Charlotte - Charlotte (1999)

Like previous postee Lamya, Charlotte Kelly first came to prominence performing with Soul II Soul. Just in her teens, she toured with them and appeared as a featured vocalist on a few of their tracks, most notably the single "I Care (Soul II Soul)". Unlike Lamya, however, her background was far from happy and exotic. Born legally blind, Charlotte was moved from foster home to foster home in the UK and ruthlessly taunted by her peers. Music was her only means of escape, and she honed her voice to a beautiful instrument, eventually releasing a few soul-house singles in the early 1990's: "Sugar Tree", "All Of Your Love", "Be Mine" and "Queen Of Hearts".. That, matched with killer looks, got the attention of Soul II Soul's Jazzie B, and the rest is history. It took quite a few years for Charlotte to release an actual album, with all new tracks. (According to Charlotte, this was partially spurned by the praise of Simon Cowell, who wanted to make a documentary series on her daily struggles as a blind, aspiring pop star). The first single, "Skin" became a massive dance hit thanks to remixes, and Charlotte's dream of being a chart sensation came true. Remixes of the follow-up singles "Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark" and "Someday" also hit the dance charts, but her album failed to make much of an impact. This could have been due to the fact that, aside from "Someday", which was produced by house master David Morales, the rest of the album was mid-tempo soul-pop and far from the remixed versions that were so popular. Charlotte continued to pursue her career as a songwriter, however, and won several songwriting prizes throughout the 2000's. Thankfully Charlotte is now working on an independent follow-up album, and she has also reclaimed some of her vision, so this time she will actually be able to see her adoring audience! Check out her Myspace site for more.

Video for Skin

Video for Someday

Video for the Skin Extended Club Mix

Download Charlotte

1		Someday
2		Somebody's Baby
3		Don't Be Afraid Of The Dark
4		Distance
5		Skin
6		Shelter
7		Addiction
8		Bad Girl
9		Ever Loved Somebody
10		If I Can't Have You
11		World Like This