TEST:
Supposed Former
Alanis Junkie?!
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Born on June 1, 1974, Alanis Nadine Morissette
and her two brothers were raised in Ottawa, Canada by French-Canadian and Hungarian
parents. By the age of 10, the precocious Alanis had landed a role on the Nickelodean TV
show "You Can't Do That on Television" and recorded her first single, "Fate
Stay With Me." She spent most of her pre-pubescent years performing throughout
Canada, singing "O Canada" at sporting events and even making the de rigueur
appearance on "Star Search."
The hard work paid off and at 14 Morissette was offered a recording contract with
MCA/Canada. Her debut, Alanis, a collection of dance-pop songs, was released in 1991 and
went platinum in Canada. That year, Morissette won the Juno award (Canada's Grammy) for
Most Promising Female Vocalist.
Her sophomore effort, 1992's Now Is the Time, was recorded and released before Morissette
graduated from high school. However, this album -- another collection of teeny bop dance
tunes -- sold only half as well as her debut, and at age 17 it looked as if Morissette's
career was on the wane.
After high school, Morissette moved to Los Angeles where she had the good fortune to hook
up with songwriter/producer Glen Ballard, known for his work with Michael Jackson, Paula
Abdul and Wilson Phillips. The creative chemistry between Ballard and Morissette was
evident from the beginning. Ballard pushed Morissette to pursue darker, edgier themes in
her music, venturing away from the cutesy teenager and toward the introspective young
woman.
"Most of the songs are, in a roundabout way, actually addressed to myself," says
Morissette of her work with Ballard at this time. "There's a certain aspect of the
songs that's very confessional, very unadulterated...It was a very unfettered, spiritual
experience."
The resulting demo tape was shopped around to the major labels and Madonna's Maverick
imprint eventually signed Morissette. Jagged Little Pill, was released in the summer of
1995. On the strength of the break-out single "You Oughta Know," the album
reached platinum status and the Top 10. Follow-up singles "Hand in My Pocket,"
"All I Really Want" and "Ironic" kept Jagged Little Pill on the album
charts the next two years, ultimately selling 15 million copies.
Morissette was showered with industry awards for Jagged Little Pill, including Grammys for
Album of the Year, Best Female Rock Vocal Performance, Best Rock Song and Best Rock Album.
Her much-anticipated follow-up, Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie, was released to
favorable reviews in November 1998.
One year later Alanis Unplugged, an acoustic set recorded for the MTV Unplugged series,
was released on Warner Bros. |