b. Joscelyn Eve Stoker, 11 April 1987, Dover, Kent, England. This precociously talented white soul singer made a notable impact with her 2003 debut album, The Soul Sessions, released when she was only 16 years old. Stone grew up in the rural village of Ashill, Devon. She began singing in her early teens, making her first public performance at Uffculme Comprehensive School with a version of Jackie Wilson's "Reet Petite". In 2001, Stone won a local audition to perform on a junior version of the BBC talent show Star For A Night. Her appearance on Junior Star For A Night (singing Donna Summer's "On The Radio") helped launch a career in music, with the teenage singer hiring a management team that brought her to the attention of London-based production team the Boiler House Boys. The latter passed the word on to US record company executive Steve Greenberg who flew Stone to New York for an audition, following which he signed the 14-year old singer to his S-Curve label. Greenberg introduced Stone to veteran soul artist Betty Wright, with the original intention being to co-write an album of contemporary material. The direction of the album took a different turn when Greenberg and Wright suggested bringing in some well-known names from the 70s soul scene, including keyboard players Latimore and Timmy Thomas, and guitarist Little Beaver.
Mainly produced at the Hit Factory in Miami by Greenberg, the album evolved as a "live in the studio" set-up which saw Stone tackling a wide range of classic soul and pop material, including Carla Thomas' "I've Fallen In Love With You", Harlan Howard's "The Chokin' Kind", John Sebastian's "I Had A Dream", Aretha Franklin's "All The King's Horses", and the Isley Brothers' "For The Love Of You". Two further tracks were cut in New York with Mike Mangini, while a cover version of the White Stripes' "Fell In Love With A Girl" (retitled "Fell In Love With A Boy") was recorded in Philadelphia with the Roots' ?uestlove.
Released in September 2003, The Soul Sessions earned rapturous acclaim from critics on both sides of the Atlantic. Stone's raw, passionate singing was trumpeted as a welcome antidote to both the glut of reality television stars and the overly slick style of much contemporary R&B. The album was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize in July 2004, and though it failed to win the attendant publicity helped raise expectations for the singer's new album. Stone co-wrote all the material on Mind, Body & Soul, on which she dabbled in a number of musical styles including pop and reggae. Predictably enough, the singer sounded most at ease on retro soul numbers such as "Right To Be Wrong" and "Spoiled". The album topped the UK charts and broke into the US Top 20.
Stone next set her sights on breaking into the lucrative North American market, decamping to Barbados and working with Raphael Saadiq, Lauyrn Hill and Common on her major label debut. Released at the start of 2007, Introducing Joss Stone was not the artistic success her critics had been hoping for, but proved popular enough to reach the US Top 2.
