The first half of this book is predominantly Wener describing her life before fame and what it was like growing up in the suburbs in the 80s vs 90s. She talks about her experiences with Top of The Pops and mentions famous music stars that she toured with, such as Elvis Costello. Many comments are made on the Britpop era which is particularly interesting coming from an insider pop star perspective. Wener is very honest and upfront throughout and opens up about the areas she believed that she lacked talent. And also about all of the band’s adventures, including the alcohol abuse, drug-taking etc. This book communicates the realities of being a pop star during this time and an inside view into the music industry.

2. David Buckley – Strange Fascination: David Bowie – The Definitive Story (1999)

The world-renowned English singer-songwriter superstar David Bowie sadly passed away in 2016. Shortly after, Buckley decided to pay tribute to him with this biography. He is unquestionably a ”superfan” who shares knowledge of all details of Bowie’s music career. It takes you on a journey through each decade of Bowie’s career with in-depth descriptions of each iconic performance. He thanks Bowie for how he’s shaped the music industry forever and changed fans lives with his unique style and image. And teaching them to never be afraid to stand out from the crowd! Bowie fans claim that it’s the best Bowie biography ever written!

3. Ian MacDonald – Revoution In The Head: The Beatles’ Records And The Sixties (1994)

If you’re a Beatles fan (who isn’t), then you’ll definitely want to get your hands on a copy of this book. It gives in-depth details of how, why and when each famous Beatles track was recorded. Including their most famous hits! such as I Want to Hold Your Hand (1964), All You Need is Love (1967), Hey Jude (1968) and Here Comes The Sun (1969). It features an informative essay on how The Beatles music changed and shaped music culture. It’s not just an examination of The Beatles song releases but also the culture in the 1960s. And then compares to the popular music since!

4. Mark Lewisohn – The Beatles: All These Years Volume One – Tune In (2013)

This is also a book for The Beatles fans! Many argue that Mark Lewisohn has written the best Beatles biography because his opinions are more informed and less biased than other authors. Lewisohn is trusted on his accounts of many information given about The Beatles lives. This is because he has constructed hundreds of interviews about the full story of the work and lives of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr. It dives deep into each man’s childhood and upbringing to discover the real identity behind each man in the band. And also entails the band’s adventures around the world touring and what they entailed! As well as the stories behind some of their most famous songs.

5. Travis Barker – Can I Say: Living Large, Cheating Death, and Drums, Drums, Drums (2015)

This book unravels his rags-to-riches story and the struggles he faced throughout his life. In particular, it focuses on a plane crash that occurred in 2008 in Columbia that almost took his life. It explains how the crash changed his perspective and pushed him forward in his career. It’s honest, vulnerable but also entertaining. He doesn’t hide from any of his mistakes and past troubles and even includes others opinions of him. From his past colleagues to his ex-wife (Shanna Moakler) to friends. All in their own handwriting so no alterations were made! It gives an enlightening insight into how he proceeded to become so successful in the industry despite the many unfortunate events he faced.

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1. More Myself: A Journey – Alicia Keys

Alicia Keys is a talented songwriter, singer, pianist and actress, so it’s no surprise that became so successful in the music industry. She was born on January 25th 1981 in New York and her original name is Alicia Augello Cook. Keys showed her interest in music from as early as 4 years old and shot to fame in the 2000s with her mix of RnB and Soul. Her most famous hits include How Come You Don’t Call Me (2001), If I Ain’t Got You (2003), No One (2007), Brand New Me (2007) and Show Me Love (2020). And she’s managed to win an incredible 15 grammy awards over her music career!

Alicia’s autobiography is almost like a self-help book as it follows, she takes you on a spiritual journey as she unravels her life experiences. It will captivate you and leave you in awe at how Alicia overcome any struggles with elegance, strength and faith. She talks about embracing her ancestral roots and learning from her past mistakes. It talks about the dreams she envisioned from a very young and how she never gave up despite many setbacks. Find out about her amazing journey to be where she is today – one of the most famous and successful pop artists in the world. Her written words will take you to a magical place – just like her music.

2. Me Elton John – Elton John

Elton John was born in Pinner, Middlesex, England on March the 25th, 1947. He is a talented singer, songwriter, composer and pianist – a man of many talents. He discovered his passion for music from a very early age and self-taught himself everything, including his piano playing. His eagerness and passion to be a successful pop artist earn him a place in the Royal Academy of Music in London. And this is where his career took off! His most famous songs include Rocket Man (1972), Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word (1976), Don’t Go Breaking My Heart (1976), I’m Still Standing (1983) and Can You Feel The Love Tonight (1994).

If you’re a fan of Elton John (who isn’t) then this autobiography will give you an in-depth insight into his life. He keeps it incredibly real throughout and covers all stages of his life from early childhood. He delves into depression and his suicide attempts. As well as drug addictions, break-ups, cancer diagnosis and much more. He is straight up and forthright, leaving no life stone unturned. He doesn’t hide any of his struggles throughout his life and shares how he overcame them all. Therefore, it can be a great self-help book for anyone else who’/s struggling with any of these problems too. The aim is to show his fans that you don’t have to be perfect to succeed in life.

3. The Meaning of Mariah Carey – Mariah Carey

Mariah Carey is a talented singer, songwriter, producer and actress that was born on March 27th, 1970, in New York. Her talent as a singer unquestionably came from the influence of her mother, Patricia Carey, who was a voice coach and opera singer. Carey started singing at the astounding age of two years old and her mother saw huge potential. Therefore, she has been singing practically her whole life! It’s almost as she was born to sing. Her most famous songs include Love Takes Time (1990), When You Believe (1998), Hero (1993), All I Want For Christmas Is You (1994), Always Be My Baby (1995) and Touch My Body (2008).

Careys’ autobiography is pure, honest, real and vulnerable. She dives straight into her childhood and her struggles growing up as a biracial child. She never fitted in anywhere and struggle a lot with her identity. It continues to address many of her personal issues throughout her life, such as her bipolar diagnosis. She shares a lot of deeply personal moments and thoughts that help readers to understand her journey and connect with her on a deep level. The struggles and successes in her career are highlighted and explained in an honest way. Her autobiography is filled with hope and important life lessons for fans and is beautifully written. The message is that you can overcome anything and get whatever you want out of life if you have faith and put the effort in.

4. One Direction: Who We Are – Harry Styles, Louis Thompson, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne & Niall Horan

One direction, also known as 1D, consists of 5 band members (4 as of 2020). All members are all English singers and songwriters but were born in different parts of the United Kingdom. Harry Styles was born on February 1 1994, Louis Thompson – December 24th 1991, Zayn Malik – January 12 1993, Liam Payne – August 29th 1993 and Niall Horan September 13th 1993. This incredibly successful band was established in 2010 on the popular British singing competition X-Factor. The boys auditioned separately but Simon Cowell saw potential in all of them as a band rather than solo. Their most famous songs include What Makes You Beautiful (2011), Gotta Be You (2011), Little Things (2012), One Way or Another (2012), Best Song Ever (2013) and Story of My Life (2013).

This autobiography explores each individual band members lives before they came a part of one of the most successful boy bands to date. They talk about X-Factor 2010 and how they came together to form a close bond and huge success in the music industry. It’s full of many pictures of the boys at different stages of their lives, next to information, so you can visulise everything too. It delves into all of their adventures, successess and struggles throughout their career. It even includes comments from the parents of each member who say some very interesting and imfactful things. As well as parential advice for supporting your children as they chase their dreams. It’s authentic, sincere, touching and inspirational.

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Beyoncé

Beyonce needs no introduction. As we all know, she is the Queen B of pop music and always will be for as long as she produces it. She has blessed us all with her music since 2002 when she featured on Jay-Z’s song ”Bonnie and Clyde”. Her most popular songs include ”Crazy in love” (2003), ”Single Ladies Put a Ring on It” (2008), ”Run the World (Girls)” (2011) ”Hold Up” (2016), ”Flawless” (2014) and so many more! Pretty much any song that Beyonces is destined for greatness. Her latest album EVERYTHING IS LOVE was released in 2018 and sold an outstanding 70,000 copies and earned her a grammy award.

Taylor Swift

Swift is an American pop and country singer and songwriter. Her latest released songs never fail to make their way into the top 10 pop charts. So you probably won’t be surprised to hear that she is one of the highest-paid pop musicians of all time. In 2019 she became the music’s highest-paid women at $825 million. Her most popular songs include ”Love Story” (2008), ”You Belong With Me” (2009), ”Shake it Off” (2014) ”22” (2013) and ”Look What You Made Me Do” (2017). Swift uses her real-life experiences, particularly her relationships and heartbreaks, to inspire the lyrics of her music.

Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga is an American singer and songwriter who shot to fame in 2009. She is known for her incredible and distinctive vocal, provocative lyrics and flamboyant costumes. It’s safe to say Gaga has had many chart-topping hits. Such as ”Poker Face” (2008), ”Love Game” (2008), ”Paparazzi” (2008) ”Telephone” (2010), ”Bad Romance” (2010), ”Judas” (2011) and ”The Edge of Glory” (2011). In 2014, it was estimated that she had sold 124 million worldwide. She was also the first-ever artist in 20 years of history to have four chart-topping singles from one debut album called ”The Fame”. This album also earned her an incredible 5 Grammy nominations!

Katy Perry

Perry is also an American singer and songwriter. She is well-known for her playful sense of style, sexually suggestive hit songs and of course her outstanding vocals. She holds a record for the most 6-million selling songs which were ‘Firework” (2010), ”Roar” (2013) and ”Dark Horse (2013). Other popular songs include ”I Kissed a Girl” (2008), ”Wide Awake” (2012), ”The One That Got Away” (2010), ”Last Friday Night” (2010) and ”Part of Me” (2012).

Eminem

Eminem (real name Marshall Bruce Mathers) is an American rapper, songwriter and record producer. He is one of the best-selling artists of all time. It’s estimated that he’s sold over 220 million records worldwide! His most famous songs include ”Forgot About Dre” (1999), ”The Real Slim Shady” (2000), ”The Way I am” (2000), ‘Till I Collapse” (2002), ”Sing For The Moment” (2002). ”Lose Yourself” (2002) and ”Love the Way You Lie” (2010). The Marshall Mathers LP was his most popular album and sold 2.8 copies in the first week. That’s some recording-breaking numbers right there! We all love Eminem for his honesty and transparency when he raps about his life growing up.

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