Sam Sparro
| Sam Sparro | |
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Sam Sparro
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Sam Falson |
| Born | November 8, 1982 |
| Origin | Sydney, Australia |
| Genre(s) | Soul, dance, electrofunk, House |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, producer |
| Years active | 2007-present |
| Label(s) | Island Records, UK |
| Website | www.samsparro.com |
Sam Sparro (born Sam Falson on 8 November 1982) is an Australian singer-songwriter, music producer and former child actor. His stage name was derived from a family nickname, which in turn was inspired by the Australian radio mascot Sammy Sparrow. He is signed to UK-based record label, Island Records.[1]
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Born in Sydney, Australia, Sparro's singing talent was discovered at a young age after he moved with his family to Los Angeles at age 10. His father had signed a deal there[2] and was recording a soul album, and took him to a church in Tujunga, Los Angeles to hear some of the genre's best singers. After hearing Sparro's singing through knowing the McCrary family, Chaka Khan became one of his early admirers.[3]
His first job as a child actor was in a McDonald's commercial. [4] He also appeared on the radio program Adventures in Odyssey.[5]
He left Los Angeles and briefly returned to Sydney, where he lived with his grandparents and worked for a public relations company, before travelling to the United Kingdom, immersing himself in the British music scene in London. Sparro lived with his cousins in Guildford, Surrey UK at the turn of the century when he was in his late teens. He then had to leave the UK and returned to Los Angeles in 2002, where he took a job in a coffee shop frequented by Hollywood movie creatives.[6] It was during these low points that he wrote his single, Black and Gold.[3]
Sparro's father is Chris Falson, a gospel minister and recording artist[7] of Portuguese descent[8] who has written music for Star Trek and Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.[9] When growing up, Sparro regularly performed backing vocals at his father's concerts and on his music releases.[10] He considers himself "a spiritual person, but ... not into any religion".[11]
Sparro is openly gay. He recently did an interview for Attitude magazine and was featured on the front cover. He has been in a relationship with Adrian Gilliland, his stylist, for the last two years.[12][11]
Sparro's first single, "Cottonmouth", was released in 2007. His second single, "Black and Gold", debuted on the UK Singles Chart at number 23 on 24 March 2008, and then climbed 19 places to number four on 31 March due to heavy download sales. On 13 April, it rose to number 2. It peaked at number two on the UK iTunes chart. "Black and Gold" was also used in a commercial for the British TV show Skins. It reached number 5 in the Irish Singles Chart. His debut album Sam Sparro was released in the UK on 28 April 2008.[13]
In April 2008, he performed "Black and Gold" on networked chart show, hit40uk and also in Jo Whiley's Live Lounge on BBC Radio 1, where he also covered "American Boy" by Estelle. On 18 April 2008, he appeared as the musical guest on The Friday Night Project, where he performed "Black and Gold". He is also writing songs for Lindsay Lohan's upcoming album Spirit in the Dark [14].
In September 2008, Sparro was nominated for 5 ARIA Music Awards.
His September 2005 tour formed part of the Wonky Pop tour; Wonky Pop being supporters of Sam.
| Year | Name | Charts | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| UK | IRE | AU | ITA | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008 | Sam Sparro | 4 | 38 | 23 | 94 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Year | Title | Chart positions | Album | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | IRE | ITA | NZ | AU | TUR | EUR | WW | |||
| 2008 | "Black and Gold" | 2 | 5 | 13 | 19 | 4 | 5 | 11 | 36 | Sam Sparro |
| "21st Century Life" | 44 | - | - | - | 23 | - | - | - | ||
| "Pocket"[15] | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | ||
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