Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Adele’s record-breaking Grammy success caps a phenomenal rise to fame for the Tottenham-born singer — thanks in part to a "rubbish relationship".
The singer has become a household name in the US and in Britain, with her chart-topping second album, 21, inspired by the end of a romance.
"We’d just bicker over a cup of tea or the fact that my lighter wasn’t working," the singer told Rolling Stone, before adding: "He made me an adult and put me on the road that I’m travelling on."
The songstress, now 23, was born Adele Laurie Blue Adkins when her mother was just 18, and to a father she says she "never knew".
From an early age she wanted to sing and her mother regularly arranged the lamps in her house to form a spotlight so Adele could perform for family and friends.
Adele was offered a recording contract with XL Recordings after a friend posted her demos on MySpace soon after she graduated from the performing arts Brits School in Croydon in 2006.
Her debut album 19, also inspired by heartache, went straight in at number one following its release in 2008.
The singer went on to win two Grammys at the 2009 awards, including best new artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for breakthrough single Chasing Pavements.
Adele’s astonishing success continued with 21, following a jaw-dropping performance of the single Someone Like You at last year’s Brit Awards.
But at the peak of her powers, things began to unravel for Adele late last year when the record-breaking star was forced to cancel a string of live shows due to throat problems.
She underwent an operation in the US in early November after being diagnosed with a vocal cord haemorrhage, which threatened to wreck her singing voice forever. But the star, who doesn’t play arena or festival shows, is expected to make a full recovery.
Her performance at the Grammy Awards — where she won a record six gongs, including album of the year for 21 and record and song of the year for Rolling In The Deep — marked the first time she had been heard on stage since the surgery.
"It’s been a life-changing year," she said.
Picking up album of the year, a sobbing Adele said: "Oh my God... thank you so much. Thank you.
"First I want to say mum — girl did good. This record is inspired by something that is really normal and everyone’s been through, a rubbish relationship."
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