Florian Cloud de Bounevialle Armstrong[1] (born: December 25, 1971)[2], better known online as Dido, is an English singer and songwriter.[3]
History[]
Florian Cloud de Bounevialle Armstrong was born at St. Mary Abbot's Hospital in Kensington, on Christmas Day in 1971.[note 1] As she was born on Christmas Day, she also celebrates an "official birthday" on 25 June, following the example of Paddington Bear.[4] Her elder brother, Rowland Constantine O'Malley Armstrong, is better known as record producer Rollo.[5]
Despite their birth names, the pair were known from childhood by the names Dido and Rollo. Dido considers this as her real name, not simply a stage name or nickname.[6] As a child, she had to deal with her birth name's ambiguous and unusual nature, which led to her being bullied and pretending to have an ordinary name. The name "Dido" derives from the legendary Queen of Carthage.[3]
Dido was educated at Thornhill Primary School in Islington, Dallington School, City of London Girls' and Westminster School, where she was taught by Sinan Savaskan. After she stole a recorder from school at the age of five, her parents enrolled her at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. She later studied law at Birkbeck, University of London, while working as a literary agent. She never completed the degree, because she decided to take up music full time.[7]
In 1995, Dido began recording 10 demo tracks which were put together on a collection entitled Odds & Ends and sent out by Nettwerk management. Nettwerk had signed her after she was brought to their attention by her collaborations with Faithless, the UK dance act spearheaded by her brother. The collection was released by Nettwerk on CD-R and acetate disc in 1995, and featured a mixture of finished productions and demo versions which she later considered for release on her 1999, debut album, No Angel. Odds & Ends brought her to the attention of A&R Peter Edge at Arista Records, who signed her in the US in late 1996, and negotiated a co-sign deal with her brother's independent record label, Cheeky Records.[8]
American rapper Eminem helped introduce Dido to a US audience in 2000, when he received permission from Dido herself to sample the first verse of "Thank You" in his hit single "Stan". Dido also appeared in the music video as Stan's pregnant girlfriend. She did not want to do the video at first, as she was uncomfortable with the scene in the video where she had to be tied up and have her mouth covered with duct tape, but later agreed to it and got along well with Eminem and the crew on set.[9]
Discography[]
Albums[]
- No Angel (1999)
- Life for Rent (2003)
- Safe Trip Home (2008)
- Girl Who Got Away (2013)
- Still on My Mind (2019)
- The Last Summer (Deluxe Edition) (2020)
Live Albums[]
- Live at Brixton Academy (2005)
Compilation Albums[]
- Greatest Hits (2013)
Demo Albums[]
- Odds & Ends (1995)
Extended Albums[]
- The Highbury Fields EP (1999)
- Dido Live (2005)
Singles[]
- Thank You (Not So Bad) (2023)
Notes[]
- ↑ "Armstrong Florian Cloud De B.". Births Registered in January, February, and March 1972.
References[]
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgELTJRyCHw
- ↑ https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0225824/bio/
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 https://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2001/may/20/features.magazine27
- ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2001/jan/29/artsfeatures
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20071214191642/http://news.independent.co.uk/people/obituaries/article2160041.ece
- ↑ http://forum.dido.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=15532
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20090109235341/http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/2001/08/03/stories/1303140n.htm
- ↑ http://www.hitquarters.com/index.php3?page=intrview/opar/intrview_Peter_Leak_int.html
- ↑ http://www.gigwise.com/photos/47455/10/The-50-Most-Shocking-Music-Videos-Ever
