 18, 2008 episode, which featured an appearance by then US vice-presidential candidate, Sarah Palin. The show earned its best ratings in 14 years, with 17 million viewers tuning in. Those 17 million viewers also saw Adele perform “Chasing Pavements” and “Cold Shoulder.” The next day, 19 topped the iTunes Charts. It rose to No. 11 on the Billboard 200, jumping 35 spots from the previous week. At the 51 st Annual Grammy Awards in Feb. 2009, Adele won Best New Artist, in addition to the Best Female Pop Vocal Performance Award. This was a sign of things to come because, in 2011, Adele released 21.

Again named after her age at the time of its recording, 21 was a mammoth success. Singles “Rolling In The Deep” and “Someone Like You” topped the charts in numerous countries, and by the end of 2011, it had sold over 3.4 million copies in the UK, making her the first artist to sell that many records in the UK in one calendar year. Billboard named her Artist of the Year, Billboard 200 Artists of the year, and the Billboard Hot 100 Song of the Year (“Rolling in the Deep”), becoming the first woman to sweep all three top categories.

The sweep continued at the 2012 Grammy Awards. She won in all six categories for which she was nominated, including Album of the Year, Record of the year, and Song of the Year. Overall, 31 million copies of 21 have been sold, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time.

Adele’s success continued the following year when she released the theme to the James Bond movie Skyfall. It was a massive commercial success and earned Adele the Golden Globe Award and Academy Award for Best Original Song. She was named Billboard’s 2012 Artist of the Year, the first artist to repeat. A live performance of “Set Fire to the Rain” won the Grammy for Best Pop Solo Performance in 2013, and “Skyfall” won the Best Song Written for Visual Media in 2014, bringing her Grammy total to ten.

That total would grow after the release of 25, her third album. Arriving in late 2015, 25 was – surprise – a massive commercial success, debuting at No. 1 in 32 countries and breaking numerous first-week sale records. In the United States, it sold 3.38 million copies in its first week alone. It was the best-selling album of 2015, which is impressive considering it was released in November. It has gone on to sell over 23 million copies worldwide. At the 59th Annual Grammy Awards, Adele won all the awards she was nominated for – including Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Pop Vocal Album.

Adele hinted at a friend’s wedding in February 2020 that her fourth studio album would arrive later that year, but the COVID-19 pandemic delayed its release.

Personal Life:

Adele began dating charity entrepreneur Simon Konecki in the summer of 2011. They welcomed a child, son Angelo James, in Oct. 2012. In early 2017, there were reports that she and Simon had married in secret, and she confirmed this at the 59 the Grammy Awards by calling Simon her husband while thanking him. Two years later, reps for Adele announced that she and Simon had separated and would continue to raise their son together. Later in 2019, it was reported that she had filed for divorce. She has since been romantically linked to rapper Skepta.

The Most Popular Questions About Adele

How Did Adele Lose Weight?

Adele revealed to the world her incredible weight loss in a selfie taken for her 32nd birthday in 2020. After the photos were published, sources revealed to HollywoodLife that the decision to slim down was something the singer really wanted to do ‘for herself’. Just before the singer’s birthday, her former trainer, Camila Goodis, guessed that Adele had lost over 70lbs. Though she’s never shared her exact workout routine, for her mental health, Adele has shared the book ‘Untamed’ with her fans, revealing it’s helped her manage her ‘stressed and disheveled’ life.

Did Adele Retire From Music?

No, but she is till on hiatus. After the explosive success of her last album, 25, which released in 2015, the British musical darling has taken a break from recording and touring to be a mom and live her life. It was rumored that in 2020, she would release her first record in 5 years, but that had yet to happen. Many believe that her next album will focus on her split from partner, Simon. But while she’s hush-hush about when her music will drop, she is keeping an eye on fans who are desperate to listen to new material.