Victoria Wilson-James is an American-born British singer, songwriter and record producer. Born and raised in Gary, Indiana, she performed in various theatre plays and musicals as a teenager. Following the release of her debut single "I Want You in My Movie", she was recruited by Jazzie B to join a newly reformed line-up of R&B group Soul II Soul. Managed by her bandmate, Jazzie B, the group became one of London's best-selling groups of all time. Their second album, Vol. II: 1990 – A New Decade (1990), which achieved gold-status in the US and UK,[1][2] featured the top-charting single "A Dream's a Dream" with Wilson-James on lead vocals.[3]
Victoria Wilson-James | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | The Glamazon |
| Born | Gary, Indiana, United States |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter, record producer |
| Years active | 1987–present |
| Labels | Epic, Sony, Virgin |
| Website | victoriawilsonjames |
Following her exit from the group at the end of 1990, she released her debut solo album, Perseverance (1991), which contained hits "Through" and "Bright Lights".[4] In 1993, she joined the Shamen and continued performing and recording with them until their disbandment in 1999. In 1997, she released her second album Colorfields, which featured one of her signature hits "Reach 4 the Melody". Wilson-James has also appeared in various theatre musicals including The Wiz (2001), Purlie (2004), and Lush Life (2005). She formed a duo called Avitas and released an album titled A Course in Miracles in September 2005.
In June 2012, Soul II Soul received the honorary Heritage Award from Performing Right Society, which Wilson-James also received despite not being able to attend.[5] In March 2013, she released her third album titled The Rapture.
Early life
editWilson-James attended the Los Angeles Academy of Performing Arts, where she graduated with a degree in Theatre Arts. She also attended Phil Moore's Singers Workshop in Hollywood.[citation needed]
Career
editIn 1988, she released her first single "I Want You in My Movie" on Risin' Records. In 1990, Jazzie B recruited Wilson-James to join British music group Soul II Soul after the departure of their previous members Rose Windross, Doreen Waddell, and Caron Wheeler. In May 1990, Soul II Soul released the second single "A Dream's a Dream", which featured Wilson-James on lead vocals; from their album Vol. II: 1990 – A New Decade. The song peaked in the top-ten of the UK Singles Chart.[6] In the same month, Soul II Soul released their second album Vol. II: 1990 – A New Decade, which peaked at number one on the UK Albums Chart.[6] The album also became certified gold-status in the United Kingdom. Wilson-James also toured with the group in the summer of 1990. One of their concerts was recorded at Brixton Academy and released in September 1990 titled A New Decade: Live from Brixton Academy. Following the conclusion of the tour, she left to pursue a solo career.
In late 1980, she began recording her first album, which would be produced by fellow Soul II Soul member Jazzie B and composer and musical director Michael J McEvoy. On March 26, 1991, she released her first album Perseverance, which peaked at number 55 on Billboard's R&B Albums chart.[4] In March 1991, the album's lead single "Through" was released and peaked at number 22 on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.[4] She also promoted the album by performing on various musical variety shows including The Party Machine with Nia Peeples, Soul Train, The Word, and Video Soul. In July 1991, she released the second single "Bright Lights", which peaked at number 83 on the R&B Songs chart.[4] The album's final single "One World" was released in late 1991.
In 1993, she became the front woman for techno-pop band the Shamen. In 1995, they released their first album together called Axis Mutatis, which peaked at number 27 on the UK Albums Chart.[7] The album spawned the singles "Destination Eschaton" and "Transamazonia", which peaked in the top-thirty of the UK Singles Chart.[7] The final single "Heal (The Separation)" peaked at number 31 on the UK Singles Chart.[7] In September 1996, the group released an album titled Hempton Manor. Shortly after the album, the group went on hiatus.
In 1997, Wilson-James released a single titled "Reach 4 the Melody". Her second album Colorfields was released in 1997 on the Dance Pool recording label. In 1998, she re-joined the Shamen for their final album titled UV. Their last single "Universal" was released before their amicable split in 1999. In 1999, she returned to musical theatre and played Roxy, a role created for her, in the UK musical Oh What a Night!.[8][9][10] In 2001, she played the role of "Glinda", the good witch of the South, in the UK production of The Wiz.[11]
In 2001, she appeared on Superchumbo's single "The Revolution", which peaked at number 43 on the Dance Club Songs chart.[12] The song also peaked at number 37 on the Hot Dance Maxi-Singles Sales chart.[13] In 2002, she was featured on Mr. C's single "Circles of Love" from his debut album Change. In 2004, Wilson-James starred as "Greta" in the film Road to Damascus, directed by Chris Munro. In the same year, she played the role of "Missy Judson" in the musical Purlie.[14]
In early 2005, Wilson-James starred in the theatre musical Lush Life, where she play the role of The Cop.[15] Again, her performance garnered excellent reviews.[16][17][18] In June 2005, she collaborated with Ralph Falcon on the song "Swim" for the compilation album Café Mambo Ibiza 2005. In 2005, Wilson-James created a musical duo called Avitas, with musician Kinan Atassi. As Avitas, they released an album called A Course in Miracles in September 2005. The album featured the singles "Re-Creation" and "Cantate".
In March 2007, she released a two-disc compilation album titled Indestructible, which spawned the single "Yo' Freek". She was also featured on Ralph Falcon's single "I Need Someone", which peaked at number two on the U.S. Dance chart after spending twenty-six weeks on the chart.[19]
In June 2013, she released her third album The Rapture. The album spawned the singles "Never Stop", "Deep in Vogue", "Say It Ain't So", and "Red Lipstick". In November 2016, Wilson-James began her one-woman show tour called "Perseverance".[20]
In November 2017, Wilson-James released a single titled "Pray".[21] The song is part of "P.R.A.Y. (Project Resonance Ascension Yantra)" and was released as a free download on her SoundCloud page.[21][22]
Discography
editStudio albums
edit| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions |
|---|---|---|
| US R&B [4] | ||
| Perseverance |
|
55 |
| Colorfields |
|
— |
| The Rapture |
|
— |
Compilation albums
edit| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Indestructible |
|
Singles
edit| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US R&B [4] |
UK [23] | ||||
| "I Want You in My Movie" | 1988 | — | — | Non-album single | |
| "Through" | 1991 | 22 | 77 | Perseverance | |
| "Bright Lights" | 83 | — | |||
| "One World" | — | — | |||
| "Transcendental Rhythm" | 1993 | — | — | Non-album single | |
| "Boogie Wonderland" | — | — | |||
| "Reach 4 the Melody" | 1997 | — | 72 | Colorfields | |
| "Find the Child" | — | — | |||
| "Fandango" | 2000 | — | — | Non-album single | |
| "Dare to Dream" | 2004 | — | — | Indestructible | |
| "Yo' Freek" | 2007 | — | — | ||
| "Never Stop" | 2009 | — | — | The Rapture | |
| "Red Lipstick" | 2012 | — | — | ||
| "Increase the Pressure" | — | — | |||
| "Deep in Vogue" | — | — | |||
| "Say It Ain't So" | 2013 | — | — | ||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||||
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US R&B |
US Dance |
UK | |||
| "A Dream's a Dream" (Soul II Soul featuring Victoria Wilson-James) |
1990 | 19 | 3 | 6 | Vol. II: 1990 – A New Decade |
| "The Revolution" (Superchumbo featuring Victoria Wilson-James) |
2001 | — | 43 | — | Non-album single |
| "Circles of Love" (Mr. C featuring Victoria Wilson-James) |
2002 | — | — | — | Change |
| "I Need Someone" (Ralph Falcon featuring Victoria Wilson-James) |
2007 | — | 2 | — | Non-album single |
| "Control" (Ralph Falcon featuring Victoria Wilson-James) |
2009 | — | — | — | |
| "Alien" (House of Wallenberg featuring Victoria Wilson-James) |
2016 | — | — | — | |
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||||
Filmography
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Road to Damascus | Greta | Lead role |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Oh What a Night! | Roxy | Lead role |
| 2001 | The Wiz | Glinda | Supporting role |
| 2004 | Purlie | Missy Judson | Lead role |
| 2005 | Lush Life | The Cop | Lead role |
References
edit- ^ "UK Certified Awards Search > Soul II Soul". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved May 28, 2013.
- ^ "US Certifications > Soul II Soul". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved May 28, 2013.
- ^ "UK Charts > Soul II Soul". Official Charts Company. Retrieved September 4, 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f "Victoria Wilson James > Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
- ^ Heritage Awards > Soul II Soul. PRS for Music. Retrieved June 30, 2016
- ^ a b Official Charts History > Soul II Soul. Official Charts. Retrieved June 20, 2017
- ^ a b c "Official Charts > Shamen". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
- ^ Tour archive for "Oh What a Night! (Musical)". UK Theatre Web. Retrieved June 20, 2017
- ^ Oh! What a Night (Hammersmith Apollo Theatre Londres – Angleterre). Musical's World. Retrieved June 21, 2017
- ^ Get up, get down, get reacquainted with Kid Creole. The Telegraph. Retrieved June 21, 2017
- ^ Victoria Wilson James DMC World Magazine Interview. DMC World Magazine. Retrieved June 20, 2017
- ^ Superchumbo – Chart History. Billboard. Retrieved June 20, 2017
- ^ Published by Nielsen Business Media, Inc. (June 30, 2001). Hot Dance Music. Billboard, Volume 113: No. 26, Page 28. Retrieved from https://books.google.com
- ^ Purlie is Victorious at The Bridewell. Indie London UK. Retrieved June 21, 2017
- ^ Lush Life, Live, Newcastle Review. The Guardian. Retrieved June 20, 2017
- ^ Star succumbs to lure of the stage. The Journal. Retrieved June 21, 2017
- ^ Taste of Lush Life. Chronicle Live. Retrieved June 21, 2017
- ^ Five faces blend perfectly. The Free Library. Retrieved June 21, 2017
- ^ Ralph Falcon – Chart History. Billboard. Retrieved June 20, 2017
- ^ Abstrakt Sunday Brunch & Launch of Victoria Wilson James One Woman Show 'Perseverance. Keyflow. Retrieved June 20, 2017
- ^ a b Pray 4 the World. Victoria Wilson James. Retrieved on January 6, 2018
- ^ "Pray" by Victoria Wilson James. SoundCloud Retrieved on January 6, 2018
- ^ Victoria Wilson-James > UK Chart History. Official Charts. Retrieved June 20, 2017