From October 2009 to January 2010, Vickers played the title role in a West End revival of The Rise and Fall of Little Voice. Vickers' debut single, "Once", charted at number 1 in the UK Singles Chart after release on 19 April 2010. Her debut album was released on 3 May 2010 and reached number 1 in the UK Albums Chart.
Early life
Vickers was born in Blackburn, Lancashire, England and grew up in the village of Huncoat near Accrington. She studied for A Levels in Theatre Studies, the classics and psychology at Westholme School in Blackburn. She took singing lessons and participated in local competitions, but had never sung professionally.
The X Factor
In 2008, Vickers auditioned for the fifth series of The X Factor, singing "The Blower's Daughter" by Damien Rice, and eventually made it to the live shows. Her performances were often unconventional, attracting both praise and criticism. Judge Simon Cowell likened her to marmite, saying fans would either love or hate her singing, stating that he "loved it" She was eliminated in the semi-final (week 9), achieving fourth place overall. Following the end of the series, she went on tour with the rest of the final eight contestants on The X Factor Live tour between February and March 2009.
[edit]Performances on The X Factor
Week Song choice Original artist Theme Result
Audition "The Blower's Daughter" Damien Rice Contestant's choice Through
Bootcamp "Hallelujah" Leonard Cohen Contestant's choice Through
"Chasing Cars" Snow Patrol Contestant's choice
Judges' houses "Carry You Home" James Blunt Contestant's choice Through
"Nothing Compares 2 U" Sinéad O'Connor Contestant's choice
Live show 1 "With or Without You" U2 Number one hits in UK and US Safe
Live show 2 "Man in the Mirror" Michael Jackson Songs by Michael Jackson or The Jackson 5 Safe
Live show 3 "Smile" Charlie Chaplin Big band Safe
Live show 4 "Call Me" Blondie Disco Safe
Live show 5 N/A (unable to perform) N/A Songs by Mariah Carey Given bye
Live show 6 "Yellow" Coldplay Best of British Safe
Live show 7 "Patience" Take That Songs by Take That Safe
Live show 8 "I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman" Britney Spears Songs by Britney Spears Safe
"Everybody Hurts" R.E.M. American classics
Semi-final "Girlfriend" Avril Lavigne Mentor's choice Fourth place
"White Flag" Dido Contestant's choice
Music career
January 2009–present: Songs from the Tainted Cherry Tree
After The X Factor it was initially announced that Vickers would be signed by Sony Music under the Syco label along with JLS and Eoghan Quigg but this plan was later dropped.Instead, she signed to RCA Records. She began work on her debut album, Songs from the Tainted Cherry Tree, in January 2009,[commenting that it would not be rushed and that it would be "Diana style". She worked with Nerina Pallot, Ellie Goulding, Cass Lowe, Guy Sigsworth, Chris Braide, Savan Kotecha, Starsmith, Alexis Strum,Patrick Wolf and Dev Hynes aka Lightspeed Champion. In March 2010, Vickers' first official UK tour took place, where she showcased material from the album.
Vickers' debut single, "Once", written by Cathy Dennis and Eg White, was produced by Mike Spencer and released in the UK on 19 April 2010,after it was playlisted on Radio 1 and the music video premiered via Channel 4's Freshly Squeezed music programme On 22 April 2010, Vickers performed an acoustic version of debut single "Once" and a cover of Snow Patrol's "Just Say Yes" on Radio 1's Live Lounge. On 25 April 2010, "Once" entered the UK Singles Chart at Number 1.
On 15 April 2010, plans for Vickers' second single were confirmed. The video for the second single, "The Boy Who Murdered Love" was shot on the week commencing 26 April 2010 in London She is due to appear at the 2010 V Festival, The Live Lounge Stage at Radio 1's Big Weekend 2010 and 2010 Sundae Festival. and will embark on a second UK tour commencing 8 May 2010. She will also support JLS on their debut tour. She will start another UK Tour in May 2010 promoting her newly released album, Songs From The Tainted Cherry Tree, which on 9 May 2010, charted at number 1 in the UK.
Acting career
“ This young girl is a natural actress. The moment she read the part, it was magic. A frisson ran through the room. Diana Vickers is the real deal. She is Little Voice. ”
— Jim Cartwright on Vickers
Vickers made her professional acting debut in the title role of a new revived West End production of Jim Cartwright's The Rise and Fall of Little Voice on 8 October 2009 at the Vaudeville Theatre, on The Strand, London. She played Little Voice, who hides a talent as an impersonator of singers such as Shirley Bassey, Edith Piaf and Judy Garland. Take That's Mark Owen wrote the play's final song, titled "Sunlight", specifically for Vickers to sing. "Sunlight" was featured as a B-Side for her debut single, "Once".
Vickers took a break from recording her debut album to star in the production. She won the Award for "London Newcomer of the Year" in the Theatregoers' Choice Awards on 14 February 2010 for the role, with 34.5% of the vote triumphing over other West End newcomers including Patina Miller, Lenny Henry and Nicholas Hoult.
Discography
Studio albums
Year Title Peak chart positions
UK IRE
2010 Songs from the Tainted Cherry Tree
Debut studio album
Released: 3 May 2010
Label: RCA Records
1 7
Singles
Year Single Peak chart positions Album
UK IRE EU
2010 "Once" 1 3 5 Songs from the Tainted Cherry Tree
"The Boy Who Murdered Love" — — —
As featured artist
2008 "Hero"
(with The X Factor finalists) 1 1 8 Single only release
Promotional singles
Year Song Album Notes
2009 "Jumping Into Rivers" Songs from the Tainted Cherry Tree Offered as free promotional download from Vickers' website in July 2009 after the leak of the track.
[edit]Music videos
Year Title Director(s)
2008 "Hero" Unknown
2010 "Once" Harvey Brown
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