Alexis Jordan (born April 7, 1992) is an American former singer and actress from Columbia, South Carolina. Jordan rose to fame as a contestant on the first season of America's Got Talent in 2006 at the age of 14. After being eliminated from the show, she began to upload cover songs to YouTube, which received millions of views. The exposure led Jordan to the attention of Norwegian production team Stargate and American rapper Jay-Z, who both went on to sign her to their joint label, StarRoc.
Jordan's debut single, "Happiness", was released in September 2010, and reached number one in the Netherlands and Norway, and also became a top-three hit in Australia and the United Kingdom. Jordan's debut self-titled album was released on February 25, 2011. "Good Girl" was released as Jordan's second single in February 2011. It debuted on the UK Albums Chart at No. 9 and on the Australian Albums Chart at No. 11. Jordan also featured on Sean Paul's single "Got 2 Luv U", which reached number one in Switzerland and Bulgaria.
In 2006, Jordan auditioned for the first season of America's Got Talent. She sang Whitney Houston's "I Have Nothing" at her audition and made it through to the next round, only to be eliminated in the semifinals. Judge Brandy Norwood brought her back to compete in the semifinals, after the public didn't gather enough votes for Jordan. After being eliminated from the show, Jordan and her family moved to Atlanta to be closer to the music industry. While there, she began to upload cover songs on YouTube while submitting demos. By 2008, Jordan's YouTube page was racking up millions of views. The exposure led Jordan to the attention of production team Stargate who called her to fly to New York and record a few songs with them. While in the studio, rapper Jay-Z walked in, which ultimately resulted in Jordan becoming the first artist signed to the new, Sony Music-affiliated label, StarRoc/Roc Nation – a joint venture between Stargate and Jay-Z's Roc Nation label.
On April 12, 2012 Alexis embarked on her first headline tour in the United Kingdom. Jordan performed in three cities – London (Scala) on Thursday June 30, Birmingham HMV (Institute) on Saturday July 2 and Manchester (Club Academy) on Sunday July 3. Tickets went on sale on Friday April 15. In June and July 2011 Jordan also supported British boy band JLS on their eight-day UK tour. She also appeared at T4 on the Beach in the UK and performed "Hush Hush" and "Good Girl". Jordan featured on Sean Paul's single "Got 2 Luv U", which reached number one in Switzerland, Netherlands, Norway, Bulgaria, Romania, France, United States Billboard (in the Latin Raps & Pop Songs) and Venezuela. Jordan also made a cameo appearance in the film Honey 2. In June 2012, Jordan appeared at Birmingham Pride, performing "Good Girl", "Got 2 Luv U", "Shout Shout" and "Hush Hush" On November 25, 2012, she appeared as musical guest on X Factor (Romania).
On January 15, 2013, a new song titled "Acid Rain" leaked online. It was intended to serve as the lead cut from her second album. "Acid Rain" samples Bingo Players' song "Rattle," and is written by Sia and produced by Stargate. The official video was shot in late 2013. Its official music video was premiered on February 28, 2014. Jordan was dropped by Jay-Z's Roc Nation label after the single failed to chart.
Jordan cites singers Christina Aguilera, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey and Beyoncé as influences. Jordan also cites Michael Jackson as an influence, calling him "a big inspiration", and also is inspired by Billie Holiday, saying "I like Billie Holiday's sound".
2011 | Honey 2 | Herself | Cameo appearance |
2006 | America's Got Talent | Herself – Contestant | Eliminated in the semi-finals |
2008 | Emily's Reasons Why Not | Sister | Episode: "Why Not to Date a Twin" |
2010 | The Xtra Factor | Herself | 1 episode |
2011 | Adam Hills In Gordon Street Tonight | Herself | |
The Dome | Herself | Episode: "The Dome 57" | |
T4 on the Beach | Herself – Performer |
2011 | Eska Awards | International Hit of the Year ("Happiness") | ||
MOBO Awards | Best International Act | |||
MTV Europe Music Awards | Best Push Act |
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