Ivy Levan
Levan performing in Los Angeles in 2014
Background information
Birth nameIvy Rose Levan
Born (1987-01-20) January 20, 1987 (age 37)
Tulsa, Oklahoma, U.S.
OriginBentonville, Arkansas, U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • model
  • actress
Years active2010–present
LabelsBMG, Interscope, Cherrytree Records

Ivy Rose Levan (born January 20, 1987) is an American singer, songwriter, model and actress from Bentonville, Arkansas. At 16, Levan moved to Los Angeles to pursue a music career, eventually signing to Cherrytree Records and Interscope Records.[1] Levan made her acting debut starring as "Cynthia" in the 2010 film Drop Dead Gorgeous which followed by other television appearances, including her most recent in Fox's The Rocky Horror Show film.[2]

In 2013, Levan released her debut EP on Interscope Records titled Introducing the Dame which peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Next Big Sound charts.[3] The most popular single from the EP was "Hot Damn".[4][5] Following a three-track single, Frostbitten, released by Cherrytree Records on December 15, 2014, she released the single, "Biscuit", on January 13, 2015. "Biscuit" also appeared on her first Cherrytree EP, No Good, released on August 7, 2015.[6]

Early life

Levan was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and raised in Bentonville, Arkansas.[7] The singer moved to Los Angeles with her mother when she was 16 years old to pursue a music career. Of the experience, Levan says "I just knew I needed to get out of there as fast as I could, so two weeks before I was supposed to graduate high school, I took off for L.A. with my mama." After experimenting with various musical styles, Levan began to use her Southern upbringing as a frame of reference, and as an influence which can be found in her music. During her career, Levan has worked with many artists of note, across genres. Among others, the singer has collaborated with Ben Weinman of The Dillinger Escape Plan, Tomo Miličević of Thirty Seconds to Mars, Sting,[8] and Diplo.

Musical career

2013–14: Career beginnings

In 2013, Levan released Introducing the Dame where it peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Next Big Sound charts.[3] The EP features her most popular single from the album "Hot Damn", which has racked up over 1 million views on YouTube.[4][5] During the album's release, Levan was interviewed on Glamour Magazine and featured on CBS News' "The Feed."[9][10] Levan was also featured on MTVu's Freshman segment, securing the winning spot twice and was dubbed as the "New It-Girl".[11]

In December 2013, Levan was featured in a television commercial for the Beats By Dre Color Solo Headphones alongside Chris Cole, Jasmine Villegas, August Alsina, Nipsey Hussle, Nyjah Huston, Serena Williams and Alex Midler.[12] Levan made her television performance debut February 2, 2014 on the Late Show with David Letterman in which she performed Drive My Car with Sting and Mike Einziger on day two of the Late Show's Beatles Tribute Week.[13] Additionally, in June 2013, Levan supported Fitz & The Tantrums touring mostly the Mid-West and North-Eastern United States as well as Texas. During this tour, she also performed at clubs in support of the LGBT community. In October 2013, she supported Emeli Sandé. On April 17, 2014, Levan performed with Lisa Fischer for the 25th Anniversary of the Rainforest Fund Benefit Concert.

2015–present: No Good and The Rocky Horror Picture Show

In 2015, Levan released the first single "Biscuit" to her debut studio album titled No Good, which was released on August 7, 2015.[14] She also sang the theme song "Who Can You Trust?", for the comedy film Spy.[15] In 2016, it was announced that she would be singing the opening credits and starring as Usherette in Fox TV's production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, which premiered in October 2016.[2]

In August 2017, she announced that she was in a new record deal with BMG. Along with this, she announced a new EP but didn't announce a release date. In November 2018, Levan announced the release date of her upcoming single "Her" which was released on November 8, 2018.[16]

Artistry

Levan's influences include Tina Turner, Mariah Carey, Ray Charles, Madonna, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Slayer and Beyoncé.[17] Her musical style is sometimes dubbed as "Swamp-hop", a mixture of raw sounding soul music & synths.[5][18][19] Levan's vocals have been persistently compared to Christina Aguilera by many music critics.[citation needed]

Personal life

Levan is openly bisexual and is also a model.[20] She is signed to Ford Models, and has done ads for JCPenney, Payless ShoeSource and runway for Mercedes Benz Fashion Week.[21]

Discography

Studio albums
Title Album details
No Good
Extended plays
Title Album details
Introducing the Dame
Frostbitten
FUCC IT
Soundtrack albums
Title Album details
The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do the Time Warp Again

Filmography

Title Year Role Other notes
Drop Dead Gorgeous 2010 Cynthia Barris Main role
90210 2013 Singer Season 5, Ep 2[26]
Mob Wives 2013 Singer Season 4[27]
The Drama Queen 2014 Singer Season 2
Banshee 2014 Singer Series Premiere[28]
Late Show with David Letterman 2014 Special Guest Television performance
The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do the Time Warp Again 2016 Trixie, the Usherette TV movie

References

  1. ^ "Ivy Levan, Natalia Kills and Miriam Bryant: Live at the Bootleg Theatre". Billboard. February 15, 2014.
  2. ^ a b Bradley, Laura (September 16, 2016). "Fox Completely Changed the Opening Credits for Its Rocky Horror Picture Show". Vanity Fair.
  3. ^ a b "Next Big Sound". Billboard. January 2, 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2014.
  4. ^ a b Weinkauf, Gregory (February 4, 2014). "Cherrytree Records Extravaganza: Ivy Levan and Sting Set to Rock Beatles on Letterman; RAC Readies New Album; Much More". HuffPost.
  5. ^ a b c Guerra, Joey (July 10, 2013). "Singer Ivy Levan gets down and dirty with swamp-hop". Houston Chronicle.
  6. ^ August 7th @ivylevan's debut album drops under @Interscope & @cherrytreerec records. Get ready for an Ivy take over. Twitter. May 18, 2015
  7. ^ "Ivy Levan". IMDb.com. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  8. ^ "No Good by Ivy Levan". Music.apple.com. August 7, 2015. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  9. ^ Woods, Mickey (June 5, 2013). "New Music Alert: Hear Sexy Singer Ivy Levan's Debut Single "Hot Damn"". Glamour.
  10. ^ "Weekend Music Round-Up: kick shoes off edition". CBS News. June 28, 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2014.
  11. ^ "New It-Girl Alert: Ivy Levan". Yahoo Music. November 2013. Retrieved May 12, 2014.
  12. ^ "Commercial for Beats by Dre, and Beats Solo (2013–2014)". Popisms. Retrieved May 12, 2014.
  13. ^ "Late Show with David Letterman (Season: 21; Episode: 3980)". Drive My Car performance with Sting and Mike Einziger. February 2, 2014. Retrieved February 6, 2014.
  14. ^ August 7th @ivylevan's debut album drops under @Interscope & @cherrytreerec records. Get ready for an Ivy takeover. Twitter. May 18, 2015
  15. ^ "Ivy Levan debuts 'Who Can You Trust' music video". M.axs.com. Retrieved October 4, 2016.
  16. ^ Mier, Tomas (November 8, 2018). "WATCH: Model-Turned-Pop Singer Ivy Levan Releases Emotional 'Her' Music Video". People. Retrieved February 13, 2019.
  17. ^ Cody Ross and Aleksandra Dinic (June 22, 2015). "Meet Alt-Pop Heroine Ivy Levan". The Wild. Retrieved April 2, 2016.
  18. ^ "Ivy Levan: Queen of Swamp-Hop". Twelvmag.com. Archived from the original on November 16, 2017. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  19. ^ "Ivy Levan, the Queen of Swamp-Hop". bullettmedia.com. Archived from the original on September 6, 2015. Retrieved January 13, 2022.
  20. ^ "NUNN ON ONE: MUSIC Ivy Levan talks 'Biscuit,' bisexuality – 258 – Gay Lesbian Bi Trans News Archive – Windy City Times". Windy City Times. Windy City Media Group. n.d. Retrieved August 12, 2015.
  21. ^ "Ivy Levan - Fashion Model | Models | Photos, Editorials & Latest News". Fashionmodeldirectory.com. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  22. ^ "Introducing the Dame by Ivy Levan". iTunes Store. January 2013. Retrieved July 2, 2015.
  23. ^ "Frostbitten by Ivy Levan". iTunes Store. January 6, 2015. Retrieved July 2, 2015.
  24. ^ Piedra, Xavier (January 25, 2019). "Pride Profile: 10 Questions With Pop Powerhouse Ivy Levan". Billboard. Retrieved February 13, 2019.
  25. ^ ""The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do the Time Warp Again" by Ivy Levan". iTunes Store. October 21, 2016.
  26. ^ "90210 Music". TV Fanatic. October 2008. Retrieved May 12, 2014.
  27. ^ "Songs From The Show". Viacom International, Inc. Archived from the original on December 6, 2013.
  28. ^ "Songs From The Show". VH1. Archived from the original on December 6, 2013.

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