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Showing posts with label Songwriter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Songwriter. Show all posts

Friday, June 1, 2012

Alejandro Sanz

Alejandro Sanz, born Alejandro Sánchez Pizarro on December 18, 1968 is a Spanish singer-songwriter and musician. For his work, Sanz has won a total of fifteen Latin Grammy Awards and three Grammy Awards. He has won the Latin Grammy for Album of the Year three times, more than any other artist. Throughout his career, he has released a total of ten studio albums and six DVDs. The singer is noted for his flamenco-influenced ballads, but he has also experimented with rock, salsa, and hip hop.

Born in Madrid, Sanz began playing guitar at age seven, taking influence from his family's flamenco roots. He released his debut album at age sixteen, although he did not gain commercial success until his second release, Viviendo Deprisa. His next two records, Si Tú Me Miras and 3 also fared well commercially, but it was his 1997 breakthrough album Más that garnered international success. El Alma al Aire followed in 2000, selling more than a million copies in its first week.

In 2002, he became the first Spanish artist to record an MTV Unplugged album. His collaboration with Shakira on the single "La Tortura" reached number one on several charts worldwide. His albums No Es lo Mismo (2003) and El Tren de los Momentos (2006) showed Sanz experimenting with more diverse styles of music, while his most recent release, Paraíso Express (2009) served as a return to form for the musician. He signed to Universal Music Group in 2011 and is reported to be working on his tenth studio album.


To promote his new record, Paraíso Express, Sanz started a campaign in which fans could create a video about their definition of paradise and upload it to his YouTube channel. Artists such as Shakira, Laura Pausini and Paulina Rubio also participated. On November 10, 2009, Sanz released Paraíso Express. This record was described as a return to form for Sanz, focusing more on melody as opposed to the experimentation he pursued on his previous two albums. He commented that "On this album, I first composed the melody and then the lyrics. It is more of a rock album than my past releases, with more elegant and positive lyrics and a happier and more rhythmic spirit.
The bilingual single "Looking for Paradise" featuring Alicia Keys reached number one on the Billboard Hot Latin Songs chart. At the 2010 Latin Grammy Awards, the album was nominated Album of the Year and Best Male Pop Vocal Album, while the single "Desde Cuándo" received both Record and Song of the Year nominations. On February 15, 2011, Sanz announced that he would be signing with Universal Music Group after twenty years with Warner.


Musical style
Sanz is known for his distinctive raspy vocals, which he attributes to his flamenco roots, crediting singer Camarón de la Isla as a major influence.His song "Sí, He Cantado Mal" (Yes, I Have Sung Badly) from No Es lo Mismo references this, with Sanz saying "I'm laughing a little at myself so that I can laugh at other things. Sometimes, I'm harder on myself than any music critic can be. I'm laughing at that. Throughout his youth, Sanz was heavily influenced by English-language heavy metal groups such as Iron Maiden and Dio, referring to himself as a "heavy metal radical". He also feels that living in the city of Cadiz had a major impact on his musical style, where "Any 7-year-old kid you find knows how to play guitar, play the cajón, knows how to sing. When the family comes together we start to sing. In a way it's not just music, it's culture.
Early in his career, his music generally consisted of romantic ballads. However, in the late 1990s, his collaborations with other artists greatly expanded his musical style. On No Es lo Mismo, he experimented with rock, salsa, and hip hop. While recording the album, he noted that he often entered the studio with a rough idea for a song and the guest artists would "contaminate it with their rhythms...in a good way. El Tren de los Momentos continued this pattern of musical experimentation, featuring diverse genres such as funk, jazz, and country.Despite this, Jason Birchmeier of Allmusic described his musical evolution by saying "Even as Sanz broadened his style over the years, he never ventured far from his strength: romantic songs, generally ballads, tinged with flamenco and sung wholeheartedly with his distinct voice.

Personal life
Sanz married Mexican fashion model and actress Jaydy Michel in Bali on December 30, 1999, but this marriage was never legally recognized in either of their home countries. Sanz felt that having a legally recognized marriage was unnecessary: "My wife is my wife and I am her husband. For me, that has enough validity...I am married with the heart."[39] The couple separated in 2005.Their daughter, Manuela Sánchez Michel, was born in 2001. Sanz later had a son named Alexander with Valeria Rivera, a Puerto Rican fashion designer.
Sanz welcomed his third child in New York, a boy named Dylan (b. July 2011), the first child from his relationship with girlfriend and former assistant, Raquel Perera. Sanz chose flamenco guitarist Paco de Lucía to be the godfather to his son. Sanz and Perera are godparents to David Bisbal's daughter, Ella. On May 23, 2012, Sanz married Raquel Perera in a private ceremony in Barcelona.
In addition to music, Sanz enjoys painting, which he often does while trying to create ideas for new songs.[44] He explains that painting "teaches you that taking risks rarely leads to failure. In fact, from the moment you assume a risk, you have succeeded.

Sanz was born in Madrid, Spain, on December 18, 1968, the youngest son of María Pizarro and Jesús Sánchez. He grew up in the high-crime neighborhood of Moratalaz in eastern Madrid. Sanz recalled that "Back then, kids grew up on the street...I was a bit like the group troubadour; the one who played the guitar and sang. That kept me out of a lot of trouble. Sanz's father, a door-to-door book salesman, played guitar professionally, which inspired seven-year-old Sanz to learn to play the instrument. He pursued the instrument with an intensity that eventually frustrated his mother, who broke his guitar one morning after his playing kept the family from sleeping.
He was exposed to traditional flamenco music as a child while vacationing each summer in his parents' native Andalucía in southern Spain. Originally, Sanz intended to become a flamenco performer, but he found the music teachers to be overly strict. Commenting on his early experiences, Sanz explained, "Flamenco can be very hard on beginners. If you lose the rhythm, they toss you out with, 'You're no good, boy!' They're very strict and very cruel. But it's also a marvelous education, because you either learn to play or else. He felt that he could not compete with his peers, and decided to focus on creating pop music with flamenco influences, viewing flamenco to be a "lifestyle" better suited to others.

Kylie Minogue

Kylie Ann Minogue, OBE, born 28 May 1968 — often known simply as Kylie — is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, showgirl, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing her career as a recording artist in 1987. Her first single, "Locomotion", spent seven weeks at number one on the Australian singles chart and became the highest selling single of the decade. This led to a contract with songwriters and producers Stock, Aitken & Waterman. Her debut album, Kylie (1988), and the single "I Should Be So Lucky", each reached number one in the United Kingdom, and over the next two years, her first 13 singles reached the British top ten. Her debut film, The Delinquents (1989) was a box-office hit in Australia and the UK, and received generally positive reviews.

Initially presented as a "girl next door", Minogue attempted to convey a more mature style in her music and public image. Her singles were well received, but after four albums her record sales were declining, and she left Stock, Aitken & Waterman in 1992 to establish herself as an independent performer. Her next single, "Confide in Me", reached number one in Australia and was a hit in several European countries in 1994, and a duet with Nick Cave, "Where the Wild Roses Grow", brought Minogue a greater degree of artistic credibility. Drawing inspiration from a range of musical styles and artists, Minogue took creative control over the songwriting for her next album, Impossible Princess (1997). It failed to attract strong reviews or sales in the UK, but was successful in Australia.
Minogue returned to prominence in 2000 with the single "Spinning Around" and the dance-oriented album Light Years, and she performed during the closing ceremonies of the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Her music videos showed a more sexually provocative and flirtatious personality and several hit singles followed. "Can't Get You Out of My Head" reached number one in more than 40 countries, and the album Fever (2001) was a hit in many countries, including the United States, a market in which Minogue had previously received little recognition. Minogue embarked on a concert tour but cancelled it when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in May 2005. After surgery and chemotherapy treatment, she resumed her career in 2006 with Showgirl: The Homecoming Tour. Her tenth studio album X was released in 2007 and was followed by the KylieX2008 tour. In 2009, she embarked upon her For You, For Me Tour, her first concert tour of the United States and Canada, and the following year released her eleventh studio album, Aphrodite.
Minogue has achieved worldwide record sales of more than 68 million, and has received notable music awards, including multiple ARIA and Brit Awards and a Grammy Award. She has mounted several successful and critically acclaimed concert world tours and received a Mo Award for "Australian Entertainer of the Year" for her live performances. Bestowed from the Queen of Australia Queen Elizabeth II, she was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (O.B.E.) at Buckingham Palace in 2008 "for services to music". In the same year she was awarded France's highest cultural honour, the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from the French government for her contribution to the enrichment of French culture. In 2011, "I Should Be So Lucky" was added to the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia's Sounds of Australia registry. While also in 2011, Minogue was awarded an honorary Doctor of Health Science (D.H.Sc.) degree by Anglia Ruskin University in the United Kingdom of for her work in raising awareness for breast cancer. On 27 November 2011, on the twenty-fifth anniversary of the ARIA Music Awards, Kylie Minogue was inducted by the Australian Recording Industry Association into the ARIA Hall of Fame.


2010–present: Aphrodite and K25 anniversary

Minogue performing on her Aphrodite Tour, in France, March 2011
Minogue's eleventh studio album, Aphrodite, was released in Japan on 30 June 2010 and worldwide in July 2010. The lead single, "All the Lovers", premiered on radio in May 2010 and was made available for purchase in June 2010. The album debuted at number one in the UK charts, exactly twenty two years after her first UK number one hit. On 3 June 2010, she hosted the inaugural AmfAR "Inspiration Gala" at the New York Public Library honouring Jean Paul Gaultier for his lifelong contribution to men's fashion and the fight against AIDS. Minogue appeared on BBC1's Friday Night With Jonathan Ross on 25 June 2010, during which she confirmed she is a UK resident, and announced that she will tour in 2011.
In July 2010, Minogue filmed a cameo performance as a rock star in the American independent film Jack and Diane. The movie stars Juno Temple, Riley Keough and Jena Malone She also recorded a duet titled "Devotion" with British synthpop duo Hurts for their debut album Happiness, released on 6 September 2010. The second single from Aphrodite, titled "Get Outta My Way" was released on 27 September 2010. In October 2010, Minogue performed in front of the Sphinx and the Pyramids at Giza, Egypt to celebrate the anniversary of "Enigma" magazine, with profits going to the We Owe It To Egypt Foundation. A third single, "Better Than Today", was released on 6 December 2010.
Minogue's singles, "All the Lovers" and "Get Outta My Way", were popular in U.S. clubs, each reaching number one on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart. On 5 March 2011 "Better Than Today" was at number one on the chart, and her collaboration with Taio Cruz, "Higher", was at number three, making her the first artist in the chart's history to have two singles simultaneously in the top three. On 1 December 2010, Minogue and Parlophone records released the EP A Kylie Christmas on iTunes, which included a cover of the 1945 song "Let It Snow" as well as "Santa Baby" which was previously available as a b-side to her 2000 single "Please Stay". Kylie performed the song "Santa Baby" at the 2010 rockefeller tree lighing in New York on 30 November 2010.
In August 2011, "Put Your Hands Up (If You Feel Love)", also reached number one on the Billboard dance chart, where Minogue has now achieved five consecutive number one spots on the chart for her last five releases — including her collaboration with Taio Cruz on the track, "Higher".
In 2011, Minogue embarked on the Aphrodite World Tour, travelling to Europe, North America, Asia, Australia and Africa. A DVD/Blu-ray of the concert, filmed in London, was released at the end of November 2011.Minogue is currently working on a new compilation album featuring re-worked versions of hits that will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the release of her debut single "Locomotion".
To celebrate her 25 years in the music industry, Minogue began a year-long celebration in 2012. Known as "K25", the singer plans to release a greatest hits collection containing acoustic and orchestral versions of her biggest hits. On her YouTube channel, Minogue has released a video on 25 January and February showcasing two recordings at the historic Abbey Road Studios.In addition, the singer has performed at various music festivals including the Sydney Mardi Gras. On 5 March 2012 Minogue announced the first dates of the K25 Anti Tour. The intimate show will feature b-sides, demos and rarities from her music catalogue. On 20 April 2012, Minogue's film Jack and Diane premiered at the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival. In May 2012, Minogue premiered in another film, Holy Motors, at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival. The film received an overwhelmingly positive reception with the audience cheering and loudly applauding.
On May 4, 2012, Billboard announced that Minogue would release a brand new greatest hits album entitled The Best of Kylie Minogue.
Minogue also released a new single, "Timebomb", on May 25, 2012 as part of her K25 celebrations.

Bronze statue of Kylie Minogue at Waterfront City, Melbourne Docklands
Minogue's efforts to be taken seriously as a recording artist were initially hindered by the perception that she had not "paid her dues" and was no more than a manufactured pop star exploiting the image she had created during her stint on Neighbours. Minogue acknowledged this viewpoint, saying, "if you're part of a record company, I think to a degree it's fair to say that you're a manufactured product. You're a product and you're selling a product. It doesn't mean that you're not talented and that you don't make creative and business decisions about what you will and won't do and where you want to go."[89] In 1993, Baz Luhrmann introduced Minogue to the photographer Bert Stern, notable for his work with Marilyn Monroe. Stern photographed her in Los Angeles and, comparing her to Monroe, commented that Minogue had a similar mix of vulnerability and eroticism. During her career Minogue has chosen photographers who attempt to create a new "look" for her, and the resulting photographs have appeared in a variety of magazines, from the cutting edge The Face to the more traditionally sophisticated Vogue and Vanity Fair, making the Minogue face and name known to a broad group of people. Stylist William Baker has suggested that this is part of the reason she has entered in the mainstream pop culture of Europe more successfully than many other pop singers who concentrate solely on selling records.
By 2000, when Minogue returned to prominence, she was considered to be have achieved a degree of musical credibility for having maintained her career longer than her critics had expected. That same year, Birmingham Post noted "[o]nce upon a time, long before anybody had even heard of Britney, Christina, Jessica or Mandy, Australian singer Kylie Minogue ruled the charts as princess of pop. Back in 1988 her first single, I Should Be So Lucky, spent five weeks at number one, making her the most successful female artist in the UK charts with 13 successive Top 10 entries. Her progression from the wholesome "girl next door" to a more sophisticated performer with a flirtatious and playful persona attracted new fans to her. Her "Spinning Around" video led to some media outlets referring to her as "SexKylie", and sex became a stronger element in her subsequent videos. William Baker described her status as a sex symbol as a "double edged sword" observing that "we always attempted to use her sex appeal as an enhancement of her music and to sell a record. But now it has become in danger of eclipsing what she actually is: a pop singer.After 20 years as a performer, Minogue was described as a fashion "trend-setter" and a "style icon who constantly reinvents herself". She has been acknowledged for mounting successful tours, and for worldwide record sales of more than 68 million.


Minogue is regarded as a gay icon, which she encourages with comments such as "I am not a traditional gay icon. There's been no tragedy in my life, only tragic outfits ..." and "My gay audience has been with me from the beginning ... they kind of adopted me."[89] Minogue has explained that she first became aware of her gay audience in 1988, when several drag queens performed to her music at a Sydney pub and she later saw a similar show in Melbourne. She said that she felt "very touched" to have such an "appreciative crowd" and this had encouraged her to perform at gay venues throughout the world, as well as headlining the 1994 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras.
"Madonna subverts everything for her own gain. I went to see her London show and it was all so dour and humourless. She surpasses even Joan Crawford in terms of megalomania. Which in itself makes her a kind of dark, gay icon ... I love Kylie, she's the anti-Madonna. Self-knowledge is a truly beautiful thing and Kylie knows herself inside out. She is what she is and there is no attempt to make quasi-intellectual statements to substantiate it. She is the gay shorthand for joy."
Rufus Wainwright,
Observer Music Monthly, 2006
Minogue has been inspired by and compared to Madonna throughout her career.[10] Her producer, Pete Waterman recalled Minogue during the early years of her success, with the observation, "She was setting her sights on becoming the new Prince or Madonna ... What I found amazing was that she was outselling Madonna four to one, but still wanted to be her. Minogue received negative comments that her Rhythm of Love tour in 1991 was too similar visually to Madonna's Blond Ambition World Tour of the previous year for which the critics labelled her a Madonna wannabe. Kathy McCabe for The Telegraph notes that Minogue and Madonna follow similar styles in music and fashion,[167] and concludes, "Where they truly diverge on the pop-culture scale is in shock value. Minogue's clips might draw a gasp from some but Madonna's ignite religious and political debate unlike any other artist on the planet ... Simply, Madonna is the dark force; Kylie is the light force."Rolling Stone comments that, with the exception of the U.S., Minogue is regarded throughout the world as "an icon to rival Madonna", and says, "Like Madonna, Minogue was not a virtuosic singer but a canny trend spotter." Minogue has said of Madonna, "Her huge influence on the world, in pop and fashion, meant that I wasn't immune to the trends she created. I admire Madonna greatly but in the beginning she made it difficult for artists like me, she had done everything there was to be done ...", and "Madonna's the Queen of Pop, I'm the princess. I'm quite happy with that.
In January 2007 Madame Tussauds in London unveiled its fourth waxwork of Minogue; only Queen Elizabeth II has had more models created. During the same week a bronze cast of her hands was added to Wembley Arena's "Square of Fame". On 23 November 2007, a bronze statue of Minogue was unveiled at Melbourne Docklands for permanent display.
In March 2010, Minogue was declared by researchers as the "most powerful celebrity in Britain". The study examined how marketers identify celebrity and brand partnerships. Mark Husak, head of Millward Brown's UK media practice, said: "Kylie is widely accepted as an adopted Brit. People know her, like her and she is surrounded by positive buzz". She was named one of the "100 Hottest Women of All-Time" by Men's Health.

Personal life
Minogue was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 36 on 17 May 2005,leading to the postponement of the remainder of her Showgirl — The Greatest Hits Tour and her withdrawal from the Glastonbury Festival. Her hospitalisation and treatment in Melbourne resulted in a brief but intense period of media coverage, particularly in Australia, where Prime Minister John Howard issued a statement supporting Minogue. As media and fans began to congregate outside the Minogue residence in Melbourne, the Victorian Premier Steve Bracks warned the international media that any disruption of the Minogue family's rights under Australian privacy laws would not be tolerated. His comments became part of a wider criticism of the media's overall reaction, with particular criticism directed towards paparazzi. Minogue underwent surgery on 21 May 2005 at Cabrini Hospital in Malvern, and commenced chemotherapy treatment soon after.
On 8 July 2005, she made her first public appearance after surgery, when she visited a children's cancer ward at Melbourne's Royal Children's Hospital. She returned to France where she completed her chemotherapy treatment at the Institut Gustave-Roussy in Villejuif, near Paris. In December 2005, Minogue released a digital-only single, "Over the Rainbow", a live recording from her Showgirl tour. Her children's book, The Showgirl Princess, written during her period of convalescence, was published in October 2006, and her perfume, "Darling", was launched in November. This range was later augmented by eau de toilettes such as Pink Sparkle, Couture and Inverse. On her return to Australia for her concert tour, she discussed her illness, and said that her chemotherapy treatment had been like "experiencing a nuclear bomb".While appearing on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2008, Minogue said that her cancer had originally been misdiagnosed. She commented, "Because someone is in a white coat and using big medical instruments doesn't necessarily mean they're right", but later spoke of her respect for the medical profession.

Thursday, May 31, 2012

Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen, born September 23, 1949, nicknamed "The Boss," is an American singer-songwriter-performer who records and tours with the E Street Band. Springsteen is widely known for his brand of heartland rock, poetic lyrics, and Americana sentiments centered on his native New Jersey.
Springsteen's recordings have included both commercially accessible rock albums and more somber folk-oriented works. His most successful studio albums, Born in the U.S.A. and Born to Run, showcase a talent for finding grandeur in the struggles of daily American life; he has sold more than 65 million albums in the United States and more than 120 million worldwide and he has earned numerous awards for his work, including 21 Grammy Awards, two Golden Globes and an Academy Award. He is widely regarded by many as one of the most influential songwriters of the 20th century, and in 2004, Rolling Stone ranked him as the 23rd Greatest Artist of all time.

In 2009, Springsteen performed in The People Speak, a documentary feature film that uses dramatic and musical performances of the letters, diaries, and speeches of everyday Americans, based on historian Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States.
Springsteen was among the recipients of the Kennedy Center Honors, an annual award to figures from the world of arts for their contribution to American culture, in December 2009. President Obama gave a speech in which he talked about how Springsteen has incorporated the life of regular Americans in his expansive pallette of songs and how his concerts are beyond the typical rock-and-roll concerts, how, apart from being high-energy concerts, they are "communions". He ended the remark "while I am the president, he is The Boss". Tributes were paid by several well-known celebrities including Jon Stewart (who described Springsteen's "unprecedented combination of lyrical eloquence, musical mastery and sheer unbridled, unadulterated joy"). A musical tribute featured John Mellencamp, Ben Harper, and Jennifer Nettles, Melissa Etheridge, Eddie Vedder, and Sting.
The 2000s ended with Springsteen being named one of eight Artists of the Decade by Rolling Stone magazine and with Springsteen's tours ranking him fourth among artists in total concert grosses for the decade.
In September 2010, a documentary about the making of his 1978 album Darkness on The Edge of Town was premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film, The Promise: The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town, was included in a box set reissue of the album, entitled The Promise: The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story, released in November 2010. Also airing on HBO, the documentary explored Springsteen's making of the acclaimed album, and his role in the production and development of the tracks.
Springsteen has finished his next studio album with Ron Aniello, who also co-produced the 2007 album Play It As It Lays, by Springsteen's wife, Patti Scialfa. Ron Aniello also produced "Children's Song" early in 2011, a duet with Springsteen and Scialfa, which was done for a charity project.
Clarence Clemons, the E Street Band's saxophonist since 1972, died on June 18, 2011, of complications from a stroke. “Clarence lived a wonderful life,” Springsteen said in a statement. “He carried within him a love of people that made them love him. He created a wondrous and extended family. He loved the saxophone, loved our fans and gave everything he had every night he stepped on stage.

Springsteen performing with drummer Max Weinberg behind him, on the Magic Tour stop at Veterans Memorial Arena, Jacksonville, Florida, August 15, 2008.
Springsteen's 17th studio album, Wrecking Ball, was released on March 6, 2012. On January 13, 2012, Hollywood Reporter released an article describing the sound of the new album. According to the article, the album is Springsteen at his angriest yet and addresses economic justice quite a bit. The article describes the album musically as being very rock-and-roll with unexpected textures, loops, electronic percussion and a variety of influences. The album consists of eleven tracks plus two bonus tracks. Three songs previously only available as live versions, "Wrecking Ball", "Land of Hope and Dreams," and "American Land," appear on the album. The album's first single, "We Take Care of Our Own", was released on January 19, 2012.
On January 24, 2012, Springsteen's official web site announced that the E Street Band will commence a world tour called the Wrecking Ball Tour on March 18, 2012, in Atlanta. The tour will run through at least July 31, 2012, and will consist of at least two legs featuring 51 dates, although the headline "First US Leg of 2012 World Tour" may imply that the tour will continue into autumn 2012 or beyond. As tickets for the first U.S. dates went on sale, many fans were unable to obtain tickets, much like for the 2009 Working on a Dream Tour, allegedly due to a heavy volume of ticket scalpers. Shows sold out within minutes and many tickets appeared, at much higher prices, on resale websites such as StubHub less than an hour after the onsale time. Ticketmaster said web traffic was 2.5 times the highest level of the past year during the online sales and suggested that scalpers played a big role. U.S. Representative Bill Pascrell has called for stronger government oversight of online box offices. Pascrell introduced the BOSS ACT in 2009 to increase transparency in the ticket industry. Pascrell said he would reintroduce the bill to Congress.
"Rocky Ground" has been announced as the second single from Wrecking Ball and will be released exclusively as part of Record Store Day on April 21, 2012.
Wrecking Ball became Springsteen's tenth No. 1 album in the United States tying him with Elvis Presley for third most No. 1 albums of all-time. Only The Beatles (19) and Jay-Z (12) have more No. 1 albums. Wrecking Ball knocked out Adele's Grammy winning album, 21 after 23 nonconsecutive weeks at #1.
On March 15, 2012, Springsteen was the keynote speaker at the annual SXSW Conference in Austin, Texas.

Springsteen and Julianne Phillips (born May 6, 1960) were married from May 13, 1985 to May 1988, when they separated. The two were opposites in background and his traveling took its toll on their relationship. The final blow came when Springsteen began an affair with Patti Scialfa (born July 29, 1953), whom he had dated briefly in 1984 shortly after she joined the band. Phillips and Springsteen separated in the spring of 1988 without making an announcement to the press, and on August 30, 1988, Julianne filed for divorce. The Springsteen/Phillips divorce was finalized on March 1, 1989.
After the separation in 1988, Springsteen began living with Scialfa. Springsteen received press criticism for the hastiness in which he and Scialfa took up their relationship. In a 1995 interview with The Advocate, Springsteen spoke about the negative publicity the couple subsequently received. "It's a strange society that assumes it has the right to tell people whom they should love and whom they shouldn't. But the truth is, I basically ignored the entire thing as much as I could. I said, 'Well, all I know is, this feels real, and maybe I have got a mess going here in some fashion, but that's life.'" He also noted that, "I went through a divorce, and it was really difficult and painful and I was very frightened about getting married again. So part of me said, 'Hey, what does it matter?' But it does matter. It's very different than just living together. First of all, stepping up publicly- which is what you do: You get your license, you do all the social rituals- is a part of your place in society and in some way part of society's acceptance of you...Patti and I both found that it did mean something.
On July 25, 1990 Scialfa gave birth to the couple's first child, Evan James Springsteen. On June 8, 1991 Springsteen and Scialfa married at their Beverly Hills home. Their second child, Jessica Rae Springsteen, was born on December 30, 1991; and their third child, Samuel Ryan Springsteen, was born on January 5, 1994. The family owns and lives on a horse farm in Colts Neck, New Jersey. They also own homes in Wellington, Florida, a wealthy horse community near West Palm Beach, Los Angeles and Rumson, New Jersey. Their eldest son, Evan, attends Boston College. Their daughter Jessica is a nationally ranked champion equestrian, and attends Duke University.
Since 1991, Springsteen has led a relatively quiet life for a well-known popular performer and artist. He moved from Los Angeles to New Jersey in the early 1990s specifically to raise a family in a non-paparazzi environment. It has been reported that the press conference regarding the 2009 Super Bowl XLIII half-time show was his first press conference for more than 25 years.However, he has appeared in a few radio interviews, most notably on NPR and BBC. 60 Minutes aired his last extensive interview on TV before his tour to support his album, Magic.


Band

His earliest known band is The Castiles.
Prior to signing his first record deal in 1972, Springsteen was a member of several bands including Steel Mill. In October 1972 he formed a new band for the recording of his debut album Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J., which became known as The E Street Band, although the name was not officially introduced until  The E Street Band performed on all of Springsteen's recorded works from his debut until 1982's Nebraska, a solo album on which Springsteen himself played all the instruments. The full band returned for the next album Born in the USA, but there then followed a period from 1988 to 1999 in which albums were recorded with session musicians. The E Street Band were briefly reunited in 1995 for new contributions to the Greatest Hits compilation, and on a more permanent basis from 1999, since which time they have recorded 3 albums together (The Rising, Magic and Working on a Dream) and performed a number of high profile tours.
The 2005 album Devils & Dust was largely a solo recording, with some contribution from session musicians and the 2006 folk rock We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions album was recorded and toured with another band, known as The Sessions Band. In the summer of 2012, Raymond Bernero will join Bruce on the stage at Wrigely Field in Chicago.
Earlier Bands: The Castiles, Earth, Child, Steel Mill, Sundance Blues Band, Dr Zoom and the Sonic Boom, Bruce Springsteen Band.