Taio Cruz

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Taio Cruz
Warner Bros.
  • Universal
    • Websitetaiocruz.com

    Jacob Taio Cruz (

    Music of Black Origin Awards
    (MOBO) nomination.

    On 12 October 2009, Cruz released his follow-up album Rokstarr, which includes the number one singles "Break Your Heart" and "Dynamite". Cruz collaborated with Kesha on the single "Dirty Picture", and with Kylie Minogue and Travie McCoy on his single "Higher". Cruz wrote and recorded the song "Telling the World" as the lead single from the soundtrack to the 2011 animated film Rio. Cruz's third studio album, TY.O, was first released in Germany on 12 December 2011.

    In 2012, Cruz co-wrote

    Booty Bounce" which was released by Spinnin' Records
    .

    Biography

    Early life and career

    Cruz was born in London to a Nigerian

    preparatory school in Warwickshire and Battle Abbey School in East Sussex,[18][19][20] before relocating to London where he went to Stanmore College.[21]

    Cruz's songwriting career began as part of

    Tricky Stewart's writing collective, RedZone Entertainment[22] and achieved notability in 2005 when he was awarded a Brit Award for co-writing Will Young's 2004 single, "Your Game".[23]

    Cruz is the founder and chief executive of Rockstar Music London, which in 2006 released his debut single "I Just Wanna Know". The single charted at #29 in the UK singles charts. It won him some admirers including Island Records's Darcus Beese and Monte Lipman, who, according to manager Binns, "both believed 'I Just Wanna Know' fitted the format on both sides of the Atlantic".[24] In 2006, Cruz signed a split single deal with Universal Music Group companies, Republic Records and the UK branch of Island Records.

    2007–08: Departure

    Main article: Departure (Taio Cruz album)

    In September 2007, Cruz released his second single "

    Catfights & Spotlights, which peaked at No. 20. It was later revealed that Cruz narrowly missed out on the chance to record the song "Umbrella" which was recorded by Rihanna and ended up topping charts around the world.[22]

    2009–2011: Rokstarr, international breakthrough and The Rokstarr Collection

    Main articles: Rokstarr and The Rokstarr Collection
    Cruz at Tup Tup Palace nightclub, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK. 2009.

    Cruz was featured on

    Best British Single.[29] The success of the song attracted the attention of David Massey and Daniel Werner from Mercury/Island Def Jam who were excited and aggressive about releasing "Break Your Heart" in the United States on their label.[30] According to Cruz's manager Jamie Binns, the relationship with Monte Lipman at Universal Republic had "gone a bit quiet" by this point and as Taio wanted to be with the label that was most enthusiastic about his music, a move from Universal Republic to Mercury/Island Def Jam was engineered.[30]

    The single reached the top spot in the United States for one week on the

    Billboard Awards, including Top Hot 100 Song.[34][35]

    Rokstarr was followed by the compilation album The Rokstarr Collection which includes songs both from Departure and the international version of Rokstarr.[36] Cruz later released four versions of his single "Higher"—one featuring Kylie Minogue, one featuring Travie McCoy, one featuring both, and one with just himself.

    Cruz has also been featured on the soundtrack of American reality TV series Jersey Shore.[37]

    2011–12: TY.O

    Main article: TY.O

    In March 2011, Cruz premiered an all-new song called "Telling the World", which was written by Cruz and Alan Kasirye for the Rio soundtrack. The track was not featured on any of Cruz's prior studio albums.[38] On 23 May 2011, Cruz received his first Billboard Award in the United States. He announced onstage that his third album, entitled Black and Leather, would be released in the fourth quarter of 2011.[39] In June 2011, Cruz released a collaborative single, "Little Bad Girl", with French DJ David Guetta and American rapper Ludacris. The song was a worldwide smash, topping singles charts across the world.[40] During July and August 2011, a series of unreleased songs, recorded during the album sessions, were leaked to YouTube. in an interview, Cruz promised a "fun" and "energetic" album, and claimed that due to the leak, none of the tracks posted on YouTube would be included on the album. Cruz claimed, "It's a shame really, because one person has spoilt it for all the fans. They could have had an album packed with 17, 18 tracks, and now, they're only getting eleven because of one stupid act of tomfoolery."[41] During the interview, Cruz also claimed that the title of the album had been changed to Troublemaker, after one of the tracks included on the album. On 4 October 2011, the single "Hangover" was officially released in Germany and the US, and it was rumoured that a solo version of the song, that features on the physical release, would be included as a bonus track on the album. However, these rumours were later quashed.[42]

    Around October 2011, the album was made available for pre-order, and as such, the album's final title, TY.O, was revealed. Cruz, via his Twitter account, made the decision to name the album TY.O after he expressed his annoyance at people constantly pronouncing his name wrong. The album was first released in Germany on 2 December 2011. It will be released in the UK on 31 December 2012. It was going to release in the United States on 17 May 2012, but it was released on 31 December 2012, coinciding with the UK release, but with new tracks, including the U.S. single "Fast Car".

    Cruz was scheduled to co-headline

    Olympic Stadium saw Cruz sing his own song "Dynamite", and also perform "Written in the Stars" alongside Jessie J and Tinie Tempah
    .

    2013–present: #Black, Roses Collection, and business ventures

    In early 2013, Cruz recorded vocals over the song "Brazil" by electronic artist Deadmau5 and titled the remake "Touch the Sky".

    In August 2013, Taio Cruz announced on his Facebook and Twitter account that he would be releasing a new app. It is called Kewe and is a social media app for Android and iOS, where people can interact and keep up with what Taio Cruz is doing. It was launched on 18 August 2013.

    On 24 November 2013, Cruz announced his fourth studio album, #Black via his Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter pages.

    On 21 June 2014, Cruz released a new track titled "Don't You Dare" produced by Dr. Luke for his upcoming #Black album.[44]

    On 27 April 2015, Cruz released his first single in two years. "

    The Monsters & The Strangerz, was fully released on 24 July 2015 through a joint venture between the multinational Cruz owned venture capital company, Tourean and Kobalt Music Group. The "Do What You Like" full release features remixes by Bel Air, Billy Da Kid, KREAM and Zoo Station.[45][46][47] "Do What You Like" is the first single from Cruz's Roses Collection.[48] According to his biography, Cruz will henceforth release collections of singles; rejecting the outdated album format.[47] Cruz called this particular collection Roses, "because every rose is unique". Roses will consist of around ten tracks, each with its own lifecycle.[49]

    On 4 December 2015,

    Booty Bounce", featuring vocals from Cruz.[50]

    On 10 November 2017, Cruz released his first song in two years, titled "Row the Body", via

    Warner Bros. Records. The single features rapper French Montana
    .

    On September 6, 2019, Cruz released "Time For You", which features Wonder Stereo.

    Writing and production

    Cruz has written songs on albums by

    Usher and "Little Bad Girl", featuring Cruz and Ludacris. He also wrote "Mechanics of the Heart" for Cheryl's album A Million Lights
    .

    Other ventures

    RXTR/Rokstarr brand

    On 1 September 2009, Cruz launched the short lived, unsuccessful and now dormant brand Rokstarr, a fashion and accessories brand which had a focus on sunglasses. Speaking in October to R&B writer Pete Lewis, Cruz promoted his brand: "There's a load of US celebrities that are all rocking the sunglasses already—Kid Cudi, Justin Timberlake, Kanye West.... Then in the UK we have The Saturdays, JLS, Daniel Merriweather—who've all been twittering and writing on their blogs how much they love them. So yeah, it's definitely my new album 'Rokstarr' and the fashion brand that are my two main focuses at the moment."[52]

    Meanwhile, speaking again to Lewis in April 2010, Cruz gave his brand more free publicity: "We're currently looking to expand the brand and possibly go into things like watches. I've also got a new subsidiary of Rokstarr called 'Rok By Rokstarr'. And we've just started doing things like jeans and T-shirts, and stuff that more of the fans of Taio Cruz can buy. Because with Rokstarr in itself being so expensive, a lot of the kids out there who want to buy Rokstarr things can't. So we're bringing in stuff that's a little bit more High Street and more affordable."[53]

    In 2012 the brand, in a vain attempt to revive its fortunes was renamed to RXTR, a backronym for Riots and Twelve Rebels. The new name came along with new products, watches, which were immediately stocked at Selfridges on Oxford Street in London.[54]

    As of 2015, the RXTR website redirects to Cruz's personal website, and the brand's Facebook account has not been updated for over a year.

    Philanthropy

    Cruz filmed a public service announcement with

    Little Kids Rock, a national nonprofit that works to restore and revitalize music education in disadvantaged U.S. public schools.[55]

    Discography

    Main article: Taio Cruz discography

    Writer discography

    Awards and nominations

    Year Award Category Work Result
    2004
    Brit Awards[23]
    		 Best British Song "Your Game" Won
    2008 MOBO Awards Best UK Male Nominated
    2010 American Music Awards Breakthrough Artist Won
    2010
    Brit Awards[29]
    		 Best British Song "
    Break Your Heart
    "    		 Nominated
    2010 iTunes Best Album & Song Best Song "Dynamite" Nominated
    2010
    Premios 40 Principales
    		 Best International Song "
    Break Your Heart
    "    		 Nominated
    2010
    ASCAP Awards
    		 Ascap Vanguard Award Departure Won
    2011
    Brit Awards[34]
    		 Best British Song "Dynamite" Nominated
    2011 Virgin Media Awards[56] Best Male Nominated
    2011 Best Collaboration "Dirty Picture" Nominated
    2011 Best Video Nominated
    2011 Billboard Awards[35] Top New Artist Nominated
    2011 Top Hot 100 Song "Dynamite" Won
    2011 Top Pop Song Won
    2011 Top Digital Song Won
    2011 Top Radio Song Nominated
    2011 Top Streaming Song Nominated
    2011 2011 MuchMusic Video Awards MuchMusic.com Most Watched Video "Dynamite" Won
    2011
    ASCAP Awards
    		 Song Of The Year "Dynamite" Won
    2012
    ASCAP Awards
    		 (Honoured) Most Performed Song "Dynamite" Won
    2012 "Without You" Won

    Notes

    1. ^ Sources differ regarding his birth year; examples include 1980, 1982, 1983 and 1985.

    References

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    18. ^ Billboard, vol. 122, issue 13, 3 April, 2010, p. 24
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    21. ^ "Cruz control". Halesowen News. 23 August 2008. Archived from the original on 20 September 2021. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
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    24. ^ "A&R, Record Label / Company, Music Publishing, Artist Manager and Music Industry Directory". Archived from the original on 9 June 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2016.
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    26. United Business Media. Archived from the original
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    30. ^ a b c "Interview With Jamie Binns". HitQuarters. 18 April 2011. Archived from the original on 9 June 2012. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
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    33. ^ "Taio Cruz Talks 'Energetic' New Album, Justin Bieber & Jennifer Lopez" Archived 17 June 2013 at the Wayback Machine. Billboard. Retrieved 11 July 2012
    34. ^ a b "The BRITs 2011: British Single" Archived 30 May 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Brits.co.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2012
    35. ^ a b "2011 Billboard Music Awards (Complete List of Winners)" Archived 21 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Yahoo. Retrieved 11 July 2012
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    37. ^ Kaufman, Gil (28 July 2010). "Eminem Edges Out Rick Ross To Hold Billboard #1 For Fifth Week". MTV. MTV Networks (Viacom). Archived from the original on 30 July 2010. Retrieved 30 July 2010.
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    39. ^ "Taio Cruz wins first Billboard award" Archived 29 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine, Digital Spy. Retrieved 23 May 2011.
    40. ^ "David Guetta teams with Taio Cruz, Ludacris for 'Little Bad Girl' video" Archived 19 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine, Digital Spy. Retrieved 19 July 2011.
    41. ^ "Taio Cruz promises "fun, energetic" new album" Archived 29 December 2011 at the Wayback Machine, Digital Spy. Retrieved 6 September 2011
    42. ^ "Taio Cruz, Flo Rida release new single 'Hangover'" Archived 16 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Digital Spy. Retrieved 4 October 2011
    43. ^ "International Planet Pit Tour". Archived from the original on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
    44. ^ "New Music: Taio Cruz - 'Don't You Dare'". Directlyrics. Archived from the original on 15 July 2015. Retrieved 8 August 2015.
    45. ^ "Taio Cruz Releases His New Single 'Do What You Like' Today". Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg L.P. Archived from the original on 17 August 2015. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
    46. ^ "Taio Cruz Releases His New Single 'Do What You Like' Today". Pressat.co.uk. Archived from the original on 15 July 2015. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
    47. ^ a b Lipshutz, Jason (30 April 2015). "Taio Cruz Premiere: Hear The KREAM Remix of 'Do What You Like'". Billboard.com. Archived from the original on 4 May 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2015. Instead of coming back with a new album, Cruz is planning on releasing a string of new singles..
    48. ^ "TAIO CRUZ 'DO WHAT YOU LIKE': 'IT'S A THROWBACK TO THE 80s, BUT WITH MODERN PRODUCTION'". FameMagazine.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2 May 2015. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
    49. ^ Bills, Jon. "TAIO CRUZ BIOGRAPHY 2015" (Press release). London. Bills PR.
    50. ^ "Booty Bounce - Single by Tujamo & Taio Cruz". iTunes. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
    51. ^ "McFly – Shine A Light: **** or hit?". 20 July 2010. Archived from the original on 28 July 2010. Retrieved 30 July 2010.
    52. ^ "Rokstarr In The Making – Pete Lewis Interviews Taio Cruz". Blues & Soul. 2 October 2009. Archived from the original on 7 November 2011. Retrieved 2 October 2009.
    53. ^ Lewis, Pete (May 2010). "Taio Cruz Comes Clean". Blues & Soul. Archived from the original on 7 November 2011. Retrieved 27 April 2011.
    54. ^ "TIME² Chats To Taio Cruz At The LTD RXTR Watch Launch" Archived 26 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Time2. Retrieved 11 July 2012
    55. ^ "Taio Cruz". Little Kids Rock. Archived from the original on 16 July 2015. Retrieved 8 August 2015.
    56. ^ "Lady Gaga, Christina Aguilera Win Virgin Media Music Awards" Archived 14 May 2013 at the Wayback Machine MTV.com. Retrieved 3 June 2011.

    External links

    Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Taio_Cruz&oldid=1219818851"