Estelle (musician)

Estelle
Estelle in 2011
Background information
Birth name	Estelle Fanta Swaray
Born	(1980-01-18) 18 January 1980 (age 44) London, England
Genres	R&B[1] hip hop
Occupations	Singer rapper record producer actress
Discography	Estelle discography
Years active	2000–present
Labels	VP Est. 1980 BMG Warner Atlantic Mama's Boys Music Homeschool V2 Universal
Member of	Black Jays

Estelle Fanta Swaray (born 18 January 1980), also known mononymously as Estelle, is a British singer, rapper and actress. She is known for her eclectic blending of musical genres including R&B, soul, reggae, grime, hip hop and dance.^[2] She has collaborated with prominent American artists including Chris Brown, Kanye West, will.i.am, Nas, Akon, Tyler, the Creator, Robin Thicke and Rick Ross, among others.^[3][4]

After signing with V2 Records, Estelle released her debut studio album The 18th Day (2004). A moderate critical and commercial success, it peaked at number 35 on the UK Albums Chart. She then signed with American singer John Legend's Homeschool Records, in a joint venture with Atlantic Records to release her second album, Shine (2008), which effectively tailored to international audiences by entering the US Billboard 200, as well as other worldwide charts. It was preceded by the single "American Boy" (featuring Kanye West), which peaked atop the UK Singles Chart, peaked at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100, and won a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. Her third album, All of Me (2012) solely entered American and Australian charts, and was supported by the single "Thank You"—which received a Grammy Award nomination for Best R&B Performance. The album served as her final release on a major label.

Estelle provided both the speaking and singing voice for the character Garnet in the animated series Steven Universe (2013–2019), a role she reprised in Steven Universe: The Movie (2019) and Steven Universe Future (2019–2020).^[5] She also made cameo appearances in the films Beyond the Lights (2014) and Girls Trip (2017), and appeared as Linda in the Netflix original film Fatal Affair (2020). Estelle hosts and presents The Estelle Show on Apple Music,^[6] which has run for over 500 episodes.