Marion Raven

Marion Raven
Background information
Birth name Marion Elise Ravn
Also known as Marion Ravn (in Norway)
Born (1984-05-25) 25 May 1984
Lørenskog, Norway
Genres Pop, pop rock
Occupation(s) Singer, songwriter, musician, presenter, voice actress, actress
Years active 1993–present
Labels

Current: Sony Music 2014-present RCA in Norway and Epic in Germany
Previous: Eleven Seven 2006-2012, Atlantic Records 1998-2005,

Playroom Music 2013.
Associated acts M2M, Meat Loaf, Thom Hell, Lisa Miskovsky, Marit Larsen, Everclear, Art Alexakis, Nikki Sixx, P!nk, Lionel Richie
Website marionravn.no
Notable instruments
Vocals, electric guitar, piano, acoustic guitar

Marion Elise Ravn (born 25 May 1984), known as Marion Raven, is a Norwegian singer-songwriter. She was one-half of the now-defunct pop duo M2M, along with Marit Larsen. Raven was later signed as a solo artist by Atlantic Records with the release of her solo debut album, Here I Am in 2005. In 2006, Raven was signed to the indie record label, Eleven Seven, and re-released her debut album with a few new songs, Set Me Free, in 2007. In 2012, Raven began production of her second album titled Songs from a Blackbird, which was released in her home country, Norway on 8 April 2013.

Raven has also written tracks for other artists such as Pixie Lott. She has also lent her voice for the Norwegian version of Tangled. In 2013 on her 29th birthday, Raven married long-time boyfriend, professional snowboarder Andreas Wiig.

Early life

Raven was born in Lørenskog, Norway; her father is a teacher. She has an older brother and two younger sisters.[1] Her surname is of Norse origin, with Ravn meaning Raven, which she adopted as her stage name Marion Raven as well as her trademark raven logo. Raven enjoyed singing from a young age, sometimes writing lyrics for the songs she sang. Raven joined the gospel choir in a local church at the age of 5. At age 7, she went on to be part of the St. Laurentius choir, which has many historical links in Lørenskog, and was started in 1965 by, and is still being run by her vocal coach for several years, Kjell Walther Christensen. By the time she was 8, Raven began playing the piano and took piano lessons from Sif Anna Lisa Ødegård, married to Kjell walther Christensen. She also attended ballet lessons, as well as performing ballet on stage. In 1993, she acted in the musical "Sound of Music", on the "Norwegian Broadway". She recorded a children's musical titled, "Vettene Vinner" (Vettene Wins), with the musical group, "Vettene", meaning "small trolls that protect nature", and was part of the group's record "Vettene på gamlespor" (Vettene on Old Tracks). At age 10, Raven acted in stage productions of Bugsy Malone and The Wizard of Oz

M2M and international success

In 1995, Raven's father arranged for her to make a demo in a studio in Oslo, together with her childhood friend, Marit Larsen. The duo got a record deal with EMI Norway and formed M2M. A year later, they produced children album titled, "Marit og Marion synger kjente barnesanger" which means "Marit and Marion Sing Well-Known Children Songs". M2M was nominated for the Norwegian Grammy, Spellemannprisen, the following year.

In 1998, M2M started recording pop demos in English and struck a record deal with Atlantic Records. The two collaborated with many songwriters from around the world and produced their multi-platinum debut album, Shades of Purple, that was released in 2000, with the lead single, "Don't Say You Love Me" featuring on the soundtrack of Pokémon: The First Movie. The song was co-produced by Jimmy Bralower and Peter Zizzo (Celine Dion), and mixed by Tom Lord-Alge. It peaked on the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 21, selling 39,000 units in a week, according to SoundScan.[2] Their second album, The Big Room, which was recorded in a studio in Bearsville in Woodstock, New York, was released in 2002. After world tours to promote The Big Room ended, M2M joined Jewel on her world tour as an opening act. M2M later disbanded in September 2002.

Raven was offered a recording contract[3] with Atlantic Records, though the offer was later revoked.[4] She co-wrote "Pointless Relationship" that was the lead single of Australian singer, Tammin Sursok's debut album, 'Whatever Will Be'. She also collaborated on the track "That Day", a song released by Norwegian pop singer, Maria Arredondo, from Arredondo's 2004 follow-up album Not Going Under, and co-wrote the song "Disconnected", a song included on Lindsay Lohan's debut album "Speak" in 2004.

Solo career

2005: Here I Am

Upon signing her deal with Atlantic Records, Marion Raven set about recording her debut album, and worked with Swedish songwriters/producers Max Martin and Rami, as well as Canadian singer-songwriter Chantal Kreviazuk and her husband Raine Maida from 2003 to 2005. Initially, the record company was not confident of Raven's switch to a more rock image and a darker, more personal style of songwriting.[5] Raven had to fight to record her kind of music, rock music with a pop element. The resulting 14-track list, including 2 bonus tracks, cultivated a more rock/pop sound and was titled Here I Am. The album saw Raven's transformation from the candy-pop music of M2M to a more angsty, rock-oriented singer, and was released in Scandinavia, Japan, Latin America and Southeast Asia.

Here I Am spawned three huge singles, End of Me, Break You and Here I Am. Break You holds the record as Raven's top-selling single internationally. All three singles were hugely successful in the Asian region where she further promoted the album with a tour.

The album was released in Raven's home country, Norway, on 10 August 2005 debuting at No. 6, alongside Sweden. It was well received in Asia, with over 135,000 copies sold in 3 months upon release. [6] Raven met with huge commercial success in the Asian region. Here I Am was promoted with a tour in Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan and among others.

2006–07: Set Me Free

In early 2006, it was announced that Raven quit her contract with Atlantic Records due to "artistic differences". Raven later confirmed that she was now signed to indie label Eleven Seven Music, which was created by her management 10th Street Entertainment.

World Idol winner Kurt Nilsen and Raven performing "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" at Tusenfryd amusement park in StatoilHydro on 22 August 2007.

Raven later performed a duet with rock musician Meat Loaf on a cover of the song "It's All Coming Back to Me Now", released as the lead single from Loaf's tenth studio album Bat Out of Hell III: The Monster Is Loose in October 2006. The track peaked at No. 1 in Norway and reached the top ten in Germany and the United Kingdom.[7] Raven later joined Loaf on an extensive tour through Canada and Europe in February 2007.[8]

Raven later confirmed that her new album would contain new and old tracks from her Norwegian debut as well as re-recorded tracks such as "Heads Will Roll", which received the help of American musician Nikki Sixx and was released as an EP in October 2006.[9] Prior to the release of Raven's album Set Me Free in March 2007, she toured around The Netherlands, Germany and the United Kingdom to help promote it. Raven later embarked on another promotional tour across the UK and performed in British schools. Later between later July and August, she became a supporting act on American singer-songwriter Pink's I'm Not Dead Tour in Germany.[10] The album was later released in June 2007 and sprawled two singles; "Falling Away" and a re-release of her previous single "Break You" from her Norwegian debut album.

2008–2010: Nevermore

In 2008, Raven made a cameo appearance in the music video for the song "Saints of Los Angeles" by American heavy metal band Mötley Crüe. In 2010 she became a panelist judge on the Norwegian version of the talent show The X Factor and later on Norwegian Idol.

Originally, Raven recorded her third studio album Nevermore in 2009 and penned it for a 2010 release, but due to the internal issues with her record label Eleven Seven Music, it was never released.

2012–2014: Songs from a Blackbird

Marion later released the single "Colors Turn to Grey" in March 2012 and stated in October 2012 that she is working on material for a new album. In March 2013, Marion released the single "The Minute" from her second album Songs from a Blackbird, which was released on 5 April 2013 in Norway. Being her first album in eight years, Songs from a Blackbird managed to peak at No. 3 in Norway.[11] The album was further promoted with a third single – the track "Driving" – and a Norwegian Tour in 2013.

International Version

Before an international version released, Marion re-released "The Minute" for an international single via iTunes on 25 July 2014. In August and 31 October 2014, an international version of Songs from a Blackbird released worldwide and Australia, respectively. It incorporates a mixture of Norwegian version and three new songs from both Scandal Vol. 1 and Scandal Vol. 2. For Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Australia, it released physically whereas the worldwide, including Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Australia, released iTunes.

2014–2015: Scandal Vol. 1 and Scandal Vol. 2

In January 2014, Marion announced plans to record her third studio album after signing with Sony Music Norway. The album's title was later announced as Scandal while its release date was confirmed as 22 September 2014.[12]

Hver gang vi møtes

Raven also starred the second season of Norwegian reality TV show Hver gang vi møtes, alongside other Norwegian music artists Morten Abel, Ole Paus, Anita Skorgan, Magnus Grønneberg, Kurt Nilsen and Lene Marlin.[13]

Marion Raven performances from other guest artists during the series were:

Fellow artists who sang Raven / M2m songs on Hver gang vi møtes – Marion Raven's Day were:

Other projects

Raven has written several songs for other artists including:

Her song In Spite of Me included on her debut album Here I Am were covered by Swedish pop singer Erik Grönwall for his second album Somewhere Between a Rock and a Hard Place.

In 2011, she also voiced the role of Rapunzel in the Norwegian dub of Tangled .

Awards and nominations

"Album of the Year" and performed an acoustic version of her single The Minute during the ceremony.

Tours

Year Tour Areas Role
Mid-late 2005 Here I Am Promo Tour Japan, Norway, Southeast Asia Headlining
Early-mid-2007 Meat Loaf Seize The Night Tour Canada, US, Europe As supporting act
July–August 2007 Pink I'm Not Dead Tour Germany As supporting act
November–December 2011 Kurt Nilsen Christmas Tour Norway Supporting act/Special guest
October 2013 Marion Ravn Norwegian Tour Norway Headlining
February–March 2015 Lionel Richie All the Hits All Night Long Europe Supporting act
February–April 2015 Marion Raven Scandal Tour Norway Headlining

Charity appearances

Discography

Studio albums

List of albums, with selected chart positions and certifications
Title Album details Peak chart positions
NOR
[15][16]		 JPN
[17]
Here I Am 6 1
Heads Will Roll – —
Set Me Free
  • Released: 8 June 2007
  • Label: Eleven Seven
  • Format: CD, digital download
 – —
Nevermore
  • Released: Cancelled / Unreleased
  • Label: Eleven Seven
  • Format: —
 – —
Songs from a Blackbird
  • Released: 5 April 2013, in Norway
  • Label: Sony Music Norway
  • Format: CD, digital download, LP
  • Re-released 8 August 2014, Worldwide
  • Epic Records / Blackbird Music
  • Format: CD, LP, digital download
 3 —
Scandal, Vol. 1 24 —
Scandal, Vol. 2 26 —
TBA TBA TBA
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Singles

Year Single Credited as Peak positions Album
NOR
 SWE
2005 "End of Me" Marion Raven / Marion Ravn – – Here I Am
"Break You" 9 51
"Here I Am" 20 –
"Little by Little" – –
2006 "Heads Will Roll" – – Heads Will Roll EP
2007 "Falling Away" – – Set Me Free
"Break You" (Re-release) – –
2010 "Flesh and Bone" – – Nevermore
"Found Someone" – –
2012 "Colors Turn to Grey" – – Songs from a Blackbird
2013 "The Minute" – –
"Driving" – –
2014 "In Dreams" – – Scandal, Vol.1
"You'll Get Up Again" – –
2015 "Better Than This" – – Scandal, Vol.2
"Kicks In" – –

Other appearances

Year Single Peak positions Album
NOR
[18]		 AUT NED SWE SWI
2006 "It's All Coming Back to Me Now"
(with Meat Loaf)		 1 17 15 – 21 Bat Out of Hell III: The Monster Is Loose

References

  1. ↑ "Profile for Marion Raven". Bebocom. 23 October 2007. Retrieved 2013-03-29.
  2. ↑ Norway Portal (2003). "M2M 2 The Top". Norway. Retrieved 7 April 2007.
  3. ↑ VG.No (2005). "News of Marion Ravn's Million-dollar Contract". vg.no. Retrieved 15 October 2006.
  4. ↑ "Her bryter Marion sammen i tårer over M2M-dagboken". Verdens Gang. 9 February 2013. Retrieved 1 October 2015.
  5. ↑ Suzilasari Salleh (2005). "Marion Raven – A Solo Comeback". Theurbanwire.com. Retrieved 18 April 2007.
  6. ↑ last.fm (2005). ""Here I Am" sold 135,000 copies in 3 months". 3am Music. Retrieved 25 April 2007.
  7. ↑ Norway-Culture (2007). "It's All Coming Back To Me Now chart listing". Culture. Retrieved 10 December 2006.
  8. ↑ Sperounes, Sandra (2007). "Big portions of Meat served-Meat Loaf 2007 Canada tour". The Edmonton Journal. Retrieved 5 March 2007.
  9. ↑ Anne Carlini (2007). "The Call of The Raven Is Upon Us". Exclusive Magazine. Retrieved 26 June 2007.
  10. ↑ Marion Raven (2007). "Tour dates". marion-raven.com. Retrieved 30 June 2007.
  11. ↑ https://twitter.com/marionraven/status/300879374725574656
  12. ↑ http://www.sonymusic.no/news/marion-ravn-showcase
  13. ↑ http://www.marionravn.no/eng/pages/113-in_the_studio
  14. ↑ Gibson X-Press (2005). "Ravin' on Raven". Gibson.com. Retrieved 7 April 2007.
  15. ↑ "Discography Marion Raven". norwegiancharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
  16. ↑ "Discography Marion Ravn". norwegiancharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
  17. ↑ "マリオン・レブンのCD・DVDリリース一覧 │ オリコン芸能人事典-ORICON STYLE". oricon.co.jp. Oricon. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
  18. ↑ "NorwegianCharts.com Marion Raven discography page". Norwegiancharts.com.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Marion Raven.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, April 14, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.