Izzy Bizu

Isobel Bizu Beardshaw[1] (born 28 April 1994), better known as Izzy Bizu, is an English-Ethiopian singer-songwriter[2] [3] signed to Epic Records.[4] Bizu has garnered mainstream radio support from BBC Radio 1's Annie Mac and Phil Taggart[5] and BBC Radio 1Xtra's Trevor Nelson.[6] She has supported Coldplay, Sam Smith,[2] Rudimental,[7] and Foxes on their latest UK tours.[8] In November 2015, Bizu was shortlisted for a Brit Critics' Choice award[9] and longlisted for BBC's Sound of... 2016.[10] She won the BBC Music Introducing Award at the 2016 ceremony. On 25 June 2016, Bizu performed on the Park Stage at the Glastonbury Festival.

Izzy Bizu
Bizu performing in September 2015
Background information
Birth nameIsobel Bizu Beardshaw
Born (1994-04-28) 28 April 1994
OriginLondon, England
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
Years active2009–present
LabelsEpic Records
Associated actsSoundGirl
Websiteizzybizu.com

Biography

Izzy Bizu is from southwest London,[11] and attended Stamford High School, Lincolnshire.[12] Her mother is Ethiopian and her father is English. She grew up between Ethiopia and Bahrain, where her father worked, before moving to London as a teen.[1] She studied music tech in college, but dropped out shortly afterwards.[1]

Career
Izzy Bizu performing at the Victorious Festival, 2016.

2013: Coolbeanz

After the girl group SoundGirl split, Bizu won an open mic night competition in February 2013 winning over the crowd, which included Emeli Sande and Naughty Boy, who were in attendance.[2] She released her first independent EP, Coolbeanz, in September 2013, which debuted at number 3 on the iTunes Soul and RnB Chart and has sold 50,000 copies.[13] The EP’s lead single, "White Tiger", was also chosen as Zane Lowe’s ‘Next Hype’.[14] In October 2013, she supported Sam Smith on his UK tour,[15] and in November Jamie Cullum handpicked her to open for him at The Roundhouse in London.[16]

2014–16: A Moment of Madness

In January 2014, Bizu entered Glastonbury Festival's Emerging Talent Competition and made it to the final 8 of the competition,[17] performing at the live finals of the event at Pilton Working Men's Club in April 2014. Bizu was named runner-up, winning £2,500 from the PRS Foundation and a slot at that year's Glastonbury Festival.[18] In June 2014, Bizu was also selected by BBC Introducing[15] to perform at the Glastonbury Festival.[19] In July 2014, she signed to Epic Records UK.[4] A year later, she released the first singles from her debut album, "Adam & Eve" and "Diamond", which enjoyed support from BBC Radio 1,[20] Radio 2[21] and 1Xtra,[6] and performed at Glastonbury for the second time.[22]

In September 2015, following the release of her single "Give Me Love", she also made her TV debut on Later... with Jools Holland.[23] Bizu supported both Rudimental[7] and Foxes[8] on their UK headline tours. In November 2015, Bizu was shortlisted for a Brit Critics' Choice award.[9] In January 2016 Bizu's song 'White Tiger' featured on the advert for National Citizen Service (NCS) and in March 2016 she performed at NCS Yes Live alongside Tinie Tempah and Jess Glynne. Her debut album, A Moment of Madness, was released on 2 September 2016.[24] In April 2016, Bizu recorded (with the BBC Concert Orchestra) an uptempo, updated version of the Edith Piaf 1957 hit "La Foule" as the theme music for the BBC's coverage of the Euro 2016 Football Tournament.

Artistry

Bizu has described herself as a fan of jazz-fusion mixes and a lover of squat parties and warehouse raves. She grew up listening to Whitney Houston, Ella Fitzgerald, Bettye Swann and James Brown[11] and draws on these influences alongside newer influences such as Amy Winehouse and Adele to create a fusion of soul, funk, jazz and pop.[25] She lists The Black Keys, Diana Ross, Grammatics and Sam Cooke among her other influences.[26]

Discography

Albums
Title Details Peak chart positions
UK
[27]		 AUS
[28]		 BEL
(FL)
[29]		 JPN
[30]		 NLD
[31]		 SCO
[32]
A Moment of Madness
  • Released: 2 September 2016
  • Label: Epic Records
  • Formats: Digital download, CD, Vinyl
 238694969520

Extended plays
Title Details
Coolbeanz
  • Released: 21 June 2013
  • Label: Self-released
  • Formats: Digital download
Glita
  • Released: 3 May 2019
  • Label: Sony Music Entertainment
  • Formats: Digital download

As lead artist
Year Title Peak chart positions Certifications Album
UK
[27]		 AUT
[33]		 BEL
(FL)
[29]		 BEL
(WA)
[34]		 FRA
[35]		 GER
[36]		 JPN
[37]		 SCO
[38]
2015 "Diamond"[39] ———————— A Moment of Madness
"Adam & Eve"[40] ————————
"Give Me Love"[41] ————————
"White Tiger"[42] 9065—[upper-alpha 1]4557
[43]		541951
2016 "Mad Behaviour"[44] ————————
"Sweat (A La La La La Long)" ———————— non-album single
"Lost Paradise" ———————— A Moment of Madness
"Talking to You" 56——————17
2019 "Lights On" ———————— Glita
2020 "Faded" ———————— The Things We Do For Love [45]
Year Title Peak chart positions Certifications Album
UK
[27]
"Stop Crying Your Heart Out"
(as BBC Radio 2's Allstars)[46]		 2020 — non-album single
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Notes
  1. "White Tiger" did not enter the Flemish Ultratop 50, but peaked at number 3 on the Ultratip chart.[29]

Izzy Bizu was featured as a vocalist in Milky Chance's track, Bad Things, on their 2017 album, Blossom.

References
  1. Gibsone, Harriet. "Izzy Bizu: 'It's OK to be a space chicken'". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  2. "Introducing... Izzy Bizu". bbc.co.uk.
  3. "How Ethiopia Influenced British-Ethiopian Singer Izzy Bizu's Music at Tadias Magazine". Tadias.com. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  4. "Izzy Bizu signs to Epic Records". bimm.co.uk.
  5. "Izzy Bizu unveils new single 'Give Me Love'". thefourohfive.com.
  6. "Izzy Bizu in the Live Lounge". bbc.co.uk.
  7. "Rudimental live at Alexandra Palace". rudimental.co.uk. Archived from the original on 6 July 2016. Retrieved 12 October 2015.
  8. "Foxes UK Tour 2015 with Izzy Bizu". livenation.co.uk.
  9. Gibsone, Harriet. "Izzy Bizu, Jack Garratt and Frances: meet the Brits critics' choice shortlist". the Guardian. Retrieved 26 November 2015.
  10. "BBC Sound Poll 2016". bbc.co.uk.
  11. "Introducing: South London based Izzy Bizu". livenation.co.uk. Archived from the original on 11 July 2016. Retrieved 12 October 2015.
  12. "Izzy Bizu- 'It first started here'". Girls' Schools Association. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
  13. "Izzy Bizu – Coolbeanz EP". dmpgroup.com.
  14. "BBC Radio 1 Zane Lowe's Next Hype (27.08.13)". soundcloud.com.
  15. "Izzy Bizu at Glastonbury 2014". bbc.co.uk.
  16. "Izzy Bizu and Jamie Cullum at Glastonbury 2014". bbc.co.uk.
  17. "Glastonbury Festival - 2014 Emerging Talent Competition finalists announced". Glastonburyfestivals.co.uk.
  18. "Glastonbury Festival - M+A win 2014 Emerging Talent Competition". Glastonburyfestivals.co.uk.
  19. "Izzy Bizu performs at Glastonbury 2014". mtv.co.uk. Archived from the original on 26 November 2015. Retrieved 12 October 2015.
  20. "The Radio 1 Breakfast Show with Nick Grimshaw 15/06/2015". bbc.co.uk.
  21. "BBC Radio 2 – Jo Whiley, 16/06/2015". bbc.co.uk.
  22. "The Noisey Glastonbury Portfolio by Jillian Edelstein". noisey.vice.com. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015.
  23. "Later... with Jools Holland – Series 47, Episode 2". bbc.co.uk.
  24. "Izzy Bizu – A Moment of Madness". itunes.apple.com.
  25. "Izzy Bizu – Singer-Songwriter". WIRED. Archived from the original on 20 September 2015. Retrieved 12 October 2015.
  26. "About Izzy Bizu". codaagency.com. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 12 October 2015.
  27. "Izzy Bizu". Officialcharts.com/. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  28. "ARIA CHART WATCH #413". auspOp. 25 March 2017. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
  29. "Discografie Izzy Bizu". Belgium (Flanders) Charts Portal (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  30. "イジー・ビズ".
  31. "Discografie Izzy Bizu". Dutch Charts Portal (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  32. Peak positions for albums in Scotland:
  33. Hung, Steffen. "Izzy Bizu - White Tiger".
  34. "Izzy Bizu - White Tiger".
  35. Hung, Steffen. "lescharts.com - Izzy Bizu - White Tiger".
  36. "Offizielle Deutsche Charts - Offizielle Deutsche Charts".
  37. "Billboard Japan Hot 100 - Charts - Billboard JAPAN". Archived from the original on 19 February 2014.
  38. Izzy Bizu peaks in Scotland:
  39. "Diamond – Single". iTunes.
  40. "Adam & Eve (Remixes) – Single". iTunes.
  41. "Give Me Love (Remixes) – Single". iTunes.
  42. "White Tiger – Single". iTunes.
  43. "Le Top de la semaine : Top Singles Téléchargés - SNEP (Week 36, 2016)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Archived from the original on 15 September 2016. Retrieved 10 September 2016.
  44. "Mad Behaviour – Single". iTunes.
  45. "'I'm as well as I can be considering the current situation': Izzy Bizu speaks on new single "Faded" [Interview]". EARMILK.
  46. "All-star BBC Children in Need charity single announced". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
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