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Cathy Dennis

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Cathy Dennis
Birth nameCatherine Roseanne Dennis
Born(1969-03-25)25 March 1969(age 55)
OriginNorwich,Norfolk,England
Genres
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • record producer
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • keyboards
Years active1989–present
Labels
Formerly ofD Mob
Websitecathydennisofficial

Catherine Roseanne Dennis(born 25 March 1969)[1][2]is a British singer, songwriter and record producer. She was discovered as a teenager by music managerSimon Fuller,which led to her featuring on the hit dance single "C'mon and Get My Love"withD Mobin 1989.

In the early 1990s, Dennis saw international solo success with her debut albumMove to This(1990), which included three US top-ten singles including "Just Another Dream"and"Touch Me (All Night Long)";the latter peaked at number two and remains her signature song. It was followed by the albumsInto the Skyline(1992) andAm I the Kinda Girl?(1996), her final release, which included a cover ofthe Kinks' "Waterloo Sunset"that reached number 11 in the UK.

Dennis pivoted to songwriting in the 2000s and became renowned for her work, scoring eight UK number ones, winning sixIvor Novello Awardsand twoGrammys.[3]Her co-credits include the multi-platinum singles "Can't Get You Out of My Head"byKylie Minogue,"Toxic"by Britney Spears, and"I Kissed a Girl"byKaty Perry.In 2004, Dennis was listed 66th in theQlist of the 100 most influential people in music. In 2006, she won the UK music industry's Woman of the Year Award.[4][5]

Early life

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Educated atTaverham High School,as a teenager she was spotted recordingStevie Wonder-influenced demos at The Kitchen in Norwich with her father (himself an experienced musician and local restaurateur) on piano. At the time she was working forNorwich Union.In 1986,Simon Fullersigned Dennis when she was 17 to his company19 Managementand his labelPolydor,and this began a career-long association that has seen Dennis provide songs for many Fuller-related artists and projects.[6][7]

Performing career

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Dennis achieved her first success as a vocalist withD Mob,when theirsingle"C'mon and Get My Love"(which was credited as" introducing "Dennis) reached No. 15 in theUK Singles Chartand No. 10 in theBillboardHot 100in 1989.[citation needed]It is regarded as an underground classic in thedance musicfield, and a second collaboration with D Mob, "That's the Way of the World", was also a hit.[8]It was followed by Dennis's debut album,Move to This.[8]She subsequently scored threesolohits, all of which reached the UK Top 20 and the USTop 10.[9]She enjoyed considerable success in Japan in the early 1990s. The three solo hits were: "Just Another Dream"(UK No. 13, US No. 9, Australia No. 14), which featured D Mob onbacking vocals;[8]a cover of the Wish andFonda Rae1984clubhit "Touch Me (All Night Long)"(UK No. 5, US No. 2, Australia No. 16), which is probably her most remembered hit to date;[8]and "Too Many Walls"(UK No. 17, US No. 8, Australia No. 57).

"Touch Me (All Night Long)" stayed at No. 2 on theBillboardHot 100 for two weeks, and was kept out of the No. 1 spot byHi-Five's "I Like The Way (The Kissing Game)" in the first week, andMariah Carey's "I Don't Wanna Cry"in the second week. The song was acoverand lyrical reworking of a 1984 single by Wish featuring Fonda Rae, which had peaked at No. 70 on the USR&Bchart that year. "Touch Me (All Night Long)" reached No. 1 on the USHot Dance Club Playchart, and its follow-up, "Too Many Walls", which Dennis co-wrote withAnne DudleyofArt of Noise(who also co-wrote theABCtrack "All of My Heart" ), was a No. 1Adult Contemporaryhit in the United States. It was around this time Dennis agreed to joinClub MTV's first tour, booked for six weeks. In an interview on the late night showInto the Night StarringRick Dees,she explained she dropped out after three days, accusing one ofMilli Vanilli's members (the tour's headline act) of sexual harassment.[10]During this period, she recorded a song called "Find the Key to Your Life" withDavid Morales,for thesoundtrackto the movieTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze.Subsequent releases were only minor hits.

Dennis released her second album,Into the Skyline,in September 1992, written with a focus toward the US market. The album featured the singles "You Lied to Me","Irresistible","Moments of Love ","Falling",and"Why"– the latter was credited to D Mob with Dennis. The album got to No. 8 in the UK Albums Chart, whilst in the US Billboard Hot 100," You Lied to Me "was a Top 40 hit - her final American Top 40 single as a performer[8]- and "Irresistible" made theAdult ContemporaryTop 10; however, the album never charted. Dennis experienced a brief peak of fame, making a cameo inBeverly Hills, 90210singing the songs "Moments of Love" (a minor US Adult Contemporary chart hit), "Why" (in the episode, not to feature D Mob) and "Touch Me (All Night Long)". In Japan, the album was calledInto the Skyline +1,and featured threeextra tracks:"Nothing Moves Me", a previousB-side,and two tracks that were both released as singles, "It's My Style", and "Love's a Cradle". She also provided background vocals onPM Dawn's US Top 10 and UK Top 20 hit "Looking through Patient Eyes", released in 1993. In that same year, she sang a duet withLance Ellingtonon the soundtrack ofRobin Hood: Men in Tights

Dennis began to record a third album,Inspiration.The title track was recorded withTodd Terry,along with another song "Is There Life After You". Only one song from the recording sessions was ever released, "S.O.S.", which can be found on theBeverly Hills 90210: The College Yearssoundtrack. She wrote her first song for another artist by writing a song forDannii Minoguecalled "Love's on Every Corner".

In 1996, Dennis changed her musical style: away from the dance-pop sound of previous releases, to a more traditional singer-songwriter approach. The resulting album,Am I the Kinda Girl?,was more in keeping with theBritpopsound of bands such asBlurand performers such asStephen Duffy,and featured collaborations withGuy ChambersofThe Lemon TreesandAndy PartridgeofXTC.Three singles from the album were released: "West End Pad" (UK No. 25), "Waterloo Sunset"- a cover ofThe Kinks' song (UK No. 11), and her last solo single, "When Your Dreams Turn to Dust" (UK No. 43).[8]

In 2001,Kylie Minoguehad a worldwide hit with the Dennis and Rob Davis penned song "Can't Get You Out of My Head".The following year Dennis won the Best Dance Recording Grammy for writing"Come into My World".She followed that up withBritney Spears's hit song "Toxic"which also won the Grammy for Best Dance Recording. Dennis had a string of hits withS Club 7;she wrote almost all their hit singles such as "Never Had a Dream Come True", and also worked on the singles for the spin-off groupS Club Juniorswhich was a younger version of S Club 7. Dennis wrote hit songs forCéline Dion,Delta Goodrem,and forHear’SayandBardot.She also wrote the fastest selling debut single in UK history for recording artistWill Young,the winner of the British music competition reality showPop Idol,and his runner-upGareth Gates.Dennis wrote the theme song to the television seriesAmerican Idol.She wrote several songs for former S Club 7 memberRachel Stevensincluding "Sweet Dreams My LA Ex",and also two songs forPhil Roy,one of which was on the soundtrack for the filmAs Good as It GetsstarringJack NicholsonandHelen Hunt.

According to news reports, Dennis was working on a new album under the name Sexcassettes, which she planned to release in 2008.[11]She has collaborated withMark Ronsonon his album,The Business.[12]As of 2015, Dennis became a vocal affiliate withGalantisby first performing, uncredited, on their debut albumPharmacyon the tracks "Runaway (U & I)"and" Louder, Harder, Better ".[13]She later co-wrote their song "Love on Me"from their second albumThe Aviaryand sang on five songs from their 2019 albumChurch.In 2019, Dennis returned to performing. She celebrated her 30th anniversary in the music business with a performance at London's Mighty Hoopla Festival.[14]In 2020 and 2021, Dennis wrote forNow Unitedand collaborated with composerWill Gregoryon the soundtrack for the BBC/Discovery Channel docuseries,Serengeti.

Songwriting career

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Main article:List of songs written by Cathy Dennis

Dennis has written a number of award-winning songs and international hit singles. Her first success was with "Bumper to Bumper", the B-side to the Spice Girls' hit "Wannabe".[citation needed]

Dennis continued this success by co-writing thePop Idoltheme (re-used for numerous international remakes of the show, includingAmerican Idol), and writing for Idol contestants, includingKelly Clarkson,Will Young,Gareth Gates,andClay Aiken.Clarkson's single "Before Your Love"(a double a-side with"A Moment Like This") was Dennis's first US No. 1.[15]

Dennis's "Can't Get You Out of My Head"(recorded byKylie Minogue) spent four weeks at number one in Britain, while also rekindling interest in Minogue in America, where it hit no. 7 on theBillboardHot 100.With over three million copies sold worldwide, "Can't Get You Out of My Head" became the second highest selling single in 2001.[citation needed]

Dennis also co-wrote the international hit "Toxic" by Britney Spears, which went to number one in the UK and worldwide.[citation needed]

Dennis's biggest success came in 2008 withKaty Perry's smash hit "I Kissed a Girl"co-written alongsideKaty Perry,Max MartinandDr Luke,which ranks among thebest-selling digital singles in history.[citation needed]

Dennis co-wrote three tracks on theGalantisalbumPharmacy,one of which, "Runaway (U & I)",reached No. 1 in the UK Dance Chart, No. 9 in the US Dance Chart, and was nominated for a Grammy Award. Dennis has written withKT Tunstall,Black Honey,andSigala.More recently, Dennis co-wrote three tracks on the newGalantisalbum out in 2024 and theLaura Whitesingle "Nobody".[citation needed]

Personal life

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Dennis briefly datedNoel Fitzpatrick,veterinary surgeonand host ofThe Supervet.The relationship ended in 2003.[16]

Awards and nominations

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World Music AwardsMusic Awards

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Year Nominee / work Award Result
1991 Herself No. 1 New Pop Female Artist Won

BillboardMusic Awards

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Year Nominee / work Award Result
1991[17] Herself No. 1 New Pop Female Artist Won

Brit Awards

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Year Nominee / work Award Result Ref.
1992 Herself British Female Solo Artist Nominated [18]

Grammy Awards

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Year Nominee / work Award Result
2004[19] "Come into My World" Best Dance Recording Won
2005 "Toxic"

Ivor Novello Awards

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Year Nominee / work Award Result
2001[20] "Never Had a Dream Come True" Best Song Musically & Lyrically Nominated
2002[20] "Can't Get You Out of My Head" International Hit of the Year Won
Most Performed Work
The Ivors Dance Award
Best Selling UK Single Nominated
2003[20] "Anything is Possible" Won
2005[20] "Toxic" Most Performed Work
2018 Herself Outstanding Song Collection

Discography

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Main article:Cathy Dennis discography

See also

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References

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  1. ^Gregory, Andy (2002)International Who's Who in Popular Music 2002,Europa;ISBN1-85743-161-8,p. 133
  2. ^Brown, Mark (15 August 2008)."'Her songs are ostensibly throwaway pop songs, but they're serious... they completely stick in your head'".The Guardian.Retrieved22 February2013.
  3. ^Brandle, Lars (9 August 2013)."Imagem Music U.K. Sign Cathy Dennis to Global Deal".Billboard Biz.Retrieved9 August2015.
  4. ^Ciar Byrne (29 June 2004)."The music industry's 100 most influential people".The Independent.Archived fromthe originalon 9 February 2010.Retrieved11 October2008.
  5. ^"Women of the Year".womenoftheyearawards.co.uk. Archived fromthe originalon 28 August 2008.Retrieved11 October2008.
  6. ^"Cathy Dennis named Woman of the Year".Music Week.United Business Media. 8 December 2006.Retrieved11 October2008.
  7. ^Mark Brown (15 August 2008)."Profile: Cathy Dennis".The Guardian.Guardian News and Media Limited.Retrieved11 October2008.
  8. ^abcdefColin Larkin,ed. (2000).The Virgin Encyclopedia of Nineties Music(First ed.).Virgin Books.p. 120.ISBN0-7535-0427-8.
  9. ^Colin Larkin,ed. (1998).The Virgin Encyclopedia of Dance Music(First ed.).Virgin Books.pp. 82/3.ISBN0-7535-0252-6.
  10. ^"Cathy Dennis on The Rick Dees Show".YouTube.Retrieved3 November2023.
  11. ^"Dennis Plans Comeback".Retrieved25 July2008.
  12. ^"Mark Ronsonrecruits Santigold, Scissor Sisters for new album".Nme.2 February 2010.Retrieved31 December2011.
  13. ^"INTERVIEW: Galantis talk Pharmacy, song writing, and reveal their latest collab with Kaskade".EDMNYC.22 September 2015.Retrieved12 July2017.
  14. ^"Cathy Dennis announces first live performance in 20 years".Officialcharts.Retrieved30 April2020.
  15. ^"UK writers win biggest US hit as Clarkson hits number one".Music Week.United Business Media. 30 September 2002.Retrieved11 October2008.
  16. ^Freyne, Patrick."Was Britney Spears's pop song Toxic written about Irish Supervet?".The Irish Times.Retrieved21 June2019.
  17. ^"Billboard Music Awards".billboardmusicawards.Retrieved19 July2019.
  18. ^"BRIT Awards 1992".YouTube.
  19. ^"Cathy Dennis".Grammy.Retrieved17 July2019.
  20. ^abcd"Archive | The Ivors | The Ivors Academy | Champions of Music Creators".The Ivors Academy.
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