INDIA ARIE

India Arie born India Arie Simpson; October 3, 1975 is a Grammy Award-winning American soul, R&B, and neo soul musician, songwriter, and producer. She has sold over 3.3 million records in the U.S. and 10 million worldwide. She has won four Grammy Awards and received 18 nominations, including Album of the Year, Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Best New Artist. Simpson was born in Denver, Colorado. She absorbed musical skills early in life as she was encouraged by both parents. Her mother Joyce is a former singer and is now her stylist. She has an older brother named J’On. After her parents divorced, Simpson’s mother moved the family to Atlanta, Georgia when she was thirteen. Simpson had taken up a succession of musical instruments throughout her schooling in Denver, but her interest in the guitar while attending the Savannah College of Art and Design, in Savannah, led to a personal revelation about songwriting and performing. Arie collaborated with such artists as Sezen Aksu, Keb Mo, Gramps Morgan and Musiq Soulchild to fulfill her self-proclaimed desire to “do projects with people who are making music that is meaningful, with a lot of integrity and a lot of sonic diversity”. With nearly eight million albums sold, India Arie has established herself as an artist and humanitarian of substance, working steadily throughout her career to champion causes close to her heart. As a UN Ambassador for UNICEF, she has traveled to Africa numerous times to address the AIDS crisis, and is featured in the documentary Tracking The Monster: Ashley Judd & India.Arie confront Aids in Africa. Ends