Icaro's Blog

BIOGRAPHY

Kate Ryan (born Katrien Verbeeck (22/07/1980)) started out impersonating Madonna. In her earliest childhood years she brought a miniature material girl to life on countless parties and school activities. Meanwhile, Kate developed other interests such as horse-riding and water-skiing, which she both practises at quite a good level up to this very day.

As virtually the whole (Verbeeck) family played either the guitar or the piano, gifted Kate developed an equally large soft spot for both instruments. In art school, Kate impassioned her teachers with her intangible feel for drawing and painting.

As her parents owned their own café and pub concerts are quite popular in Flanders, the region around her home town Meerhout got to know Kate’s talent quite well. Armed with only a guitar and a considerable load of guts, Kate hit the stage and performed songs by Alanis Morissette, 4 Non-Blondes, Pointer Sisters or Aretha Franklin. Also, she toured as a backing vocalist with the Soapband, a renowned bunch of the country’s foremost television actors. In studio, Kate honed her skills recording an album, which she partially co-wrote, with the local pop group Melt.

Then came 2001. Her big break came when one of her own creations, composed with the help of AJ (Andy Janssens), was picked up by the big boys. Scream for more, Kate’s debut single, was produced by Phil Wilde, once the producer behind 2 Unlimited, Def Dames Dope and C.B. Milton. Kate’s management 2Brains Music saw her star rising abroad in no time: the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Germany, South Africa, the Uk and the States were the first in line to welcome the new star on the airwaves.

In Belgium, Scream for more was a huge summer floorbuster (17 weeks charts) and gathered nominations for a Radio Donna Award and, as best single of the year (!), for an award of Belgium’s biggest music television TMF.

On October 8th, 2001 the second single UR My love was released.

This second hit saw Kate adding Finland, Israel, Mexico and several parts of South-America to her list. The video was released mid December, when she also performed several shows in Chicago!

In 2002 Kate decided to have her way in French. Mylène Farmer’s classic Désenchantée was converted into a dance version and the result exceeded all expectations, reaching number 1 in no time – and settling there for 6 weeks on end! – and equally landing the Dutch top 5. (release on CD Single: March 29th 2002)

In June 2002 Kate’s debut album Different was released, 12-tracks and 3 French bonustracks. This album combines rock, pop, dance and ballads. Kate c-wrote all tracks on the album.

Kate’s album is also about to be signed for release in the USA. Shortly (scheduled for July 23rd), the US will see the release of a special double A-sided single, containing both UR (My love) and Désenchantée. The latter song is currently also set for the long-awaited release in France (July 2nd) and the UK (date to be confirmed), where it will hit stores on the prestigious Positiva label!

Recently awarded “Best Selling Benelux Artist Worldwide” at the “World Music Awards”, Belgian singer Kate Ryan continues to conquer the charts and the hearts of pop/dance music lovers worldwide. Backed by the pan-European success of her rendition of Desireless’s 1986 dance hit “Voyage, Voyage”, that climbed the charts in the Benelux, Germany, Sweden, Poland, Switzerland and Austria, Kate Ryan released “Ella, Elle L’a”, a brilliant remake of French pop diva France Gall’s tribute to Ella Fitzgerald from Gall’s 1985 hit album “Babacar”, scoring a massive hit from Europe to Canada this year.

Kate Ryan’s music career took off in 2001 when she released Belgium’s best selling dance single “Scream For More” (EMI Music).
One year later, with “Désenchantée”, upgrading French dance diva Myléne Farmer’s original to become an acclaimed dance floor filler, Kate Ryan first gave proof of international chart potential with top notch chart positions all over Europe – propelling the track into the European Chart top 10 and the UK Dance Charts, selling a solid 600.000 copies and posting an unprecedented success for a new and upcoming artist.

“Different”, Kate Ryan’s debut album, featuring both “Scream For More”, “Désenchantée” and the two follow-up hits “Libertine” (another Farmer remake) and “Mon Coeur Résiste Encore” was released in 2002 and sold over 250.000 copies Europe-wide, achieving gold and platinum status in many countries.

After two years of extensive touring all over Europe, Kate Ryan released “Stronger”, her second studio album, in 2004 – of which the singles “Only If I” and the Cock Robin remake “The Promise You Made” met with European chart success and opened the door to the U.S. dance market with top 10 positions in the Billboard Hot Dance charts.

In 2006, Kate Ryan was selected to represent Belgium at the Eurovision Song Contest in Athens, Greece – the single “Je T’Adore” was widely promoted in a pan-European tour spanning twelve countries and co-financed by the Flemish Cultural Minister, the Belgian public broadcaster and her record company.
Despite the fact that Kate couldn’t win the Eurovision, “Je T’Adore” became her next number one hit in Belgium and Poland, with huge sales in many other European countries.

Later that same year, Kate Ryan started touring with a live band, clearly depicting her abilities as a live performing artist, combining high energy dance and pop with rock and acoustic songs. On stage, Kate plays guitar and piano, amazing audiences that until then only knew her “dance” image.

With her third studio album “Alive”, Kate perfectly wraps up her career over 2006 – the album was released in all European countries, fuelled by hits such as “Je T’Adore”, “Alive” and “All For You”.

“Alive” was also the name of Kate Ryan’s first ever live concert in her own right, staged in October 2007 at the brand new 7.000 capacity Lotto Arena in Antwerp: crucial in the upward motion of Kate’s musical career, offering a stunning two-hour show combining her greatest hits with top notch choreography and an exciting production in sound and light.

In 2007, Kate Ryan decided to change both her management and record label and opted for the enthusiasm and drive of ARS Entertainment, the leading Belgian independent that made its way internationally with the eighties dance anthem “Pump Up The Jam” by Technotronic.

Kate’s first release with ARS Entertainment was “Voyage, Voyage”, going straight to the top of the Benelux charts, awarded with gold in Belgium.

Backed by the structure of Universal Music in Europe, Kate Ryan is determined to continue the path of success worldwide; June 2008 saw the international release of “Free”, her fourth album: a collection of 13 English and French language songs, with Kate appearing as songwriter on most of the tracks.
“Free” also features Kate Ryan’s first song in Spanglish, “Tonight we ride/No digas que no” a duet with Spanish pop diva Soraya.

The album “Free” has gone gold in several territories, the single Ella Elle L’a achieved top ten positions in Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium, Poland, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark and many other countries. In Spain Ella Elle L’a has been the number one download for 8 consecutive weeks, selling over 200.000 copies, which is 10 times Platinum.

Kate was awarded with a World Music Award for Best Selling Benelux Artist Worldwide in November 2008. She performed on the same stage as Beyonce, Mariah Carey, Kid Rock, Alicia Keys and many more.

At print time Kate’s career is going global, supported by Universal Music International. Her album and singles are being released in South-America and Canada. Work is in progress for Australia, Asia and the USA.

SOURCE http://www.kateryan.be