Pool Of Sound - Chelcee Grimes

Chelcee Grimes was born on the 8th of May 1992 in Aigburth, Liverpool and grew up listening to J-Lo, Beyoncé, Pink and Kanye. Her mum would play dance music at home, while her stepdad listened to Sting and Simon & Garfunkel, so she became a huge pop fan. Her passion for making music, however, didn't bloom until her mid-teens as Chelcee had her sights set on becoming a professional footballer from the age of 11 when she signed for Liverpool. At 15, she crossed the park to Everton, taking PE and sciences at GCSE's with a secondary plan to move into sports physiotherapy. she says, " I had to choose one more GCSE, and it was between history, geography or music. I was rubbish at history and geography so I thought I'd do music, even though I didn't sing at all at the time. But I really got into it and I found a little studio that would let me stay behind after school and put some songs down I’d written." Chelcee was encouraged by a teacher who noticed her aptitude for songwriting and at 16, she won a six-month recording arrangement through a competition on local radio station Juice FM. The studio belonged to Liverpool winger Ryan Babel, which meant Chelcee went to all the team's games and learnt her way around a studio with the help of Babel's engineer. She was hooked and looked up to other strong pop women, people like Gwen Stefani, Pink, and, in particular, Lady Gaga. At the same time she began gigging. "I’d play every open-mic night in Liverpool," she recalls. "More people would turn up and a buzz developed." At the age of 18, she shared the stage with Jessie J. at the Cavern in Mathew Street then signed a contract with record label RCA. "They wanted to make me into an English Alicia Keys," she reveals. Not long after she signed up, however, her contact at the label was sacked, and she was unceremoniously dropped. Deflated and running out of money, and only 19 years old, Chelcee moved to London to pursue her songwriting dream, recording in bedrooms, basements, wherever she could.

In Paris for The Women's World Cup

 

The hard work gradually paid off and, with manager Martin O'Shea guiding her, she soon found herself at a songwriting session in Copenhagen with veteran Danish producer Cutfather, where, feeling homesick, she wrote the lyrics, "I feel like I'm a million miles away", which evolved into Kylie Minogue's 2014 song 'Million Miles'. Then she began working with Steve Mac, one of the most successful producers in modern pop, responsible for huge hits by the likes of Ed Sheeran ('Shape Of You'), Clean Bandit ('Symphony') and Pink ('What About Us'). "If you have better players around you, you automatically grow and thrive," she says, drawing a connection between songwriting and football. "I don't get intimidated. If I put my mind to something, I usually go on to do it." The thing is, Chelcee is also a footballer and playing up front for Fulham FC Women, she scored three goals in the 2019 FA Cup. Excelling at two high-profile careers, she is also the presenter of 'Chelcee Away', her online show for BBC Sport, as well as being an ambassador for women's football, Chelcee is turning into something of a celebrity, . 

In addition to composing hits for the likes of  Dua Lipa, Kylie Minogue, Kesha and Tom Walker, she has worked in LA with Calvin Harris and producer RedOne (Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj).  In a surprising decision to re-sign with her original label, RCA Records, she recalls how her unfinished business made her want to go back. "It was like I had a point to prove to go back to the same label and prove I could be a success there," which she has definitely done." This launched her own singing career in 2018 with the upbeat R&B-laced pop tracks 'Just Like That' and 'I Need a Night Out', and she hopes to have a debut album out in the near future. The music video for 'Just Like That' uploaded to YouTube gained over 100,000 views within 24 hours.

A song she wrote about her dad called 11:11 has become one of her biggest hits to date after it was recorded by South Korean superstar Taeyeon. To date, the ballad, sung in Korean, has been viewed 50 million times on YouTube. It's one of the few songs that she has written for other artists and she plans to include on her upcoming debut album, due next year. After releasing in 2019, 'Time To Talk', a feel good pop anthem which oozes vocal confidence, at the end of 2019 she released 'Tryna Not Fall In Love'. 

In 2020 during lockdown Chelcee moved back to Liverpool and bought her first home as well as joining a new football team, Tranmere Rovers. She also signed a new record deal with Ultra records for a new project as she teamed up with singer-songwriter Ollie Green and dance producer Franklin (Ben Duncombe) in the dance-pop band Vize Verza, releasing the singles 'Temporary' and 'Closure'. The singer/songwriter and lifelong Red is delighted to be a part of the soundtrack for 'The End of the Storm' – the feature-length documentary about Liverpool's Premier League title win. Simply named 'Liverpool' the ballad the opener is one of eight to feature on the album, alongside Lana Del Rey and Jamie Webster among others.

For their Eurovision 2021 coverage the BBC announced that Graham Norton would once again deliver the UK's grand final commentary together with Scott Mills, with Rylan Clark-Neal also returning to the commentary role for the semi-final commentary joined by Chelcee Grimes. 

see also:- http://www.thefootballvoice.com/2021/08/pool-of-sound-courting.html