Kristyna Myles | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1984-05-10)10 May 1984 (age 40) Leicester, England |
| Genres | Pop,soul |
| Occupation | Singer-songwriter |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Years active | 2005–present |
| Labels | Take Note Recordings |
| Website | www |
Kristyna Myles (born 10 May 1984) is a MOBO nominated British singer-songwriter who is currently based inManchester. Originally fromLeicestershire, she came into prominence after winningBusk Idol, a 2005 nationwide singing competition organised byBBC Radio 5 Live. Since winning, she has featured on albums byChris de Burgh andRick Guard, and has performed on television programmes such asSongs of Praise,Wogan Now & Then andPlay It Again. She also sang a duet with de Burgh on his European tour. In 2009, she was nominated for aMOBO award as part of gospel act DTWG : Desire To Worship God and most recently nominated for a MOBO for her own music in 2014.
Myles was born and raised in Leicestershire. She attended Thomas Estley Community College inBroughton Astley before moving up to Lutterworth Grammar School (nowLutterworth College) at age 14. She studied Flute with Elizabeth Hextall {Black Rat} and later recorded the Black Rat track 'Jane' which was on the album 'Rich Pickings' Her first experience of the music industry came when she was 16 years old, when she was invited byBasement Jaxx to audition for the lead vocals in their single "Romeo".[citation needed] In 2002 she was accepted into theUniversity of Salford, where she studied Popular Music and Recording[1] and was in the same year as Manchester bandsDelphic andEverything Everything.[2]
While studying at university, Myles formed a band and won a national songwriting competition. This led to her having her song "Thank You" released as a single in theNetherlands and performing inAmsterdam for the launch party.[citation needed] After graduating, shebusked onMarket Street, Manchester, before representing the city onBBC Radio 5 Live'sBusk Idol competition in 2005, which she went on to win with her guitarist Ben Williams.[1]
By winningBusk Idol, Myles then signed to manager Perry Hughes who change things in her career through to 2013 he started by introducing her to British singerChris de Burgh,[3] who invited her to record a duet entitled "Raging Storm" with him at London'sAbbey Road Studios, for his latest albumThe Storyman.[4] Myles performed the song with de Burgh at one of his concerts at theNEC Arena in Birmingham in 2006[5] and on the television showWogan Now & Then. She was subsequently offered anopening slot on nine dates of de Burgh's 2006 European tour, which saw her perform in cities such asFrankfurt, Munich andAmsterdam.[6]
Later that year, Myles featured on an Manchester-themed episode of the BBC showSongs of Praise, where she performed her own composition "My Lord".[7] In January 2007, Myles returned to the city centre of Manchester to help guitaristAndy Rourke and the annual charity concertVersus Cancer set aworld record for largest group busk[8] then, in April, performed with de Burgh and singerAled Jones on the television programmePlay It Again.[9] She released her debutEP,One of a Kind, as adigital download through Roots Music Group in 2007, which featured four original compositions: "One of a Kind", "My Lord", "Setback" and "Sunshine".[10] Myles also featured on the track "Sense of Purpose" from the EPThe Bells of St Mary by British bandDetours, which was also used on their studio albumSense of Purpose.[11]
During 2008, Myles was the onlyunsigned artist to feature on theUniversal Music compilation albumSongbird 2008, with "My Lord", a track fromOne of a Kind.[12] In July she supportedMick Hucknall on part of his UK tour, playing at venues such asEcho Arena Liverpool[13][14] and in October she performed atOxjam events inLancaster, Lancashire, alongside Joe De Luca and Mike Dignam.[15][16] During the next year she recorded a duet named "Making Movies" with jazz singerRick Guard for his 2009 albumAnyone But Me. That August, Myles was nominated for Best Gospel Act at theMOBO Awards 2009 as part of the gospel collective DTWG : Desire To Worship God,[17] but lost out to Victizzle.[18]
Myles has been performing at venues and festivals across the UK and Europe throughout 2010 and 11. She played at theSouth by Southwest festival inAustin, Texas in March[2] and featured onBBC Radio Manchester in May.[19]
Perry Hughes signed Myles to a 5-album deal withDECCA Records and recorded her debut album with Grammy Award Winning ProducerKen Nelson (Coldplay, Paolo Nutini) A first single from the album called I'm Not Going Back was released in Spring 2012. Kristyna performed the single live on Channel 5 'Live With Mylene' and announced the busking tour across the UK to raise funds and awareness for homeless charity Centrepoint. Kristyna also performed live on BBC Radio 4 and at Kew Gardens opening forWill Young, M People,Nile Rodgers, Tim Minchin and supportedBen Montague on his UK Tour.
Despite being signed to a major record company in 2010 and having completed the first of a five-album deal, just one single release in three years saw exhilaration turn to exasperation, providing the motivation for Kristyna to take back control of her career and copyrights, parting company with management and label. It was a brave move that has since been vindicated by sales and praise for 'The Paris Match', co-produced by legendary Style Council drummerSteve White and Mercury Prize nominated producer Andy Ross and described by modfatherPaul Weller as "absolutely stunning". The single outsold its predecessor Decca, emerging as one of the highest independent entries of 2013 and introducing Kristyna to new audiences and supporters.
As an independent artist and young business woman, Myles releases 'Paint A Brighter Day' her second album which combines sublime vocals, superbly crafted songs and stunning musicianship.
Recorded with Mercury Prize nominated producer Andy Ross, 'Paint A Brighter Day' features 11 songs about life-lessons with the aim of inspiring and painting listeners' days brighter. All songs are written or co-written by Kristyna who has created a musical canvas true to her pop roots, with brush strokes that evoke jazz, soul and gospel influences.
Paint A Brighter Day' is released thanks to a successful campaign on PledgeMusic which enabled Kristyna to fund the album and video with support from music fans. This was rewarded with a variety of opportunities, including visits to the recording sessions and parts in the video for first single 'I'm Getting Rid of This'. This unique strategy not only enabled Kristyna to fund the project without major label investment, but also interact and engage with existing and new fans at the same time.
More importantly for an independent artist, this groundbreaking approach allowed Kristyna to maintain full creative control and copyright ownership.
The soulful singer/songwriter has recently appeared onBBC 1 Songs of Praise performing "Heaven Knows" written together with Jess Cook which is featured on Paint A Brighter Day her forthcoming album. The Sunday Hour onBBC Radio 2 gave "Heaven Knows"’ its first play.
Now with her own label 'Take Note Recordings', 2015 looks even brighter for this extraordinarily talented independent artist and young businesswoman. A supporter of charity Tearfund and ambassador for Centrepoint, Kristyna Myles is endorsed by Yamaha Music GmbH (UK).
"In short, she is a must see talent" METRO"Soulful and distinctive" M.E.N Newspaper"Kristyna (Myles) isn’t interested in being seen as the next 'cool' thing, instead, she’s intent on producing soulful, thoughtful and powerful music that simply satisfies" Chris Long, BBC.
| Year | Album details |
|---|---|
| 2007 | One of a Kind
|
| 2014 | Pinch Me Quick
|
The following songs have been officially released, but do not feature on an album by Myles.
| Year | Song | Album | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | "Raging Storm" | The Storyman | Duet withChris de Burgh |
| 2007 | "Sense of Purpose" | The Bells of St Mary | Collaboration withDetours |
| 2008 | "Forever Grateful" | The Project | Collaboration with DTWG : Desire To Worship God |
| "Jane" | Rich Pickings | Collaboration withBlack Rat | |
| 2009 | "Making Movies" | Anyone But Me | Duet withRick Guard |
