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India Arie | |
|---|---|
 Arie performing in 2009 | |
| Born | India Arie Simpson (1975-10-03)October 3, 1975 (age 50) |
| Other names | India.Arie |
| Alma mater | Savannah College of Art and Design |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1997–present |
| Parent | Ralph Simpson |
| Musical career | |
| Origin | Atlanta,Georgia, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Labels |
|
Musical artist | |
| Website | soulbird |
India Arie Simpson (born October 3, 1975) is an American singer and songwriter.[1] She rose to prominence with her debut album,Acoustic Soul (2001), which was a commercial and critical success. She has since released the albumsVoyage to India (2002),Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship (2006),Songversation (2013) andWorthy (2019). Her music blends elements of R&B, soul, and neo-soul, often incorporating themes of self-empowerment, spirituality, and social consciousness.
Arie has sold over five million records in the US and 10 million worldwide, and has won fourGrammy Awards from 23 nominations, includingBest R&B Album.[2] Arie is recognized for her advocacy of positive representation in music and has participated in humanitarian and wellness initiatives. She has spoken publicly about issues related to self-acceptance, race, and cultural identity.
India Arie was born inDenver,[3] the daughter of Joyce andRalph Simpson. Her musical skills were encouraged by both parents in her younger years. Her mother was a singer (she was signed toMotown as a teenager and opened forStevie Wonder andAl Green)[4] and has become Arie's stylist. Arie has an older brother named J'On and a younger sister named Mary.[5] Arie isAfrican-American, and according to a DNA analysis, she descends from theMende people ofSierra Leone, theKru ofLiberia and theFula ofGuinea-Bissau.[6][7]
After Arie's parents divorced, her mother moved the family toAtlanta when India was 13.[5] Arie's had taken up a succession of musical instruments throughout her schooling in Denver. But her interest in theguitar, while attending theSavannah College of Art and Design, led to a personal revelation about songwriting and performing. "When I started tapping into my own sensitivity, I started to understand people better. It was a direct result of writing songs", she said at the press release of her debut album,Acoustic Soul.[8]
Co-founding the Atlanta-basedindependent music collective Government Earthseed (Government was the collective artists' name and Earthseed was their independent label name), her one-song turn on a locally released compilation led to a second-stage gig at the 1998Lilith Fair. In 1999, aUniversal/Motown music scout signed her and made an introduction to formerMotown CEOKedar Massenburg. Arie resided inNew York City for over a decade, before moving back toAtlanta to focus on her career and music.
Named toOprah Winfrey'sSuperSoul100 list of visionaries and influential leaders,[9] Arie performed Songversation during 2017 motivational cruises.[10]
Arie released her debut albumAcoustic Soul on March 27, 2001. The album was met with positive reviews and commercial success.[11]Acoustic Soul debuted at number ten on the U.S.Billboard 200 and number three on theTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Within months, without the concentrated radioairplay that typically powerspop and rap albums,Acoustic Soul was certified double platinum by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA), selling 2,180,000 copies in the U.S. and 3,000,000 copies worldwide.[12]The album was also certified Gold by theBritish Phonographic Industry[13]and platinum byMusic Canada.[14] The album was promoted with the release of the lead single "Video". "Video" attained commercial success peaking at 47 on the USBillboard Hot 100 and becoming her highest-charting song in the region to date.[15] The album's second single "Brown Skin" failed to chart on theBillboard Hot 100, but it became her highest-charting single in the United Kingdom, peaking at number 29.[16]
Arie performed a duet withrock singer-guitaristJohn Mellencamp on the song "Peaceful World" for his 2001 albumCuttin' Heads. While Arie and the album were nominated for seven Grammy awards in 2002, they won no awards, losing in five of seven categories toAlicia Keys. She closed the ceremony with a performance of her song "Video". Arie performed a duet withjazz singerCassandra Wilson on the song "Just Another Parade" for her 2002 albumBelly of the Sun.
Arie followed the success of her debut on September 24, 2002, with the release ofVoyage to India.[17] It debuted at number six on theBillboard 200 with first week sales of 109,000 copies[18] and topped theTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums,[18] with theRIAA certifying it Platinum.[19] At the2003 Grammy Awards, it wonBest R&B Album, and the single "Little Things" wonBest Urban/Alternative Performance.[20] The song "Get It Together" was featured on many film soundtracks includingBrown Sugar (2002) andShark Tale (2004).[citation needed]
On September 12, 2005, Arie performed "Just 4 2day", a song written for her appearance on the debut ofThe Tyra Banks Show.[21] She also performed "What About the Child", a song that did not air but was made available as a one-dollar Internet download to support child victims of HurricanesKatrina andRita.[22] Arie is also featured onStevie Wonder's albumA Time to Love, released on October 18, 2005. Arie and Wonder duet on the title track "A Time to Love", written by Arie. Which was nominated forBest Pop Collaboration with Vocals at the2006 Grammy Awards. Three years earlier, their rendition ofMel Tormé's 1944 classic "The Christmas Song", recorded for the holiday TV commercial for retailerTarget, had been nominated for the same category, making it the first song created and financed exclusively for a commercial to be nominated for a Grammy Award.[23]
The first-week sales of Arie's albumTestimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship, 161,000 copies, are her best sales week to date. The album was certified gold in August 2006, selling 730,000 in US and 1,300,000 worldwide. "I Am Not My Hair", a collaboration withAkon, was the most successful release fromTestimony: Vol. 1., reaching the U.S.Billboard Hot 100 at No. 97 and the UK Singles Chart at No. 65. On the April 16, 2007, episode ofThe Oprah Winfrey Show entitled "After Imus: Now What?", Arie guest-starred as a panelist. Arie performed a duet with singerAnthony David for his song "Words" for his 2008 albumAcey Duecy.
Her next album,Testimony: Vol. 2, Love & Politics was released on Tuesday, February 10, 2009. It debuted at No. 3 on theBillboard 200, and No. 2 on the R&B chart. Within this CD, Arie collaborated with such artists asSezen Aksu,Keb Mo, Gramps Morgan and Musiq Soulchild to fulfill her self-proclaimed desire to "do projects with people who are making music that is meaningful, with a lot of integrity and a lot of sonic diversity". Arie also identified this CD as her first to write and sing songs without worrying about public opinion after a much-needed vacation to Hawaii. The album was her first produced and released after her departure from Motown to Universal Records.[24] Arie performed "Video" with British singerAdele at the 2009VH1 Divas. Arie is one of over 70 artists singing on "We Are the World: 25 for Haiti", acharity single in aid of the2010 Haiti earthquake. Arie contributed vocals to "Imagine" for the 2010Herbie Hancock album,The Imagine Project along withSeal,Pink,Jeff Beck,Konono N°1,Oumou Sangare and others.[25]
In the fall of 2010, she was a featured guest vocalist on Carlos Santana's version ofThe Beatles song "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" from his albumGuitar Heaven. The song also features Yo-Yo Ma on cello.
In September 2012, she featured in a campaign called "30 Songs/30 Days" to supportHalf the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide, a multi-platform media project inspired by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn's book.[26]
In March 2013, it was announced that Arie was working on her upcoming fifth studio album,Songversation, which was released on June 25, 2013. The first single of the album, "6th Avenue", was released on iTunes on November 4, 2012; it was produced by India Arie and Israeli musicianIdan Raichel. The second single "Cocoa Butter" was released on iTunes on April 9, 2013.[27][28][29][30]
In 2015, she released a collaborative album with musicianJoe Sample titledChristmas with Friends.[31]
In July 2016, she premiered her new single "Breathe" inspired by theBlack Lives Matter movement, especiallyEric Garner's last words. She also announced a new album titledWorthy was in the works.[32] She performed the single on theSoul Train Awards with hostErykah Badu in November.[33]
In June 2017, she announced the release of her first EPSongVersation: Medicine on June 30.[34][35] It was preceded by the single "Breathe" and the new single "I Am Light" which was originally included on her 2013Songversation album. She expressed that the EP was "made to be listened to in a quiet time, prayer, meditation, Yoga. My wish is that these songs bring softness, clarity, calm, and inspiration."[36]
In September 2018, she premiered her new single "That Magic". The song serves as the lead single from her sixth studio album titledWorthy which was released on February 15, 2019.[37][38]
In February 2022, Arie joined several artists to announce plans to remove her music from music serviceSpotify because it platformed podcast hostJoe Rogan. According to media reports, Arie's planned departure from the service was motivated by Rogan's use of insensitive language relating to race in the past. Arie's music remains on Spotify.[39]
In 2009, India Arie portrayed Nina Simone in a staged reading at theRoundabout Theatre Company of theBroadway musicalSoul Doctor, about the life ofShlomo Carlebach written byDaniel Wise.
In June 2025, it was revealed that India Arie's father had been physically and sexually abusive toward her and her mother.[40]
The Grammy Award is an honor awarded byThe Recording Academy to recognize outstanding achievement in the mainly English-language music industry. Arie has won four Grammy awards from twenty-three nominations.[41]
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Acoustic Soul | Album of the Year | Nominated |
| Best R&B Album | Nominated | ||
| "Video" | Record of the Year | Nominated | |
| Song of the Year | Nominated | ||
| Best Female R&B Vocal Performance | Nominated | ||
| Best R&B Song | Nominated | ||
| India Arie | Best New Artist | Nominated | |
| 2003 | "The Christmas Song"(withStevie Wonder) | Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals | Nominated |
| "Little Things" | Best Urban/Alternative Performance | Won | |
| "Good Man" | Best R&B Song | Nominated | |
| Voyage to India | Best R&B Album | Won | |
| 2006 | "A Time to Love"(with Stevie Wonder) | Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals | Nominated |
| 2007 | "I Am Not My Hair" | Best Female R&B Vocal Performance | Nominated |
| Best R&B Song | Nominated | ||
| Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationships | Best R&B Album | Nominated | |
| 2008 | "Beautiful Flower" | Best R&B Song | Nominated |
| 2009 | "Words"(withAnthony David) | Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals | Nominated |
| 2010 | "Chocolate High"(featuringMusiq Soulchild) | Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals | Nominated |
| Testimony Vol. 2, Love & Politics | Best R&B Album | Nominated | |
| "Pearls"(withDobet Gnahoré) | Best Urban/Alternative Performance | Won | |
| 2011 | "Imagine"(withHerbie Hancock,Pink,Seal,Konono Nº1,Jeff Beck &Oumou Sangaré) | Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals | Won |
| 2018 | "SongVersation: Medicine" | Best New Age Album | Nominated |
| 2020 | "Steady Love" | Best Traditional R&B Performance | Nominated |
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | India Arie | Best New Artist | Nominated |
| 2002 | India Arie | Best Female R&B Artist | Won |
| 2003 | India Arie | Best Female R&B Artist | Won |
| 2006 | India Arie | Best Female R&B Artist | Nominated |
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | India Arie | Best New Artist | Nominated |
| Acoustic Soul | Best R&B/Soul Album – Female | Nominated | |
| "Video" | Best R&B/Soul Single – Female | Nominated | |
| 2003 | "Little Things" | Best R&B/Soul Single – Female | Nominated |
| 2007 | Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationships | Best R&B/Soul Album – Female | Nominated |
| Year | Nominee / work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | India Arie | Outstanding New Artist | Nominated |
| Outstanding Female Artist | Nominated | ||
| Acoustic Soul | Outstanding Album | Nominated | |
| 2003 | India Arie &Stevie Wonder | Outstanding Duo or Group | Won |
| India Arie | Outstanding Female Artist | Won | |
| "Little Things" | Outstanding Music Video | Won | |
| Outstanding Song | Nominated | ||
| Voyage to India | Outstanding Album | Nominated | |
| 2004 | "The Truth" | Outstanding Music Video | Nominated |
| 2006 | India Arie | Outstanding Female Artist | Nominated |
| 2007 | India Arie | Outstanding Female Artist | Nominated |
| "I Am Not My Hair" | Outstanding Music Video | Nominated | |
| Outstanding Song | Won | ||
| 2008 | "Beautiful Flower" | Outstanding Song | Nominated |
| 2009 | India Arie &Anthony David | Outstanding Duo or Group | Nominated |
| 2010 | India Arie | Outstanding Female Artist | Nominated |
| 2014 | India Arie | Outstanding Female Artist | Nominated |
| "Cocoa Butter" | Outstanding Music Video | Nominated |
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| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002–2010 | Between the Lions | Herself | 9 episodes |
| 2003 | American Dreams | Nina Simone | "Act of Contrition" (Season 1, Episode 16) |
| 2003 | The Bernie Mac Show | Herself | "Raging Election" (Season 2, Episode 13) |
| 2004 | Blue's Clues | Herself | "Bluestock" (Season 6, Episode 9) |
| 2005 | Sesame Street | Herself | "What Happens Next?" (Season 36, Episode 18) |
| 2006 | One on One | Herself | "I Love L.A.: Part 1" (Season 5, Episode 21) |
| 2009 | Pastor Brown | Lateefah | Debut film |
| 2015 | Being Mary Jane | Herself | "Life in the Sand" (Season 2, Episode 9) |
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