Tina Arena
Encyclopedia
Filippina Lydia "Tina" Arena (born 1 November 1967) is an Australian singer, songwriter
and musical theatre
actress. She has won several awards, most notably 6 ARIA Awards
and in both 1996 and 2000 she received the World Music Award
for the world's best selling Australian artist. She has sold over eight million records worldwide to date.
immigrants
, Giuseppe and Franca Arena, living in the Melbourne
suburb of East Keilor, Victoria. She has two sisters, Nancy and Silvana. Her family calls her Pina which evolved into her stage name, Tina. Arena attended St. Columba's College, Melbourne
, in Essendon, from 1980 and graduated in 1985.
. Even as a young girl she was known for her powerful voice and stage presence, but she dropped from sight for several years following her Young Talent Time tenure, working the club circuit alone and in bands and also appearing in musicals.
diva with the national Number 3 platinum selling single "I Need Your Body". It gave her a successful album, Strong as Steel
, and more hits, but for Arena this was a momentary digression, as this was never a music style or image with which she was comfortable.
. The David Tyson-produced Don't Ask
was Australia
's biggest selling album of 1995 and one of the biggest selling album by any Australian female singer to date. Don't Ask sold over two million copies worldwide and was certified 10 times platinum in Australia. Chains
scaled the charts in the UK to #6, and charted well throughout Europe, earning her numerous awards in the process. The song was also a minor hit in the United States, peaking at #38 on the Billboard Hot 100
.
's Mick Jones
, was also a multi-platinum success. The singles "I Want to Know What Love Is
" and "Burn
" even had minor success in some U.S.
airplay charts and Arena's songwriting abilities were particularly well noted in Nashville
where a number of pedigreed country music
artists have since covered her songs, including Wynonna Judd
("Heaven Help My Heart", "Love's Funny That Way"), Jo Dee Messina
("Burn"), Pam Tillis
("If I Didn’t Love You"), Terri Clark
("Unsung Hero"), Kellie Coffey
, Kathie Baillie ("Love's Funny That Way") and LeAnn Rimes
("You Made Me Find Myself").
Arena's collaboration with Marc Anthony
, "I Want to Spend My Lifetime Loving You
", from The Mask of Zorro
soundtrack, gave her a new kind of Europe
an success, tipping the scales of her success in France
where both the song and the album became Top 3, which the album peaked at #3 and was certified 3× Platinum in France. Her first French single "Aller plus haut
" has sold 617,000 copies in France and peaked at #2 on the French singles chart, her second French single "Les trois cloches" was released in 2000, which peaked at #4.
An attempt by Sony
to "break" Arena into the American market prompted the release of "If I Was a River", penned by Diane Warren
, prior to In Deeps release there. The single was not particularly successful despite numerous promotional appearances on television shows such as Donny & Marie
, but in 1999 she met label-mate Donna Summer
who asked her to join her in concert to sing "No More Tears (Enough is Enough)
". The duet was well received and subsequently released on Summer's live album Live & More Encore
.
Regardless of her recording achievements, musical theatre has always remained more than just a sideline for Arena. Her performance in the Australian production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
, while still in her teens, was applauded by the show's producer, Andrew Lloyd Webber
. She has since made acclaimed appearances in the UK production of Notre Dame de Paris
, as Esmeralda, and as Sally Bowles in the Sam Mendes
-directed Cabaret
in 2002. Arena returned to the London stage in April 2007, starring as Roxie Hart in the hit West End
production of Chicago
.
, when the international sporting event was held in Sydney.
in 2003 was also successful when Arena was featured on The Roc Project's "Never (Past Tense)" which reached #1 on the United States
Billboard dance
Top 10. This marked the first time three performers associated with Young Talent Time
were simultaneously in the chart's Top 10 with Dannii Minogue
's "I Begin to Wonder
" and Kylie Minogue
's "Slow
" also appearing on the chart. The track was also featured heavily on the US TV series Queer as Folk and on the soundtrack album. Arena performed the Tiësto
remix of "Never" along with a new remix of "Dare You to Be Happy" live at the official Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
afterparty in March 2005.
In 2004, Arena released her first compilation album greatest hits album
and release a new single Italian Love Song
, peaked at #33 on the ARIA Charts, became her last single peaked in the top 50. After that she had a subsequent tour in late 2004-early 2005.
album Un Autre Univers
was released in December 2005 and was yet another Platinum
milestone for her there, riding high in the French charts for well over a year and featuring the award-winning single "Aimer jusqu'à l'impossible
" which peaked at #3 on the French charts and stayed in the top 5 for over 10 weeks. The song received the award for Song Of The Year in France. A second single ""Je m'appelle Bagdad
" is released in June 2006, peaking at #6.
titled Songs of Love & Loss
was recorded independently and self-financed as she no longer had a recording contract
in Australia. The album was eventually released on 1 December 2007 after a new deal was struck with EMI
Australia. The record was primarily made up of torch songs originally recorded by women in the 1960s and 70s such as Dusty Springfield
and Diana Ross
and the arrangements featured a full string orchestra conducted by Simon Hale
. A promotional tour of Australia in early November included appearances on Dancing with the Stars
and Sunrise
. Five concert dates backed by a 35 piece orchestra were held in December–January: three at the Sydney Opera House
and two at Melbourne's Hamer Hall. The album peaked at #3 on the ARIA Top Albums chart and was nominated for the ARIA Award for Best Selling Album.
during the promotional tour of her home country and went on heavy rotation on French music television channels upon its release. The song was the first single from her sophomore French album 7 vies
which was released on 28 January 2008 and debuted at #12 on the official French charts, her highest debut ever in the country. The single "Entends-tu le monde?
" was physically released on 11 February 2008 and debuted at #10 on the French charts, becoming her sixth top ten single there.
August 2008 saw Arena performing with Andrea Bocelli
during his Australian tour. The two performed well received duets of "The Prayer", "Canto della Terra
" and a cover of Elvis Presley
's "Can't Help Falling in Love
". Prior to the tour she had been in the UK recording her eighth studio album Songs of Love & Loss 2
, which was released on 15 November 2008. For this album, her vocals were recorded live with the London Studio Orchestra, again conducted by Hale.
Alongside fellow Australian singer and songwriter Darren Hayes
, Arena appeared as a guest judge during the London
auditions of Australian Idol
s sixth season
. The episode featuring Arena and Hayes aired on 27 August 2008. She again appeared as a guest judge on 16 November while she was in Australia to promote Songs of Love & Loss 2.
Arena has been awarded a Knighthood of the Order of National Merit
, the second highest civil honour in France, by French President Nicolas Sarkozy
in February 2009 for her contributions to French culture.
In March 2009, Arena toured Australia in support of her album Songs of Love & Loss 2 and also appeared as a surprise guest performer at the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras party singing a medley of "Aimer jusqu'à l'impossible
" and "No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)
" at 3 am accompanied by Alison Jiear
on the latter.
2009 also saw the release of Arena's first French greatest hits album, The Best & le meilleur, and The Peel Me Sessions
, an album of original material recorded in 2003 but rejected by her label at the time Sony.
, where the album peaked at #22 on the ARIA Charts. On 24 July 2011, Arena sang the Australian National Anthem
on the podium of the Tour de France
after the victory of Cadel Evans
.
Arena has been confirmed as a judge on the upcoming French version of The Sing-Off
.
In 2000, Arena began dating French artist Vincent Mancini, sometimes credited as Vincent Hare. Together, they have a son Gabriel Joseph, born 17 November 2005. The family travel between France
, Australia
and the UK, but have been based in Paris
since 2008.
French studio albums
Compilation albums
Live albums
DVDs
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
and musical theatre
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
actress. She has won several awards, most notably 6 ARIA Awards
ARIA Music Awards
The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Australian Recording Industry Association...
and in both 1996 and 2000 she received the World Music Award
World Music Awards
The World Music Awards is an international awards show founded in 1989 that annually honors recording artists based on worldwide sales figures provided by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry . John Martinotti is an executive producer and co-founder of the show...
for the world's best selling Australian artist. She has sold over eight million records worldwide to date.
Early life
Arena was born to ItalianItaly
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
immigrants
Immigration to Australia
Immigration to Australia is estimated to have begun around 51,000 years ago when the ancestors of Australian Aborigines arrived on the continent via the islands of the Malay Archipelago and New Guinea. Europeans first landed in the 17th and 18th Centuries, but colonisation only started in 1788. The...
, Giuseppe and Franca Arena, living in the Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
suburb of East Keilor, Victoria. She has two sisters, Nancy and Silvana. Her family calls her Pina which evolved into her stage name, Tina. Arena attended St. Columba's College, Melbourne
St. Columba's College, Melbourne
St. Columba's College is a private, all-female Roman Catholic secondary school in the Melbourne suburb of Essendon.-History:After taking responsibility for St Monica's School in Moonee Ponds in 1896, Mother Ursula Bruton purchased the property at 139 Buckley Street to provide secondary education...
, in Essendon, from 1980 and graduated in 1985.
1974-1983: Young Talent Time
Arena began her career as a 7-year-old, singing live on the variety television show Young Talent TimeYoung Talent Time
Young Talent Time is an Australian television variety program screened on Network Ten, running from 1971 until 1988. The series features a core group of young performers in the vein of The Mickey Mouse Club, and a weekly junior talent quest. The "Young Talent Team" regularly performed popular...
. Even as a young girl she was known for her powerful voice and stage presence, but she dropped from sight for several years following her Young Talent Time tenure, working the club circuit alone and in bands and also appearing in musicals.
1988-1991: Strong as Steel
In 1988, at the age of 21, she was reinvented as a raunchy discoDisco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
diva with the national Number 3 platinum selling single "I Need Your Body". It gave her a successful album, Strong as Steel
Strong as Steel
Strong as Steel is the debut album by Australian pop singer Tina Arena, released in 1990 by EMI.-Album information:Strong As Steel has a very light tone and a pop-rock feel to it compared to her subsequent albums, which were darker and more personal....
, and more hits, but for Arena this was a momentary digression, as this was never a music style or image with which she was comfortable.
1994-1996: "Chains" and Don't Ask
After a couple of years, Arena broke the stigma of a TV childhood and carved out a successful solo career with Columbia RecordsColumbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
. The David Tyson-produced Don't Ask
Don't Ask
-Release history:-Charts and certifications:Don't Ask became Arena's highest selling album to date selling in excess of 2 million copies worldwide and was certified ten times platinum by the ARIA.-Peak positions:-End of year charts:...
was Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
's biggest selling album of 1995 and one of the biggest selling album by any Australian female singer to date. Don't Ask sold over two million copies worldwide and was certified 10 times platinum in Australia. Chains
Chains (Tina Arena song)
"Chains" is a song by Australian singer Tina Arena from her album Don't Ask. It was composed by Arena, Pam Reswick and Steve Werfel and produced by David Tyson. "Chains" scaled the charts in the UK to #6, and charted well throughout Europe, earning her numerous awards in the process...
scaled the charts in the UK to #6, and charted well throughout Europe, earning her numerous awards in the process. The song was also a minor hit in the United States, peaking at #38 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
.
1997-2000: In Deep and Notre Dame de Paris
The follow-up album, In Deep, produced by ForeignerForeigner (band)
Foreigner is a British-American rock band, originally formed in 1976 by veteran English musicians Mick Jones and ex-King Crimson member Ian McDonald along with American vocalist Lou Gramm...
's Mick Jones
Mick Jones (Foreigner)
Michael Leslie "Mick" Jones is an English guitarist, songwriter, and record producer best known as the founding member of the rock band Foreigner.-Life and career:...
, was also a multi-platinum success. The singles "I Want to Know What Love Is
I Want to Know What Love Is
"I Want to Know What Love Is" is a 1984 power ballad recorded by the British-American rock band Foreigner. The song hit #1 in both the UK and the U.S. and is the band's biggest hit...
" and "Burn
Burn (Tina Arena song)
"Burn" was covered by American country singer Jo Dee Messina for her third studio album Burn. It was released as the second single in October 2000, and peaked at #2 on the US Country charts in February 2001.-Music video:...
" even had minor success in some U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
airplay charts and Arena's songwriting abilities were particularly well noted in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
where a number of pedigreed country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
artists have since covered her songs, including Wynonna Judd
Wynonna Judd
Wynonna Ellen Judd is an American country music singer. Her solo albums and singles are all credited to the singular name Wynonna. Wynonna first rose to fame in the 1980s alongside her mother, Naomi, in the country music duo The Judds...
("Heaven Help My Heart", "Love's Funny That Way"), Jo Dee Messina
Jo Dee Messina
Jo Dee Marie Messina , known professionally as Jo Dee Messina, is an American country music artist. She has charted nine Number One singles on the Billboard country music charts. She has been honored by the Country Music Association, the Academy of Country Music and has been nominated for two...
("Burn"), Pam Tillis
Pam Tillis
Pamela Yvonne "Pam" Tillis is an American country music singer-songwriter and actress. She is the daughter of country music singer Mel Tillis....
("If I Didn’t Love You"), Terri Clark
Terri Clark
Terri Lynn Sauson , known professionally as Terri Clark, is a Canadian country music artist who has had success in both Canada and the United States. Signed to Mercury Records in 1995, she released her self-titled debut that year...
("Unsung Hero"), Kellie Coffey
Kellie Coffey
Kellie Coffey is an American country music artist. She made her debut in 2002 with the release of her single "When You Lie Next to Me", a Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts...
, Kathie Baillie ("Love's Funny That Way") and LeAnn Rimes
LeAnn Rimes
LeAnn Rimes is an American country/pop singer. She is known for her rich vocals and her rise to fame as an eight-year-old champion on the original Ed McMahon version of Star Search, followed by the release of the Patsy Cline-intended single "Blue" when Rimes was only age 13, resulting in her...
("You Made Me Find Myself").
Arena's collaboration with Marc Anthony
Marc Anthony
Marc Anthony is an American singer-songwriter, actor and producer. Anthony is the top selling tropical salsa artist of all time. The two-time Grammy and three-time Latin Grammy–winner has sold more than 30 million albums worldwide. He is best known for his Latin salsa numbers and ballads...
, "I Want to Spend My Lifetime Loving You
I Want to Spend My Lifetime Loving You
"I Want to Spend My Lifetime Loving You" is a song written by James Horner for the 1998 film The Mask of Zorro, of which it is the main theme....
", from The Mask of Zorro
The Mask of Zorro
The Mask of Zorro is a 1998 American swashbuckler film based on the Zorro character created by Johnston McCulley. It was directed by Martin Campbell and stars Antonio Banderas, Anthony Hopkins, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Stuart Wilson...
soundtrack, gave her a new kind of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an success, tipping the scales of her success in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
where both the song and the album became Top 3, which the album peaked at #3 and was certified 3× Platinum in France. Her first French single "Aller plus haut
Aller plus haut
"Aller plus haut" is a 1999 song recorded by Australian singer Tina Arena. It was the eighth single from the album In Deep and was released in July 1999. It was also Arena's first single in French-language...
" has sold 617,000 copies in France and peaked at #2 on the French singles chart, her second French single "Les trois cloches" was released in 2000, which peaked at #4.
An attempt by Sony
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
to "break" Arena into the American market prompted the release of "If I Was a River", penned by Diane Warren
Diane Warren
Diane Eve Warren , is a US songwriter. Her songs have received six Academy Award nominations, five Golden Globe nominations, including one win and seven Grammy Award nominations, including one win. She was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2001...
, prior to In Deeps release there. The single was not particularly successful despite numerous promotional appearances on television shows such as Donny & Marie
Donny & Marie (1998 TV series)
Donny & Marie was an American talk show hosted by Donny and Marie Osmond, that aired in syndication from September 1998 to May 2000. The show had a "house band", featuring Jerry Williams , Kat Dyson , Paul Peterson , and Nick Vincent . The show aired from 1998 to 2000.-External links:*...
, but in 1999 she met label-mate Donna Summer
Donna Summer
LaDonna Adrian Gaines , known by her stage name, Donna Summer, is an American singer/songwriter who gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s. She has a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Summer is a five-time Grammy winner and was the first artist to have three consecutive double albums reach...
who asked her to join her in concert to sing "No More Tears (Enough is Enough)
No More Tears (Enough is Enough)
"No More Tears " is a duet from 1979 by Donna Summer and Barbra Streisand. While Summer was famous for her disco material and Streisand for her more easy listening and soundtrack work , this song fused both sounds with a slow beginning which then develops into a disco song...
". The duet was well received and subsequently released on Summer's live album Live & More Encore
Live & More Encore
Live & More Encore is a live album released by Donna Summer in 1999, an edited version of a televised concert of the same name. Released on Sony Music's sublabel Epic, it featured a live concert which had been filmed especially for the VH-1 channel, and also two new dance tracks, including a...
.
Regardless of her recording achievements, musical theatre has always remained more than just a sideline for Arena. Her performance in the Australian production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical with lyrics by Tim Rice. The story is based on the "coat of many colors" story of Joseph from the Hebrew Bible's Book of Genesis. This was the first Lloyd Webber and Rice musical to be performed publicly...
, while still in her teens, was applauded by the show's producer, Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
. She has since made acclaimed appearances in the UK production of Notre Dame de Paris
Notre Dame de Paris (musical)
Notre-Dame de Paris is a sung-through French-Canadian musical which debuted on 16 September 1998 in Paris. It is based upon the novel Notre-Dame de Paris by the French novelist Victor Hugo...
, as Esmeralda, and as Sally Bowles in the Sam Mendes
Sam Mendes
Samuel Alexander "Sam" Mendes, CBE is an English stage and film director. He is best known for his Academy Award-winning work on his debut film American Beauty and his dark re-inventions of the stage musicals Cabaret , Oliver! , Company and Gypsy . He's currently working on the 23rd James Bond...
-directed Cabaret
Cabaret (musical)
Cabaret is a musical based on a book written by Christopher Isherwood, music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb. The 1966 Broadway production became a hit and spawned a 1972 film as well as numerous subsequent productions....
in 2002. Arena returned to the London stage in April 2007, starring as Roxie Hart in the hit West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
production of Chicago
Chicago (musical)
Chicago is a musical set in Prohibition-era Chicago. The music is by John Kander with lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book by Ebb and Bob Fosse. The story is a satire on corruption in the administration of criminal justice and the concept of the "celebrity criminal"...
.
2001-2002:
Just Me Despite her international success, Arena's popularity in Australia had begun to wane with her fourth album Just Me failing to match the success of Don't Ask and In Deep, but still managed to certified Gold in France. The album spawned a Top 10 ARIA single and #1 Australian radio airplay single, 'Symphony Of Life'. Tina performed the track at the closing of the Gay GamesGay Games
The Gay Games is the world's largest sporting and cultural event organized by and specifically for LGBT athletes, artists, musicians, and others. It welcomes participants of every sexual orientation and every skill level...
, when the international sporting event was held in Sydney.
2003-2005: "Never (Past Tense)" and
Greatest Hits (1994-2004) A foray into dance musicDance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...
in 2003 was also successful when Arena was featured on The Roc Project's "Never (Past Tense)" which reached #1 on the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Billboard dance
Billboard charts
The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine...
Top 10. This marked the first time three performers associated with Young Talent Time
Young Talent Time
Young Talent Time is an Australian television variety program screened on Network Ten, running from 1971 until 1988. The series features a core group of young performers in the vein of The Mickey Mouse Club, and a weekly junior talent quest. The "Young Talent Team" regularly performed popular...
were simultaneously in the chart's Top 10 with Dannii Minogue
Dannii Minogue
Danielle Jane "Dannii" Minogue is an Australian singer-songwriter, actress, television personality, radio personality, fashion designer and model...
's "I Begin to Wonder
I Begin to Wonder
"I Begin to Wonder" is a dance-pop song written by Dannii Minogue, Jean-Claude Ades, Dacia Bridges and Olaf Kramolowsky for Minogue's 2003 album Neon Nights. The song was released as the album's second single in March 2003. The single reached the top twenty in multiple countries, and topped the...
" and Kylie Minogue
Kylie Minogue
Kylie Ann Minogue, OBE - often known simply as Kylie - is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing...
's "Slow
Slow (song)
-Charts:-Year-End charts:-Chart procession and succession:-Release history:...
" also appearing on the chart. The track was also featured heavily on the US TV series Queer as Folk and on the soundtrack album. Arena performed the Tiësto
Tiësto
Tijs Michiel Verwest, , known as Tiësto , is a Dutch musician, DJ and record producer of electronic dance music. Although he has used many aliases in the past, he is best known for his work as DJ Tiësto...
remix of "Never" along with a new remix of "Dare You to Be Happy" live at the official Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
The Sydney Mardi Gras is an annual LGBTQI pride parade and festival in Sydney, Australia, and draws in thousands of visitors from around Australia and overseas...
afterparty in March 2005.
In 2004, Arena released her first compilation album greatest hits album
Greatest Hits 1994-2004
-Peak Positions:-End of year charts:-Certification:...
and release a new single Italian Love Song
Italian Love Song
"Italian Love Song" is a pop song written by Tina Arena, Francesco De Benedittis, Davide Esposito and Paul Manners, produced by Manners for Arena's sixth album Greatest Hits 1994-2004...
, peaked at #33 on the ARIA Charts, became her last single peaked in the top 50. After that she had a subsequent tour in late 2004-early 2005.
2005-2007: Un autre univers
Her debut French languageFrench language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
album Un Autre Univers
Un Autre Univers
Un autre univers is the fifth studio album, and first entirely French language release, from Australian singer Tina Arena. It successfully climbed to #9 in the French chart in November 2006, its highest position since entering the chart almost a year earlier.The album was certified platinum in...
was released in December 2005 and was yet another Platinum
Platinum
Platinum is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Pt and an atomic number of 78. Its name is derived from the Spanish term platina del Pinto, which is literally translated into "little silver of the Pinto River." It is a dense, malleable, ductile, precious, gray-white transition metal...
milestone for her there, riding high in the French charts for well over a year and featuring the award-winning single "Aimer jusqu'à l'impossible
Aimer Jusqu'à L'impossible
"Aimer jusqu'à l'impossible" is the first single released off Australian singer Tina Arena's fifth studio album and its title roughly translates as "Love till the impossible" in English...
" which peaked at #3 on the French charts and stayed in the top 5 for over 10 weeks. The song received the award for Song Of The Year in France. A second single ""Je m'appelle Bagdad
Je M'appelle Bagdad
"Je m'appelle Bagdad" is the second single to be released from Tina Arena's fifth studio album Un autre univers. It is a ballad with various orientalist themes. The song received significant airplay on French radio as did its predecessor "Aimer jusqu'à l'impossible".Arena is quoted as saying the...
" is released in June 2006, peaking at #6.
2007-2008: Songs of Love & Loss
Arena's sixth studio albumStudio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
titled Songs of Love & Loss
Songs of Love & Loss
Songs of Love & Loss is the sixth studio album, and first cover album, by Australian singer and songwriter Tina Arena, released on December 1, 2007. The album was Arena's first full length English language record in six years and her first album with EMI since her debut Strong as Steel in 1990...
was recorded independently and self-financed as she no longer had a recording contract
Recording contract
A recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...
in Australia. The album was eventually released on 1 December 2007 after a new deal was struck with EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...
Australia. The record was primarily made up of torch songs originally recorded by women in the 1960s and 70s such as Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O'BrienSources use both Isabel and Isobel as the spelling of her second name. OBE , known professionally as Dusty Springfield and dubbed The White Queen of Soul, was a British pop singer whose career extended from the late 1950s to the 1990s...
and Diana Ross
Diana Ross
Diana Ernestine Earle Ross is an American singer, record producer, and actress. Ross was lead singer of the Motown group The Supremes during the 1960s. After leaving the group in 1970, Ross began a solo career that included successful ventures into film and Broadway...
and the arrangements featured a full string orchestra conducted by Simon Hale
Simon Hale
-Life:Hale was born in Birmingham, England in 1964, being dually raised there and in South Manchester before moving to London, where he studied performance and composition at Goldsmiths College, University of London between 1982-85...
. A promotional tour of Australia in early November included appearances on Dancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars (Australian TV series)
Dancing with the Stars is a Logie Award-winning, Australian light entertainment reality show airing on the Seven Network and filmed live from the HSV-7 studios in Melbourne...
and Sunrise
Sunrise (TV program)
Sunrise is an Australian breakfast television program, broadcast on the Seven Network. On weekdays the programme follows Seven Early News, and runs from 6am through to 9am.-History:...
. Five concert dates backed by a 35 piece orchestra were held in December–January: three at the Sydney Opera House
Sydney Opera House
The Sydney Opera House is a multi-venue performing arts centre in the Australian city of Sydney. It was conceived and largely built by Danish architect Jørn Utzon, finally opening in 1973 after a long gestation starting with his competition-winning design in 1957...
and two at Melbourne's Hamer Hall. The album peaked at #3 on the ARIA Top Albums chart and was nominated for the ARIA Award for Best Selling Album.
2008-2009:
7 vies and Songs of Love & Loss 2 While Arena was still promoting Songs of Love & Loss in Australia, her first French single in two years, "Entends-tu le monde?", was made available to French radio. The video was shot in and around SydneySydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
during the promotional tour of her home country and went on heavy rotation on French music television channels upon its release. The song was the first single from her sophomore French album 7 vies
7 vies
7 vies is the seventh studio album by Australian singer and songwriter Tina Arena, released on 28 January 2008 on Columbia Records in France...
which was released on 28 January 2008 and debuted at #12 on the official French charts, her highest debut ever in the country. The single "Entends-tu le monde?
Entends-tu le monde?
"Entends-tu le monde?" is the first single released from 7 vies, the second French language album by Australian singer Tina Arena. The title roughly translates into English as "Do you hear the world?". The music video for the song was directed by Fabien Dulfils in and around Sydney in December and...
" was physically released on 11 February 2008 and debuted at #10 on the French charts, becoming her sixth top ten single there.
August 2008 saw Arena performing with Andrea Bocelli
Andrea Bocelli
Andrea Bocelli, is an Italian tenor, multi-instrumentalist and classical crossover artist. Born with poor eyesight, he became blind at the age of twelve following a soccer accident....
during his Australian tour. The two performed well received duets of "The Prayer", "Canto della Terra
Canto della Terra
"Canto della Terra" is the second single from Italian pop tenor Andrea Bocelli's 1999 album, Sogno. The song was written by Francesco Sartori and Lucio Quarantotto, the same writers of Bocelli's biggest hit "Con te partirò", and is among Bocelli's most popular and well-known songs.Like "Con te...
" and a cover of Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
's "Can't Help Falling in Love
Can't Help Falling in Love
"Can't Help Falling in Love" is a pop song originally recorded by American singer Elvis Presley and published by Gladys Music, Elvis Presley's publishing company. It was written by Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore, and George David Weiss. The melody was based on "Plaisir d'Amour" but with a different...
". Prior to the tour she had been in the UK recording her eighth studio album Songs of Love & Loss 2
Songs of Love & Loss 2
Songs of Love & Loss 2 is the eighth studio album by Australian singer and songwriter Tina Arena, released on 15 November 2008 by EMI in Australia. Her second cover album, it follows on from Songs of Love & Loss, released in 2007, and includes covers of songs by Blondie, Lulu, Alice Cooper and...
, which was released on 15 November 2008. For this album, her vocals were recorded live with the London Studio Orchestra, again conducted by Hale.
Darren Hayes
Darren Stanley Hayes is a UK-based Australian singer-songwriter. Hayes was the front man and singer of the pop duo Savage Garden, whose 1997 album Savage Garden peaked at No. 1 in Australia, No. 2 in United Kingdom and No. 3 in United States...
, Arena appeared as a guest judge during the London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
auditions of Australian Idol
Australian Idol
Australian Idol is a Logie Award-winning Australian singing competition, which began its first season on July 2003 and ended its run in November 2009. As part of the Idol franchise, Australian Idol originated from the reality program Pop Idol, which was created by British entertainment executive...
s sixth season
Australian Idol (season 6)
The sixth season of Australian Idol premiered on Sunday, 24 August 2008, on Network Ten. The season finale aired live on Sunday, 23 November 2008. The winner was Wes Carr with Luke Dickens as runner-up.-Changes to Format:...
. The episode featuring Arena and Hayes aired on 27 August 2008. She again appeared as a guest judge on 16 November while she was in Australia to promote Songs of Love & Loss 2.
Arena has been awarded a Knighthood of the Order of National Merit
Ordre National du Mérite
The Ordre national du Mérite is an Order of State awarded by the President of the French Republic. It was founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle...
, the second highest civil honour in France, by French President Nicolas Sarkozy
Nicolas Sarkozy
Nicolas Sarkozy is the 23rd and current President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra. He assumed the office on 16 May 2007 after defeating the Socialist Party candidate Ségolène Royal 10 days earlier....
in February 2009 for her contributions to French culture.
In March 2009, Arena toured Australia in support of her album Songs of Love & Loss 2 and also appeared as a surprise guest performer at the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras party singing a medley of "Aimer jusqu'à l'impossible
Aimer Jusqu'à L'impossible
"Aimer jusqu'à l'impossible" is the first single released off Australian singer Tina Arena's fifth studio album and its title roughly translates as "Love till the impossible" in English...
" and "No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)
No More Tears (Enough is Enough)
"No More Tears " is a duet from 1979 by Donna Summer and Barbra Streisand. While Summer was famous for her disco material and Streisand for her more easy listening and soundtrack work , this song fused both sounds with a slow beginning which then develops into a disco song...
" at 3 am accompanied by Alison Jiear
Alison Jiear
Alison Jiear is a popular cabaret artist on the London cabaret circuit. Alison was trained at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music, Australia....
on the latter.
2009 also saw the release of Arena's first French greatest hits album, The Best & le meilleur, and The Peel Me Sessions
The Peel Me Sessions 2003
The Peel Me Sessions 2003 is a studio album by Australian singer and songwriter Tina Arena which was released exclusively through her official website on 22 May 2009...
, an album of original material recorded in 2003 but rejected by her label at the time Sony.
2010-present
A live CD and DVD was released in Australia in January 2010, The Onstage CollectionThe Onstage Collection
The Onstage Collection is a live album released by Australian singer and songwriter Tina Arena on 15 January 2010. The album was recorded at the Melbourne Arts Centre during her 2009 Love & Loss Tour and features two duets with fellow Australian singer Kane Alexander.-Promotion:On 5 May 2010, Arena...
, where the album peaked at #22 on the ARIA Charts. On 24 July 2011, Arena sang the Australian National Anthem
Advance Australia Fair
"Advance Australia Fair" is the official national anthem of Australia. Created by the Scottish-born composer, Peter Dodds McCormick, the song was first performed in 1878, but did not gain its status as the official anthem until 1984. Until then, the song was sung in Australia as a patriotic song...
on the podium of the Tour de France
2011 Tour de France
-Pre-race favourites:2010 winner Alberto Contador was suspended from cycling during a doping investigation from September 2010 to February 2011, during which time 2010 runner-up Andy Schleck was regarded as the favourite. When the suspension was lifted, Contador declared his desire to compete in...
after the victory of Cadel Evans
Cadel Evans
Cadel Lee Evans is an Australian professional racing cyclist and winner of the 2011 Tour de France. Early in his career, Evans was a champion mountain biker, winning the World Cup in 1998 and 1999 and placing seventh in the men's cross-country mountain bike race at the 2000 Summer Olympics in...
.
Arena has been confirmed as a judge on the upcoming French version of The Sing-Off
The Sing-Off
The Sing-Off is an American television singing competition featuring a cappella groups. It premiered on NBC on December 14, 2009, and is produced by Sony Pictures Television....
.
Personal life
In December 1995, Arena married her manager Ralph Carr. In 1999 they divorced.In 2000, Arena began dating French artist Vincent Mancini, sometimes credited as Vincent Hare. Together, they have a son Gabriel Joseph, born 17 November 2005. The family travel between France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and the UK, but have been based in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
since 2008.
Discography
English studio albums- 1977: Tiny Tina and Little JohnTiny Tina and Little JohnTiny Tina and Little John is a 1970's album by Australian superstar Tina Arena together with John Bowles.-Track listing:# Rock & Roll Love Letter - Tina Arena# Ring Ring - Tina Arena# Do Ron Ron - Tina Arena# High Hopes - Johnny Bowles...
with John Bowles - 1990: Strong as SteelStrong as SteelStrong as Steel is the debut album by Australian pop singer Tina Arena, released in 1990 by EMI.-Album information:Strong As Steel has a very light tone and a pop-rock feel to it compared to her subsequent albums, which were darker and more personal....
- 1994: Don't AskDon't Ask-Release history:-Charts and certifications:Don't Ask became Arena's highest selling album to date selling in excess of 2 million copies worldwide and was certified ten times platinum by the ARIA.-Peak positions:-End of year charts:...
- 1997: In Deep
- 2001: Just Me
- 2007: Songs of Love & LossSongs of Love & LossSongs of Love & Loss is the sixth studio album, and first cover album, by Australian singer and songwriter Tina Arena, released on December 1, 2007. The album was Arena's first full length English language record in six years and her first album with EMI since her debut Strong as Steel in 1990...
- 2008: Songs of Love & Loss 2Songs of Love & Loss 2Songs of Love & Loss 2 is the eighth studio album by Australian singer and songwriter Tina Arena, released on 15 November 2008 by EMI in Australia. Her second cover album, it follows on from Songs of Love & Loss, released in 2007, and includes covers of songs by Blondie, Lulu, Alice Cooper and...
French studio albums
- 2005: Un autre universUn Autre UniversUn autre univers is the fifth studio album, and first entirely French language release, from Australian singer Tina Arena. It successfully climbed to #9 in the French chart in November 2006, its highest position since entering the chart almost a year earlier.The album was certified platinum in...
- 2008: 7 vies7 vies7 vies is the seventh studio album by Australian singer and songwriter Tina Arena, released on 28 January 2008 on Columbia Records in France...
Compilation albums
- 2000: SouvenirsSouvenirs (Tina Arena album)-Charts & Certification:...
- 2004: Greatest Hits 1994–2004
- 2009: The Best & le meilleur
- 2009: The Peel Me Sessions 2003The Peel Me Sessions 2003The Peel Me Sessions 2003 is a studio album by Australian singer and songwriter Tina Arena which was released exclusively through her official website on 22 May 2009...
Live albums
- 2003: Vous êtes toujours làVous Êtes Toujours LàVous êtes toujours là is a 2003 live album by Australian singer Tina Arena. It includes the studio duet with Jay, "Je te retrouve un peu" which was the only single released from the album.-Track listing:...
- 2005: Greatest Hits LiveGreatest Hits Live (Tina Arena album)Greatest Hits Live is a live album by Australian singer Tina Arena which was recorded during her 2004 Greatest Hits Australian tour and released in late 2005. It was Arena's first live album to be released in her native Australia because Vous Êtes Toujours Là was only released in France...
- 2010: The Onstage CollectionThe Onstage CollectionThe Onstage Collection is a live album released by Australian singer and songwriter Tina Arena on 15 January 2010. The album was recorded at the Melbourne Arts Centre during her 2009 Love & Loss Tour and features two duets with fellow Australian singer Kane Alexander.-Promotion:On 5 May 2010, Arena...
DVDs
- 2004: Greatest Hits 1994–2004