Adele

Biography

Adele's voice — smoky, huge, unmistakably Tottenham — arrived via the BRIT School and a MySpace demo. 21 turned heartbreak into the best-selling album of the century so far, and her pattern of long silences between albums has only amplified each return.

British singer-songwriter whose album 21 became one of the best-selling records of the 21st century.

Known for

21, Someone Like You, Rolling in the Deep and Hello.

Notable works & defining projects

• 21
• 25
• 19

Notable achievements

• Won 16 Grammy Awards, including three Album of the Year honours
• 21 is the best-selling album of the 21st century worldwide
• Won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for Skyfall (2012)

Timeline

1. 2008Debut album 19 topped the UK chart
2. 201121 became a once-in-a-generation sales phenomenon
3. 202130, her divorce album, was the year's best-selling album worldwide

Did you know?

• She graduated from the BRIT School in 2006, in the same era as Leona Lewis and Jessie J
• A demo posted to MySpace by a friend led to her first record deal with XL Recordings