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| Biography |
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The
daughter of Alan and Georgia Morissette, Alanis, an Ottawa native, was one of three
children in the family (she has an older brother named Chad and a twin brother named
Wade). Although the name Alanis is Greek itself, Alanis Morissette has no Greek background
whatsoever. As it turns out, Alan Morissette wanted his daughter to have a female version
of his name, but he wasn't particularily fond of the name Alanna. And one day, by chance,
he spotted the name Alanis in a newspaper.
Alanis loved dancing and acting when she was young (probably still do). She started
learning ballet and jazz dancing at the age of 7. She has also done a lot of stage and
theatre work, including a part on the highly popular kids television show "You Can't
Do That on Television" when she was 11. Alanis also appeared in the TV movie
"Just One of the Girls" in 1993, which starred Corey Haim.
Alanis also seem to be quite fond of teaching, as she once suggested that she might have
been an English or Drama teacher if she hadn't been involved in show business.
She has been writing songs for fun since 9. Alanis admired the music and character of
Olivia Newton John (from "Grease") tremendously when she was young, which is the
main reason why she was so interested in music. She also loved the writing style of George
Micheal. With the help of a friend of the family who was in the music business, Alanis
released her first ever single at the young age of eleven. The song was called "Fate
Stay With Me", and it was independently produced with money coming out of her own
pocket. The song was not a hit by any means, but it got some airplay on Canadian radio
stations.
At age 13, Alanis met Leslie Howe (who did the group One-to-One), and they started writing
together. Eventually, she was signed to MCA, and she recorded her first album,
"ALANIS", in 1990. Released in 1991, the music on this album is mostly pop and
dance, along the lines of Paula Abdul. This recording proved to be a big hit in her
homeland, as "ALANIS" went platinum in Canada. She was labelled as a teenager
pop/dance sensation. Her success won her a JUNO Award (Canada's version of the America's
Grammys) as the most promising new female vocalist.
Her sophomore album "NOW IS THE TIME" was released by MCA in late 1992.
"NOW IS THE TIME" is also a pop album, but this recording as a whole seems to be
more mature than her first album. It has more ballards and sounds less like a dance album.
Not as successful as "ALANIS", "NOW IS THE TIME" nevertheless went
platinum in Canada.
Despite being relatively well-known in Canada, Alanis was a virtual stranger in the United
States. Her biggest gigs so far were singing the national anthem at the first Ottawa
Senator's game and singing her song "Too Hot" on the 1992 NHL Awards. This may
all change after Alanis was signed to Madonna's Maverick Label. After trying to co-write
with hundreds of people and being disappointed each time, Alanis finally met Glen Ballard
through MCA publishing, and immediately two enjoyed each other's writing style.
Her third release "JAGGED LITTLE PILL" showed a very different Alanis than in
the previous two albums. Instead of using midi machines, sequencers and other electronic
gagnets, Alanis Morissette, as she is called now, has human band players. Also, the lyrics
in this album are much more intelligent, meaningful, and bitter. Alanis believed that the
catalyst for her change in attitude and character was her move from Canada to Los Angeles,
where she learned to live independently in a big city. Alanis said she is now mature
enough to tap into an honesty that she wasn't ready to deal with when she was younger.
Most of the songs on "JAGGED LITTLE PILL" are in one way or another
autobiographical. And people are loving her work, as her album is now a big hit across the
United States. |
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