Kate Ceberano

Kate Ceberano, born 17 November, 1966, is an award winning Australian pop vocalist entertainer. She acquired local fame in the soul, jazz and pop genres as well as in her brief forays into musicals with Jesus Christ Superstar and film. She has also achieved success as a songwriter, with the hit "Pash" going gold in 1998.

Biography

Ceberano was born in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia of a Filipino father and an English mother. She is a third-generation member of the Church of Scientology in Australia, her grandmother having once been employed as a governess for L. Ron Hubbard's children. She retains close family ties, working closely with her mother Cherie Ceberano, her brother (guitarist Phil) and her husband (film-maker Lee Rogers).

Noted for her soulful and powerful vocal style, singer-songwriter Kate Ceberano has won almost every entertainment award in Australia. She has released five Platinum albums, five Gold albums, selling in excess of 1 million albums in Australia alone, performed tours, acted in feature films and hosted her own television show.

Ceberano first came to prominence as lead vocalist at 15 years of age, for the funk band I'm Talking, which was managed by Ken West. The group’s album produced three top ten singles, went Platinum and won Best New Talent (1984) at the Countdown Awards. Ceberano won Best Female Vocalist (1985) at the Countdown Awards as well as Best Female Singer (1985) at the Australian Record Industry Association (ARIA) Awards. However after just one album, the group broke up and she went solo, with manager West soon replaced by Ceberano's mother Cherie.

Ceberano’s first solo album was the live set Kate Ceberano and Her Septet (1987). Her following album You've Always Got The Blues (1988) earned her an ARIA Award for Best Female Artist (1988). One year later, she won another ARIA for Best Female Artist (1989) as well as one for Highest Selling Single (1989), which was "Bedroom Eyes". At the end of 1990, she received three prestigious MO Awards for Jazz Performer, Female Rock Performer and Contemporary Concert Performer of the Year.

In 1992, Ceberano performed the role of Mary Magdalene in Jesus Christ Superstar (1992), which toured Australia and also featured John Farnham as Jesus Christ and former Noiseworks howler, Jon Stevens as Judas Iscariot. She followed this with her own late-night cabaret-style show on ABC TV called Kate Ceberano And Friends (1993-1994). This show flopped. Ceberano proved to be not in a position to ask her guests even basic questions without the aid of cheat sheets.

In 1994 a portrait of Kate Ceberano by painter Peter Robertson won the Packing Room award at the Archibald Prize.

In 1996 Ceberano released her next solo album Blue Box, which went Gold and saw her nominated for another Best Female Artist ARIA. In 1997 she wrote and released Pash. It went Gold and establishing Ceberano as one of Australian's leading song-writers.

Ceberano has also appeared the feature films, Molokai: The Story of Father Damien (2002), Dust Off The Wings (1996), Garbo (1990) and telemovie Arguing the Toss of a Cat (1989). She also performs as a special guest with acclaimed Los Angeles improv group the Really Spontaneous Theatre Company.

In 2005, Ceberano appeared as a judge on the Australian version of the television reality show X Factor for which she was voted Australia's Worst Female TV Personality by the annual satirical TV Fugly Awards [1].

Later she performed at the Kimberley Moon Experience at Kununurra, marking her first time in the Kimberley.

She has also appeared on Network Ten Australia's "David Tench Tonight" program, as well as on the 2007 edition of the Seven Network's Dancing With The Stars, which she won, and has also featured as a guest contributor on Series 4 of the Nine Network's "20 To 1". She appeared on the Seven Network's second season of It Takes Two.

Kate appeared in the Countdown Spectacular 2 concert series in Australia between late-August and early-September 2007. She sang the I'm Talking favourites "Love Don't Live Here Anymore" and "Trust Me" only.

Achievements

• Has recorded the highest score ever in Dancing with the Stars.
• Won the 2007 Australian series with a final show freestyle routine based on West Side Story and with public support for her exuberant, engaging style.

Albums

Kate Ceberano

• 1984 "It's Magic" / "Only With You" (Backing vocals for John Justin)
• 1986 Bear Witness (as lead singer in the band I'm Talking) - Platinum
• 1987 Kate Ceberano & Her Septet - Gold
• 1988 You've Always Got The Blues (with Wendy Matthews) - Platinum (AUS#7)
• 1989 Brave - Triple Platinum (AUS#2)
• 1990 Like Now (as Kate Ceberano & Her Sextet)
• 1991 Think About It
• 1992 Jesus Christ Superstar Cast Album - Role: Mary Magdalene (4 x Platinum, 10 weeks at No. 1)
• 1992 Open The Door - Live at Mietta's
• 1994 Kate Ceberano & Friends - live album from her ABC TV show - Gold
• 1996 Blue Box - Gold
• 1997 Pash - Gold
• 1999 True Romantic: The Best Of Kate Ceberano - Double Platinum (AUS#9)
• 2003 The Girl Can Help It
• 2004 The Definitive Collection
• 2004 19 Days In New York (AUS #53)
• 2006 Live with The WASO
• 2007 Nine Lime Avenue - Gold (AUS#4)

Awards / highlights

• 1985/1986 Countdown Awards- Best Female Artist 1985 and 1986
• 1988/89 ARIA Awards - Best Female Artist 1988 and 1989 (Kate has been nominated 7 times; a record equalled only by Kylie Minogue)
• 1989 Monte Carlo World Music Awards / ARIA Award - Highest Selling Australian Single
• 1990/91 MO Awards - Jazz Performer of the Year, Female Rock Performer and Contemporary Concert Performer of the Year
• 1992 Coca Cola Australia Music Award - Most Popular Female Performer
• 1992,1993,1994 Peoples Choice Awards - Favourite Female Singer (Record)
• 1999 "Outstanding Achievement in the Arts in Asia" Business Asia Award.
• 2002 Performed the Australian National Anthem at AFL Grand Final
• 2007 Winner of Australian Version of Dancing with the Stars

Film

• 1989 "Arguing The Toss of a Cat" (telemovie), Director: Christine Sammers
• 1997 "Dust Off The Wings" (feature film), Director: Lee Rogers
• 1999 "Molokai: The Story of Father Damien" (feature film), Director: Paul Cox
• 1999 Opening theatrical sequence for Sydney's Fox Studios, Director: Baz Luhrmann

External links

• Official website
• It Takes Two official website
• Kate Ceberano at the Internet Movie Database

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