Haddaway

Infobox musical artist
Name = Haddaway


Img_capt = Haddaway in 2004
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Background = solo_singer
Birth_name = Alexander Nestor Haddaway
Alias =
Born = birth date and age|1965|1|9
Died =
Origin = Trinidad
Instrument =
Genre = eurodance/house
Occupation = musician
Years_active = 1993 - present
Label =
Associated_acts =
URL =
Current_members =
Past_members =

Alexander Nestor Haddaway (born January 9 1965, Trinidad) better known by his stage name Haddaway is a Trinidadian singer. He now resides in Kitzbühel, Austria. He is most famous for his worldwide 1993 hit "What Is Love" and is thought to have sold 28 million records. [ [http://www.coconut-music.com/en/profile.php?id=53 Coconut Music Ltd. & Co. KG ] ]

Early life

The son of a Dutch oceanographer and a local Trinidadian nurse, Haddaway moved to Europe in the early 1970s with his father when his parents split up. After spending his formative years at boarding school, he moved to the United States to be with his mother.

Discovering a love for music, Haddaway performed small gigs with a covers band whilst he studied "North American History from the First Mongolian Immigrants to Amerigo Vespucci in the Fifteenth Century" at George Washington University in Washington DC [ [http://en.haddaway.de/cms.php?id=Bio1 Haddaway Biographie ] ] .

In 1989, then aged 24, Haddaway returned to Europe and settled in Cologne, Germany, where he started playing as a striker in the Cologne Crocodiles football team, as well as working as a choreographer, selling carpets and making music in his spare time.

Musical career

Haddaway's big break came in 1992 when he was signed by German label Coconut Records. His first single "What Is Love" rapidly became very popular across Europe, reaching number 1 in Germany and number 2 in the United Kingdom, where it sold more than 500,000 copies. It later reached number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100.

His second single "Life" hit number 6 in the UK and number 41 in the USA; "I Miss You" and "Rock My Heart" were also top 10 smashes across Europe and established Haddaway as one of the most successful artists in the Eurodance genre. His first LP "The Album" was also a multi-million seller.

In 1995 he returned with his second album "The Drive", which spawned the UK top 20 hit "Fly Away", as well as "Catch a Fire" and "Lover Be Thy Name".

Subsequent albums have stepped away from the Eurodance sound in favour of a more soulful direction, but since 1998 Haddaway has struggled to repeat the mainstream commercial success of his early hits.

Haddaway appeared on the Comeback reality television show in Germany in 2004. He appeared on a similar UK show, Hit Me Baby One More Time, in 2005 and subsequently appeared on the U.S. version. This exposure led to him scoring a moderate chart hit in Germany with the ballad "Spaceman".

"What Is Love" enjoyed renewed popularity after it was featured in a Saturday Night Live sketch that later became the 1998 film A Night at the Roxbury. The song was also featured in a 2008 Pepsi commercial which parodied the sketch [ [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_t6JTZhhKR4 YouTube - Broadcast Yourself ] ] , which prompted thousands of downloads of the track, and led to it entering the Hot Digital Songs chart at number 68.

He has released a single entitled "I Love the 90s" in May 2008, a collaboration with Dr. Alban. He is also set to perform at the "Back 2 The 90s" event in Riga, Latvia on November 21, 2008, alongside Ace of Base, 2 Unlimited, Dr Alban and Culture Beat. [ [http://www.bilesuserviss.lv/?lang=lat&id=11516,504 :|: Biä»Eå U Serviss :|: Ticketservice Latvia :|: ] ]

In Brazil his singles it were soap opera´s themes on Rede Globo TV. What´s love:Sonho Meu (Dream Mine) - Soundtrack 1993 , I Miss You:A Viagem(The Trevelling)- Soundtrack 1994. , Catch a Fire: Malhação 95(Teen) - Soundtrack 1995and The Firs Cut Is The Deepest :História de Amor (Love History) - Soundtrack 1995

Discography

Albums

ingles

Notes

External links

* [http://www.haddaway.de Official site] (German, but an English version is available)