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When Sade first came on the recording scene in the '80s, her record company, Epic, made a point of printing "pronounced shar-day" after her name on the record labels of her releases. Soon enough the world would have no problem in correctly pronouncing her name. Born Helen Folasade Adu in Ibadan, Nigeria, about 50 miles from Lagos, she was the daughter of an African father and an English mother. After her mother returned to England, Sade grew up on the North End of London.

Developing a good singing voice in her teens, Sade worked part-time jobs in and outside of the music business. She listened to Ray Charles, Nina Simone, Al Green, Aretha Franklin, and Billie Holliday. Sade studied fashion design at St. Martin's School of Art in London while also doing some modeling on the side.

Around 1980, she started singing harmony with a Latin funk group called Arriva. One of the more popular numbers that the group would perform was a Sade original co-written with bandmember Ray St. John, "Smooth Operator," that would later become Sade's first stateside hit. The following year she joined the eight-piece funk band Pride as a background singer. The band included future Sade band members guitarist/saxophonist Stuart Matthewman (a key player in '90s urban soul singer Maxwell's success) and bassist Paul Denman. The concept of the group was that there could shoot-offs. In essence, a few members within the main group Pride formed mini-groups that would be the opening act. Pride did a lot of shows around London, stirring up record company interest. Initially, the labels wanted to only sign Sade, while the group members wanted a deal for the whole band. After a year, the other band members told Sade, Matthewman, and Denman to go ahead and sign a deal. Adding keyboardist Andrew Hale, the group signed to the U.K. division of Epic Records.

Her debut album, Diamond Life (with overall production by Robin Millar), went Top Ten in the U.K. in late 1984. January 1985 saw the album released on CBS' Portrait label and by spring it went platinum off the strength of the Top Ten singles "Smooth Operator" and "Hang on to Your Love." Her second album, Promise (November 1985), featured "Never As Good As the First Time" and arguably her signature song, "The Sweetest Taboo," which stayed on the U.S. pop charts for six months. Sade was so popular that some radio stations reinstated the '70s practice of playing album tracks, adding "Is It a Crime" and "Tar Baby" to their play lists. In 1986, Sade won a Grammy for Best New Artist.

Sade's third album was 1988's Stronger Than Pride and featured her first number one soul single "Paradise," "Nothing Can Come Between Us," and "Keep Looking." A new Sade album didn't appear for four years. 1992's Love Deluxe continued the unbroken streak of multi-platinum Sade albums, spinning off the hits "No Ordinary Love," "Feel No Pain," and "Pearls." While the album's producer Mike Pela, Matthewman, Denman, and Hale have gone on to other projects. The new millennium did spark a new scene for Sade. She issued Lovers Rock in fall 2000 and incoporated more mainstream elements than ever before. Debut single "By Your Side" was also a hit among radio and adult-contemporary listerners. The following summer, Sade embarked on her first tour in more than a decade, selling out countless dates across America. In early 2002, she celebrated the success of the tour by releasing her first ever live album and DVD, Lovers Live. ~ Ed Hogan, All Music GuideMore

Fan Comments

Nov 13th, 4:22am
Sade! Ahh! (I just love to even hear that name.) From the moment I first saw your "By Your Side" video in 2000 (i was about 11 or 12) I knew you were a good singer. It wasn't until two years later when I really got to listen to some of your music, and I loved you ever since. You are not like every other singer. You write and sing your songs with such special meaning and purpose. To this day I still have to sit back and read the lyrics because there is always a message in each and everyone of your songs. And your voice is like one of the best on earth. You will always be one of my all-time favorite singers. Sade, you'll always have a special place in my heart.
Oct 31st, 11:56pm
hey good looking
Aug 27th, 6:36pm
"Sade" is a band and Sade Abu is the lead vocalist in it.
Jul 31st, 1:49am
HATE TO TELL YALL BUT FOR THOSE WHO DIDNT KNOW SADE ISN'T THE SINGER....ITS THE BAND AS A WHOLE
Jul 30th, 6:23pm
love you sade
Jul 27th, 7:59pm
This is my band.
Apr 4th, 12:57am
LOve her... grew up on her music... My dad loved her so much I have a sister names after her!
Mar 14th, 1:12am
Wooow eres una de las voces que mas admiro un abrazo desde Venezuela ven pronto
Mar 12th, 5:41am
This black female celebrity has been away from the public eye for quite some time. Only this time, her absence has nothing to do with her vacationing or working on her next project.



According to our source, she spent time in an overseas jail (cover-up) for heroin possession and use. Allegedly, she's currently on some type of home confinement. Her fixers made sure this didn't make the newspapers



Although it's been whispered in the industry for years, this particular celebrity may appear serene and well dressed but in reality, she's always had a taste for drugs, mainly cocaine (she could barely get through an interview without sniffling) and now heroin and she's a functional junkie.



People who have worked with her in the past say the experience is a nightmare because she can barely get through anything without excusing herself to administer a fix.



Allegedly, she went through withdrawal in jail but unfortunately, she enjoys getting high and has no intention of ever stopping.



This black female celebrity has a domestic and international following.



Who Is She?