Aurora Reed

Aurora Reed (born 9th November, 1991) is a London born, UK based soul singer.

Background
Reed was born in Ealing, United Kingdom in 1991. Although of mixed heritage (her mother is a 2nd generation Albanian, whilst her father has strong African roots), the singer spent her childhood in the UK and was brought up a London girl through and through. An alumni of Sylvia Young Theatre School, Aurora was no stranger to the big screen; being a self proclaimed 'behind-the-scenes child star'; appearing as an extra in many TV shows and films. At the age of 18, the artist was quietly signed on an independent label to begin work on her debut album.

Burn Burn Burn / Thoughts To Word
Reed was signed to Saturdays Records in June 2011, just as she announced her debut single, "Burn Burn Burn". The Stereotypes produced track was seen as a surprising choice for a debut single due to its soulful overtones, but was given strong praise as a "no-nonsense women's anthem". The song ultimately took the runner-up position on the Singles Chart. The single was certified Platinum, and has sold over 360,000 copies to date.

The single was then followed up by urban alternative track Orchestra, which managed to surpass its predecessor and reach the top spot on October 2nd, 2011. The following week her debut album Thoughts To Word was released to a mostly positive reception; also taking the top spot on October 9th, 2011. To date, the album has sold 1,997,529 copies. During November 2011, Aurora made the transition from Saturdays Records to Fusion Records as the main distributor of her upcoming music. The strong rapport between Aurora and Syd Wolfe lead towards Aurora being announced as Creative Director of the record label in 2012.

Her third single Glitter On The Drums was released on December 12, 2011. The retro soul/r & b track earned Aurora her 2nd #1, meaning she reached the top spot two times consecutively. Her fourth single, the Dusty Springfield sampling Healin' Heartbreak, marginally missed the top spot, but managed to earn Aurora the record of the biggest selling record not to chart at #1, with cumulative sales of 650,204. It also currently holds the record as the biggest selling single of 2012.

"C4 G4" and "Haute Mess"
A brief hiatus from the music industry was interrupted with Aurora taking on a feature on upcoming house act SPELLS, a collaboration which came together due to Aurora being close friends with one half of the duo, TWISTED DISCO!. The track, named C4 G4 saw Aurora trade in her r&b sensibilities for a gritty, explicit house inspired rap track, which earned some plaudits from music heavyweights such as Pitchfork and NME, but almost led to the track being banned from radio. To date, the single has sold 400,587 copies.

As a way of thanking her fans at the end of her debut album campaign, and her infamy as a part time female rapper, Aurora released a mixtape entitled AURORA REED IS *NOT* A RAPPER, which contained original raps, rap influenced songs that hadn't made the cut of either of her albums, and her featured remixes of tracks by MIDNIGHT and Syd Wolfe. During this time, Aurora also featured on a remix of "I Bite" by Arianna DiCorso, and "Lions, Tigers And Bears (Oh My!)" by Honey. Aurora has no plans to venture further into her rap career at the moment.

Shortly after the success of C4 G4, Aurora revealed the download only single Queen N Country, from her upcoming second album Haute Mess. The track was produced by Diplo, and was inspired by the London underground raving scene, sampling the song "I Love London" by Crystal Fighters, which Aurora had heard on several nights out. With the tracks underground alternative urban vibes, the audience saw a different side to Aurora that was promised with her sophomore album. The single hit #1 on the Download Only Charts on August 19th, 2012, selling 47,385 copies in it's first week. Aurora announced the debut single from the album to be Help A Sista Out, featuring MIDNIGHT & Loretta Lambert. The video was shot in the Czech Republic by Roman Gavras, causing huge controversy. Nonetheless, the track hit the #1 spot on the 19th November, 2012. Haute Mess was released as Aurora's sophomore album on November 26th, 2012, and debuted at the top spot.

During this time, Aurora was confirmed to be one of the judges on the new format of Idol, joining Syd Wolfe, TWISTED DISCO! and Jackson Bradshaw. It is not known if she is due to reprise the role past this first series.

In July 2013, Aurora will be embarking on her first ever tour, taking to venues across the UK on her Club Coutour 2013. Support acts for this tour have been announced as SPELLS, Honey and ELECTRA.

Endorsments
Aurora was named as the face (or wrist) of international wristwear company Swatch in November 2011, chosen for her "fashion savvy ways" and "youth appeal". To date, Aurora has shied away from launching her own foray into the fashion business, but has joked she would like to bring out her own line of onesies. The singer was also one of the celebrities to participate in Snickers' "You're Not You When You're Hungry" campaign. In March 2012, Aurora was one of the celebrities to model singer and close friend Sandi Cohen's "Bourbon In Paris" range. In January 2013, Aurora was announced to be participating in endorsement deals with vodka company Absolut, producing her own bottle and flavour for the brand, and footwear brand Nike Air Jordans - a brand Aurora often wears on stage and during performances, much to the chagrin of fashion blogs and fans.

Personal Life
In February 2012, Aurora collapsed whilst performing at the In New Music We Trust festival, amidst rumours of alcohol or drug abuse, but the singer herself revealed that she had just been exhausted and had perhaps neglected to look after herself due to being so busy.

The singer cause controversy in February 2012 at the Urapopstar Awards 21, when she kissed singer Arianna DiCorso, who is openly lesbian. Although only intended as a joke, Aurora later admitted it was in her 'top five kisses ever'. In November 2012, a former female friend of Aurora's came forward and revealed that the two had once embarked on a brief relationship, something which Aurora did not definitively confirm or deny.

In March 2012, it was confirmed that Aurora was dating American DJ and socialite Nick Blacker. The relationship ultimately ended in July 2012, for unknown reasons, although Aurora states this relationship was a strong influence for her album Haute Mess. Aurora has been incorrectly reported to be dating celebrities such as fellow judge Jackson Bradshaw, collaborator Taylor, and ex of good friend MIDNIGHT, Rory Jacobs - the latter causing controversy amongst MIDNIGHT's fans, for betraying a friendship. However, Aurora has confirmed that she is currently single.

Aurora co owns a nightclub in London entitled WARG1 with her mother. In January 2013, the nightclub was shut down over usage of cocaine by some of the club's clientele. Aurora has vehemently denied involvement in the case, holidaying in Dubai at the time of the event. The case is yet to close.

Discography
Main Article: Aurora Reed Discography

Albums
2011: Thoughts To Word 2012: Haute Mess

Singles
2011: "Burn Burn Burn" 2011: "Orchestra" 2011: "Glitter On The Drums" 2012: "Healin' Heartbreak" 2012: "C4 G4 (SPELLS X Aurora Reed) " 2012: "Queen N Country" 2012: "Help A Sista Out" (Featuring MIDNIGHT & Loretta Lambert) 2013: "Mutate" 2013: "The Other Side of Tonight" 2013: "World Go Round"