Ben Lummis

Infobox Musical artist
Name = Ben Lummis

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Img_capt =
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Background = solo_singer
Birth_name = Benjamin Lummis
Alias =
Born = birth date and age|1978|06|1
Died =
Origin = Wellington, New Zealand
Instrument = Singing
Genre = Pop
R&B
Occupation = Singer
Years_active = 2004–present
Label = Sony BMG (2004)Soul'd Out [ [http://www.nzrealitytv.com/2007/07/ben-lummis-scores-record-deal.html New Zealand Reality TV: Ben Lummis Scores a Record Deal ] ] (2007-Present)
Associated_acts = Rosita Vai, Matthew Saunoa
URL = [http://www.benlummismusic.com/ Official Site]
Current_members =
Past_members =

Ben Lummis (born Benjamin Lummis on June 1 1978) is a R&B/Pop singer from New Zealand who rose to musical fame as the winner of the First season of "New Zealand Idol" in 2004. He is of Tongan, Samoan, Māori (Ngati Porou) and Pākehā (European) descent and is close with his mother, father, stepfather and five siblings.

Biography

"New Zealand Idol" 2004

Lummis auditioned for the first season of "New Zealand Idol" in early 2004, and after passing through the theatre rounds, he qualified for the semi-finals, where the public voted him through to the Top 10. Lummis's first few weeks in the Top 10 were shaky, as he landed in the bottom 3 contestants on three separate occasions. However, from the top 6 onwards, he was never in the bottom three again, and on May 10, 2004, he was crowned as the first "New Zealand Idol", defeating Michael Murphy, who had never been in the bottom three throughout the entire competition.

"New Zealand Idol" Performances

*Top 36 - "Suspicious Minds", Elvis Presley
*Top 24 - "Back at One", Brian McKnight
*Top 10 - "Never Too Much", Luther Vandross - Bottom 3
*Top 9 - "Oughta Be In Love", Dave Dobbyn - Bottom 3
*Top 8 - "Hang on in There Baby", Johnny Bristol
*Top 7 - "Can Love You Like That", All-4-One - Bottom 3
*Top 6 - "Kiss From A Rose", Seal
*Top 5 - "Treat Her Like a Lady", The Temptations
*Top 4 - "American Woman", The Guess Who
*Top 4 - "Livin' on a Prayer", Bon Jovi
*Top 3 - "The Power of Love", Huey Lewis
*Top 3 - "Rhythm of the Night", El De Barge
*Top 2 - "Kiss From a Rose", Seal
*Top 2 - "I Believe I Can Fly", R. Kelly
*Top 2 - "Livin' on a Prayer", Bon Jovi
*Grand Final - "They Can't Take That Away" (Winner's single) - Declared 1st "New Zealand Idol"

Post "Idol" Career

2004-2005: "One Road"

Immediately after his victory, Lummis signed a recording contract with music giant Sony BMG and released his debut single "They Can't Take That Away", which debuted at number one on the New Zealand Singles Chart. It held the position for seven weeks and was certified 4xPlatinum, selling 40,000 copies. Lummis completed a nationwide "New Zealand Idol Live!" tour with his fellow finalists, and then on June 15, 2004, just four weeks after his "Idol" victory, Lummis released his debut album, "One Road". Although the album sold 45,000 copies and was certified 3xPlatinum, it was badly received by the music industry. Paul Ellis, the album's producer and "New Zealand Idol" judge later described it as "the worst-sounding album of my entire career" [ Trevett, Claire. [http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10384486 Record giant scratches NZ Idol] . June 01, 2006. Accessed: July 3, 2007 ] .To date it has sold 45,000 copies. [ [http://www.nzherald.co.nz/event/story.cfm?c_id=1500940&ObjectID=10350544 Entertainment picks: The business of being a NZ Idol - 17 Oct 2005 - Event ] ]

Three months after the release of his album, Lummis suddenly left his record label Sony BMG under mutual disagreement [Trevett, Claire [http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/story.cfm?c_id=264&objectid=10127334 Idol split hits sour note with fans] . May 25, 2005. Accessed: July 3, 2007 ] . Many music industry observers stated that the move was interesting, as Lummis had held the top spot on the albums and singles chart simultaneously for more than a week with strong sales, but was dropped by his label nevertheless.

2006-2007: Independent Music and "Pop's Ultimate Star"

Having taken a career break following his debut album and departure from Sony BMG, Lummis released the single "Gotta Move" in 2006, independantly and exclusively through his personal website. Although well received by fans, the single was unable to chart as its sales were online only and not tracked by the RIANZ

After another short break, Lummis was announced as one of the ten contestants on "Pop's Ultimate Star", a new New Zealand reality television show whose aim was to take contestants from past singing competitions and pit them against one another in order to discover the country's favourite reality show singing star. The show debuted on May 29, 2007, and after passing through the first four weeks without falling into the bottom two at all, Lummis made it to the final six. At this point he fell into the bottom two alongside Emily Williams, the runner-up from the third season of "Australian Idol", and was voted off on July 1 after an elimination duel with Williams, finishing in sixth place. After this, Ben announced his intentions to release more new music independently. [ TVNZ. [http://tvnz.co.nz/view/page/488124/1211535 Bye Ben!] . Accessed July 3, 2007. ]

Religious Faith

Lummis is a devout Christian and belongs to the Breakthrough Church.

Discography

Infobox Artist Discography
Artist = Ben Lummis
Logo =


Caption =
Studio = 1
Compilation =
Live =
Video =
Music videos = 3
Singles = 2
Option = 1
Option name = B-sides
Option color = crimson
1Option = 1
1Option name = Other charted songs
1Option color = chartreuse
2Option = 1
2Option name = Collaborations
2Option color = violet
3Option = 1
3Option name = Tours
3Option color = orange
References =
Ref link = Notes and references

The following article is a complete discography of every album and single released by New Zealand pop/R&B music artist Ben Lummis.

Albums

References