Alannah Myles facts for kids

Alannah Myles (born Alannah Byles on December 25, 1958) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She is famous for her hit song "Black Velvet". This song was a huge success, reaching number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1990. Alannah Myles has won important awards for her music, including a Grammy Award and several Juno Awards.

Early Life and Music Beginnings

Alannah Myles was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Her father, William Douglas Byles, was a pioneer in Canadian broadcasting. Alannah was the second of five children. She grew up in Ontario and loved music from a young age. She started writing songs when she was about nine years old. By age 12, she was already performing her songs in a group at a music festival.

Becoming a Music Star

Starting Her Career

When Alannah was 18, she began performing on her own in southern Ontario. She met Christopher Ward, a songwriter and recording artist. With his help, she formed her own band. They played rock and blues songs, and Alannah also worked on her own music.

Alannah changed her last name from Byles to Myles when she was 19. She wanted a name that sounded good for an entertainment career. She used money from TV commercials to make music demos. These demos helped her get a record deal. In 1987, she signed her first contract with Atlantic Records.

Acting and First Album

Before becoming a famous singer, Alannah Myles also acted. She appeared in a 1984 episode of The Kids of Degrassi Street. In this show, she played a singer and single mother. She also appeared in an episode of War of the Worlds in 1989. This was just a few weeks after her first album came out.

In 1989, Atlantic Records released her first album, called Alannah Myles. She toured all over the world for 18 months to promote it. This album was a huge success in Canada. It was the first debut album by a Canadian artist to sell over one million copies. Globally, her first album sold more than six million copies.

The Success of "Black Velvet"

The album Alannah Myles had four songs that became Top 40 hits. These included "Love Is" and "Black Velvet". "Black Velvet" became a number-one hit. It was played on the radio more than any other song in 1989 and 1990. By 2005, it had been played over four million times on the radio.

"Black Velvet" earned Alannah Myles a Grammy Award in 1991 for Best Female Rock Performance. She also won three Juno Awards for the song and album.

More Albums and Awards

In 1992, Alannah Myles released her second album, Rockinghorse. She received another Grammy nomination for this album. The album included hit songs like "Our World, Our Times" and "Sonny, Say You Will". She also won a Juno Award and a Much Music People's Choice Award for "Our World, Our Times".

In 1991, Alannah Myles sang "O Canada" at a Major League Baseball game. This was at the Skydome in Toronto. It was shown on CBS Sports.

Her album A Rival (1997) included the hit song "Bad 4 You". She wrote and recorded this song with other artists.

Recent Music and Projects

After some time away from the spotlight, Alannah Myles continued to make music. In 2001, she sang a duet with Michael Sadler from the band Saga. They covered the song "Don't Give Up". In 2004, she recorded a cover of "I Can't Stand the Rain" with Jeff Healey on guitar. This was for a Tina Turner tribute album.

In 2005, she took part in Melodifestivalen in Sweden. This is a competition to choose Sweden's song for the Eurovision Song Contest.

In 2007, she released an Elvis Tribute EP. It included a new version of "Black Velvet" and two new songs. These songs were later on her fifth studio album, also called Black Velvet, released in 2008. This album featured 10 new songs. One of her songs, "Trouble," won an award in the blues category at the 2009 International Songwriting Contest. Another song, "Give Me Love," won the USA Songwriting Competition.

In 2013, her Black Velvet album was re-released as 85bpm. It had new images and a new song called "Can't Stand the Rain." This version featured a guitar solo by Canadian guitarist Jeff Healey.

Discography

• Alannah Myles (1989)
• Rockinghorse (1992)
• A-lan-nah (1995)
• Arival (1997)
• Black Velvet (2008)
• 85 BPM (2014)

Awards and nominations

See also

In Spanish: Alannah Myles para niños

• Canadian rock
• List of diamond-certified albums in Canada
• Music of Canada