Andreea Bălan facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Andreea Bălan
Background information
Born	(1984-06-23) 23 June 1984 (age 41)
Origin	Ploiești, Romania
Genres	Pop EDM
Occupation(s)	Singer
Years active	1998–present
Labels	Cat Music

Andreea Bălan (born on June 23, 1984) is a famous Romanian pop singer. She started her career on TV shows for children. Later, she became well-known as part of the girl group Andrè from 1998 to 2002, alongside Andreea Antonescu. After the group, she began her solo career in 2002 and has released more than six solo albums. Andreea Bălan is famous for her exciting concert tours in Romania. Her shows often mix dance music with amazing performances and many costume changes.

Life and Music Journey

Early Years and First Steps in Music (1994-1998)

Andreea Bălan was born in Ploiești, Romania. She was known as a "very good child" when she was young. She went to Ion Luca Caragiale High School in her hometown.

Andreea started singing at age 10, guided by her father. She wrote several songs and performed them at children's shows in Ploiești. A music producer named Mihai Constantinescu noticed her. He invited her to perform on the children's TV show Ba da, ba nu on TVR 1. She also appeared on other shows like Feriți-vă de măgăruș and Abracadabra. During this time, she won awards at children's festivals. At the Little Prince International Festival, she won the "Little Princess of Europe" award. The President of Romania, Emil Constantinescu, gave her this award.

In 1997, Andreea tried out for the Eurovision National Gala. She sang "Un univers mai liniștit" but was too young to compete. The next year, in 1998, Andreea Bălan became the first child in Romania to release an album on a CD. The album was called Amețiți de fum. It had 10 songs written by her father. Even though it was officially released, it wasn't widely sold because there wasn't enough money for distribution.

The Andrè Group (1999–2001)

In late 1998, the music group Andrè was formed. Andreea Antonescu and Andreea Bălan met on the TV show Ba da, ba nu. The group became very popular in Romania and other countries, especially with teenagers. Most of the songs on their first album, La întâlnire, were written by Andreea Bălan's father.

Their first album came out in May 1999 and was a big hit. It sold over 50,000 copies by September of that year. The group became popular because of their simple, catchy songs. They performed songs like "La întâlnire" and "Să ne distrăm" on TV. Their first song was also popular on radio stations.

In the summer of 1999, they released "Liberă la mare" (Free at the Sea). This song became a signature hit for the group. It won first place at the Mamaia's Festival, making Andreea Bălan the youngest singer to win that award. Later that year, they released the album Noapte de vis (Dream Night). The song "Noapte de vis (Moșule, ce tânăr ești)" (Dream Night (Santa, how young you are)) was promoted with a music video.

Andrè released their third album, Prima iubire (First Love), in 2000. It included the popular songs "Prima iubire" and "Lasă-mă papa la mare" (Let me go to the sea, daddy). Both songs were Top 20 hits in Romania. They then released another album, Am să-mi fac de cap (I'll Do What I Want), in 2000. This album featured the songs "Am să-mi fac de cap" and "Flori de tei" (Linden Flowers), both with music videos. The video for "Flori de tei" was the most expensive music video made in Romania at that time.

In early 2001, the magazine Bravo named Andrè the "Best band for teens." Their record label, Cat Music, gave the group five platinum and one gold awards for selling 1.5 million albums. They were called "princesses dance music" and were the first group to receive so many awards. The group broke up for a short time due to disagreements. Andreea Bălan then formed a duo with Alina Sorescu, but this project ended after six months. A greatest hits album for Andrè, called Andrè - The Best Of, was released during this time.

The group reunited briefly after Andreea Antonescu's father passed away. They released another album, O noapte și-o zi (One Night and One Day), in 2001, with a single and video of the same name. However, they split up again. Andreea Bălan later said she didn't think they would work together again, except maybe for a single song.

During their time together, Andrè was often talked about for their fashion style. They influenced young people with their platform heels, braided hairstyles, and mini skirts. Tabloid newspapers often wrote about rumors of their disagreements.

Solo Career and New Music Styles (2002–2007)

On June 23, 2002, Andreea Bălan released her second solo album, Te joci cu mine (You Play With Me). The album's main song, "Te joci cu mine," was originally written for Andrè. This song was promoted and appeared on the Romanian Top 100. Over 30,000 copies of the album were sold between June and September 2002.

After this success, she released another album, Liberă din nou (Free Again), in September. From December 2002 to January 2003, she went on a tour of 14 concerts in the United States. This album included the songs "Liberă din nou" and "Plâng de dor" (I Cry from Longing). In the summer of 2003, the song "Nopți de vară" (Summer Nights) was released as part of a new version of the Liberă din nou album. It was very popular on the radio and won first place at Mamaia's Festival. Around this time, Andreea started working with the band News, a group of 12 musicians, for a national tour.

In 2004, Andreea Bălan released the album Așa sunt eu (This Is How I Am). This album had a more mature pop-rock sound. She promoted five songs from this album as singles, which was unusual for Romanian artists. Three of these songs made it onto the Romanian Top 100. The songs on the album were inspired by her own life, talking about fame, being in the public eye, and love. In 2005, Andreea Bălan won an award for the best website at the MTV Romania Music Awards. Her website showed a new image for her, with dark clothes and a more rebellious look.

Andreea released two more songs from her album Andreea B. The first was "Nu știu să fiu numai pentru tine" (I Don't Know How to Be Only for You), featuring Keo. The second song, "Prinde-mă, aprinde-mă!" (Catch Me, Light Me Up!), became very popular and is one of her most-watched videos on YouTube.

Dancing and Return to Dance Music (2008–Present)

In 2007, Andreea Bălan decided to join the dance competition TV show Dansez pentru tine (Dancing for You) on PRO TV. She danced with a partner and they were very popular with both the audience and the judges. They finished in third place. In 2008, they returned for a special "League winners" season and won first place. Between these seasons, Andreea also took part in an international version of the show called Dancing Around the World in Mexico. She and her dance partner, Petrișor Ruge, came in second place and became very popular in Mexico. After her appearances on Dansez pentru tine, her career became even more successful.

Catalin Maruta and Andreea Bălan

Andreea Bălan has been one of the top-selling artists in Romania for concerts since 2008. She has performed in over 150 concerts.

On June 28, 2009, Andreea released a new song called "God" on Kiss FM. In 2010, "Trippin'" became one of her most popular songs and her first Top 40 hit on the Romanian Top 100 in five years. She performed "Trippin'" at several events, including the final of Miss Universe Romania in 2010. The song mixes dance music with a style called popcorn, which was popular on Romanian radio at the time.

The song "Like a Bunny" was released on May 13, 2011, on Andreea's YouTube channel. In June 2011, she released "Loving" with other singers like Andra and Connect-R. In 2012, Andreea released the song "Money Love." She also created several dance shows, including Dancing Show, Bunny Show, and Christmas Party. In October 2012, she released her twenty-fifth music video, "Mă doare fără tine" (It Hurts Without You). In August 2013, she released "Things U do 2 me" with Mike Diamondz. Andreea Bălan continues to perform many concerts across the country.

In 2015, Disney chose Andreea to sing the Romanian voice of Esmeralda in the movie The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Image and Music Style

Throughout her career, Andreea Bălan has changed her music style and image to keep up with new trends. Her album Superwoman showed a clear change from her older music. It included elements of samba, rock and roll, and jive, which helped define her image as a solo dancer.

Andreea Bălan's dance moves and costumes have sometimes been criticized, but generally, her concerts have received good reviews from both the public and journalists.

Andreea Bălan has said that Celine Dion, Mariah Carey, and Loredana Groza are singers she admires. She is often called the Romanian princess of pop music or the Romanian Britney Spears.

Andreea in Buftea for the event "Miscarea inseamna viata"

Personal Life

In 2004, Andreea Bălan moved from her family home in Ploiești to Bucharest. She met Teo Păcurar there, and they got engaged in 2005. However, they broke up in 2006. Soon after, Andreea was seen at events with Keo, who helped her through the breakup.

Andreea Bălan studied journalism and philosophy at Spiru Haret University in Bucharest. She wanted to have a future career in television.

Andreea Bălan is not related to Dan Bălan, who is also a Moldovan singer and songwriter.

Dealing with Tabloid News

Andreea Bălan has often been featured in tabloid newspapers.

In April 2010, she had a disagreement with TV presenter Cătălin Măruță on the PRO TV show Happy Hour. Andreea spoke about her dislike for tabloid newspapers. This conflict continued for a short time, with both of them criticizing each other in the news. It even led to Andreea not being able to appear in a special edition of the show Dansez pentru tine.

Music Albums

Albums with Andrè

• La Întâlnire (1999)
• Noapte de Vis (199ire]] (1999)
• Prima Iubire (2000)
• Am Să-mi Fac De Cap (2000)
• The Best Of (2001)
• O Noapte Și-o Zi (2001)

Solo Albums

• Te joci cu mine (2002)
• Liberă din nou (2002)
• Așa sunt eu (2004)
• Andreea B (2006)
• SuperWoman (2009)
• Soare după nori (2021)

Music Videos

See also

In Spanish: Andreea Bălan para niños