Alison Hinds

Alison Hinds
Doctor of Letters
Birth nameAlison Amanda Hinds
Also known asQueen Of Soca
BornJune 1st 1970 (age 54)
Plaistow, London, England
OriginBridgetown, Barbados
GenresSoca
OccupationSinger
InstrumentVocals
Years active2004–present
LabelsBlack Coral , 1720 Entertainment
Formerly ofSquare One
SpouseEdward Walcott Junior (m 2004)
Website.alisonhinds.com

Alison Amanda Hinds (born 1 June 1970) is a British-born Bajan soca singer based in Barbados.[1] Alison is often referred to as the "Queen of Soca" due to her significant impact on the genre.

Biography

Alison Hinds was born in London on June 1st 1970 and raised in Plaistow.[2][3] Both her parents were from the island of Barbados; her father was employed at the Ford's Dagenham plant.[2] At 11 years old, her parents divorced and she moved to Barbados with her mother.[2][4] She competed in the Richard Stoute Teen Talent contest in 1985, finishing third place.[5] She was a lead vocalist in the popular band Square One, joining the group in 1987, and recording several albums before leaving the band in 2004 to take care of her newborn daughter.[5][6][7][8][9] Hinds won the Barbados Song Contest in 1992 with the duet with John King "Hold You in a Song", the Road March in 1996 and 1997, and the Party Monarch competition in Barbados in 1997.[2][5][10][4][7]

Hinds lives in Barbados with her husband Edward Walcott Junior and her daughter, on a privately owned horse farm, which her husband manages.[2][4] She has her own band, the Alison Hinds Show, formed in 2005, with Hinds as the main singer and most of the other members of the band young dancers and musicians.[4] After returning to music with a vocal contribution to a remix of Kevin Lyttle's "Turn Me On",[11] She returned to the soca scene with the hit song "Roll It Gal", which praises women's independence in lyrics about Women's empowerment.[2][6][7][10] The song was a huge hit throughout the Caribbean and was released in the UK in 2007 to coincide with the release of her debut album. “Roll It” has been a popular staple in the Caribbean culture.[12][13] She also recorded a collaboration with Machel Montano for the remix of "Roll It Gal".[6]

Hinds' debut solo album Soca Queen was released in October 2007. Her latest album Caribbean Queen was released in 2010 and contains collaborations with Shaggy, Richie Spice, and Jah Cure, with whom she collaborated on the single "Team Up" in 2009.[14][15] She continues to tour worldwide and has performed at many of the West Indian Carnivals and festivals including Reagge Sumfest,[4] and the West Indian American Carnival in Brooklyn.[10]

On 11 November 2011, Hinds was one of many Barbadian entertainers shown on the Where in the World is Matt Lauer? segment on NBC.[16] On Saturday October 21st 2023, she was awarded the Honorary Degree of the Doctor of Letters by the University of the West Indies at Cave Hill.[17]

Discography

Albums

Year Album Peak positions
U.S. CAN AUS UK FRA GER IRE NZ ITA JAP
2007 Soca Queen
  • 1st studio album
  • Released: 22 October 2007
 — — — — — — — — — —
2010 Caribbean Queen
  • 2nd studio album
  • Released: 25 June 2010
 — — — — — — — — — —

Singles

Year Title Chart positions Album
UK US
R&B 		NZ IRE SWE NET FIN SWI
2005 "Roll It Gal" 135[18] 52[19] — — — — — — Soca Queen
"Thundah" — — — — — — — —
"The More You Get" — — — — — — — —
2010 "King and Queen" (with Richie Spice) — — — — — — — — Caribbean Queen
"Can't Let My Luv Go" (with Shaggy) — — — — — — — —

Guest appearances

See also

References

  1. ^ Jeffries, David. "Biography: Alison Hinds". AllMusic. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Batey, Angus (2007) "Notting Hill Carnival: Alison Hinds ready to reign at Carnival", The Daily Telegraph, 23 August 2007. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  3. ^ Kuss, Malena (2006), Music in Latin America and the Caribbean: An Encyclopedic History: Performing the Caribbean Experience v. 2, University of Texas Press, ISBN 978-0-292-70951-5, p. 350.
  4. ^ a b c d e Collinder, Avia (2007) "Alison Hinds – Soca Mama Archived 12 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine", Jamaica Gleaner, 15 July 2007. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  5. ^ a b c Thompson, Dave (2002) Reggae & Caribbean Music, Backbeat Books, ISBN 0-87930-655-6, pp. 275–6.
  6. ^ a b c Anglin-Christie, Kavelle (2006) "Alison Hinds rolls it on her own Archived 12 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine", Jamaica Gleaner, 23 April 2006. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  7. ^ a b c Meschino, Patricia (2008) "Alison Hinds: Coronating Her Majesty", Vibe, February 2008. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  8. ^ Springer, Michelle (2010) "Back to Square One", NATIONNews.com, 24 July 2010. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  9. ^ "Soca star says farewell", BBC, 13 December 2004. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  10. ^ a b c Pareles, Jon (2008) "Happiness Abounds, With Extra for the Ladies", The New York Times, 27 August 2008.
  11. ^ "Soca Queen Ready To 'Roll It' For Fans At Irie Jamboree 2k8 – August 31, 2008, Queens, New York Archived 17 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine", Jamaicans.com, 2008. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  12. ^ "Caribbean Flavour Series- Alison Hinds, a soca role model Archived 12 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine", Jamaica Gleaner, 11 February 2007. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  13. ^ Lawrence, Eddy (2007) "Alison Hinds: interview Archived 17 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine", Time Out, 20 August 2007. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  14. ^ Jackson, Steven (2010) "Alison Hinds aim to top Jamaica chart", Jamaica Observer, 21 March 2010. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  15. ^ "Jah Cure And Alison Hinds Team Up Archived 17 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine", Jamaicans.com, 31 December 2009. Retrieved 30 October 2010.
  16. ^ Matt, Giada shake it for Where in the World, 11 December 2011, Where in the World is Matt Lauer?, NBC.
  17. ^ "Caribbean Music Icon Dr. Alison Hinds Honored with Doctor of Letters Degree from UWI". 22 October 2023.
  18. ^ "Chart Log UK – Chart Coverage and Record Sales 2007". Zobbel.de. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  19. ^ [1] [dead link‍]