Apollonia Kotero

Apollonia Kotero
Apollonia at L.A. Fashion Week, Culver City, CA - March 2008
Background information
Birth name	Patricia Kotero
Also known as	Apollonia, Apples, Patty,
Born	August 2, 1959 (1959-08-02) (age 50)
Origin	Santa Monica, California, US, Mexican-American
Genres	R&B, Minneapolis sound, Freestyle
Occupations	Business Owner,Singer, actress, swimsuit model,model, designer
Years active	1984–present
Associated acts	Kotero Entertainment, Apollonia 6, Prince,The Revolution, Lorenzo Lamas
Website	http://www.myspace.com/apolloniakotero

Patricia Kotero (born on August 2, 1959), known by her stage name Apollonia, is an actress, singer, former model and talent manager. Kotero was born in Santa Monica, California. She is of Mexican descent. Apollonia was married to writer Kevin Bernhardt (1987-1997). During the 1980s Apollonia was linked to Prince, Lorenzo Lamas, and David Lee Roth.

Apollonia initially pursued fame and fortune via work as an actress, singer and a model. After winning the Miss San Pedro beauty competition and a stint as a cheerleader for the Los Angeles Rams in the 1980’s, Kotero began acting in roles both in film and television such as CHiPs, Tales of the Gold Monkey, Fantasy Island, Matt Houston and Knight Rider. In 1982, she appeared in the video for "The Other Woman" by Ray Parker, Jr.

Later Apollonia landed a starring role opposite Prince in the 1984 Oscar-winning film Purple Rain. Apollonia 6, a singing group formed for this movie, also featured supporting singers Brenda Bennett and Susan Moonsie. Apollonia 6 went on a world wide tour to promote their hit single "Sex Shooter".

Apollonia had originally recorded a version of the song "Manic Monday" for the 1984 Apollonia 6 album. Written by Prince, the song would later become a worldwide hit single for the girl group The Bangles. Prince's song "Take Me with U" featured vocals by Apollonia and it reached #25 on the Top 40 chart in the U.S.

Apollonia left the Prince camp in 1985 to pursue a role on television in Falcon Crest (1986). She was allowed to appear under her own stage name, Apollonia, and also performed several solo songs, none of which would be released (one of the songs, which was often played and referred to on the show, was a title called "Red Light Romeo," which was written by U.S. songwriter Jon Lind who had penned the U.S. #1 hit, "Crazy For You," for Madonna). Kotero stayed on the show for 10 consecutive weeks, playing the girlfriend of teenage heartthrob Lorenzo Lamas.

In 1988, she released her first solo album, simply titled Apollonia, on Warner Bros. Records. Containing high energy dance music, three singles were released from the album: "Since I Fell For You," "The Same Dream," and "Mismatch." Aimed at the dance music crowd, the album and its two singles Mismatch and Since I Fell For You, were upbeat hot dance tracks that kept fans wanting more. Kotero then released the 1997's bilingual balled "Stay With Me."

Apollonia went on to star in roles such as Ministry of Vengeance (1989), Back to Back (1990), Black Magic Woman (1991) and a couple of Italian productions La Donna di una Sera, (1991), Cattive Ragazze, (1992) and returned to television on shows such as Sliders (with Jerry O'Connell) and Air America (starring Lorenzo Lamas, with whom she had previously starred together in Falcon Crest in 1986), and also hosting The Jazz Channel's Latin Beat program. During this period an exercise video (encouragingly titled Go For It) was also released. Apollonia can be seen on E Channel's Celebrity Homes and MTV's Cribs, with friend Carmen Electra, The Test and Rendezview.^[1]

In 2005, Apollonia formed a multi-media entertainment company, Kotero Entertainment. Kotero Entertainment is partnering with a number of producers to produce a children's animated television series, as well as feature films. Kotero Entertainment also manages young talent such as television and film star Sascha Andres and young pop singer Nikki Barreras, also known as Nikki B.

More recently, Kanye West's 2007 hit song "Stronger" used her name in the lyrics, and on December 1, 2007, she appeared at a Project Angel Food charity event in Beverly Hills, CA.

She recorded with Greg Dulli's 'The Twilight Singers' on a cover of 'When Doves Cry' for the Spin magazine 25th anniversary tribute to Purple Rain entitled Purplish Rain in 2009.

References

External links

• Apollonia Kotero at the Internet Movie Database