Charlotte Church Biography

Welsh soprano Charlotte Church got her start as a classical singer whose pop-audience appeal made her a millionaire by the time she was 14 years old. Church was signed to a record deal at age 12, after being noticed during an impromptu performance on a local TV talent show. Her debut album, The Voice Of An Angel, was released in 1998 and became a hit on the classical charts. Church then released albums (including 1999’s Charlotte Church and 2001’s Enchantment), performed internationally and made numerous appearances on television, both in the United Kingdom and the United States. Although known primarily as an opera singer, she also sang songs from Broadway musicals and other popular tunes. One of her best-known songs is “Just Wave Hello,” a hit single that was from a television commercial for the Ford Motor Company. As Church emerged from her young teen years, she recorded the pop album Tissues and Issues (2005), and her new all-grown-up persona — liquor, tobacco and profanity — made her a favorite of the gossip sheets. By 2007 she was into the second season of BBC variety show (The Charlotte Church Show) and expecting her first child with Welsh rugby player Gavin Henson.