Lemar

Lemar Obika (born 4 April 1978), known as Lemar, is an English singer, songwriter and record producer.

Initially rising to fame after finishing third on the first series of British talent show Fame Academy, he was later signed to Sony BMG, where he has gone on to release five studio albums, three of which are certified platinum or double platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).

Lemar was most notably brought to public attention on the BBC's Fame Academy in 2002, a combination of a talent quest and reality television show.

He made the finals of the show winning plaudits for his version of "Let's Stay Together" by Al Green and singing a duet with Lionel Richie on "Easy".

While he ended up finishing third in the show, which was won by David Sneddon, he caught the eye of fellow British soul singer Beverley Knight, who invited him to sing a duet with her during her concert at the Hammersmith Apollo.

Sony Music was so impressed with his potential that they signed him to a five-year record deal worth £1 million.

He was also the contestant from Fame Academy chosen to represent the UK in Eurobest, coming fifth (the eventual winner being Chenoa from Spain).

Lemar's double-platinum debut album Dedicated was released in November 2003 and contained the successful singles "Dance (With U)", "50/50" and "Another Day", all of which charted in the top 10 of the UK Singles Chart.

His second effort, Time to Grow, saw similar success, again achieving double platinum certification and spawning his most successful single, "If There's Any Justice", which peaked at number 3 and spent four months in the UK Singles Chart.

Lemar has seen considerable chart success in the UK and Ireland, releasing ten top 20 singles, seven of which peaked in the top 10, and has sold over two million albums.

Lemar Obika was born in Tottenham, North London, England to Nigerian parents.

He grew up listening to R&B and soul music.

He used to sing at home with his siblings, pretending to be Michael Jackson and the Jacksons.

He was 17 when he had his first concert at the Junior Jam at 'The Temple' in Tottenham supporting American singer Usher.

At the time, he was designing a website to sell logos for the Ericsson PH337 phone.

Later on, he gave up an opportunity to study pharmacy at Cardiff University to pursue a musical career.

Lemar had some success supporting various artists such as American girl groups Destiny's Child and Total on their UK club tours and after some years, managed to secure a recording contract with BMG.

Following this, he released his debut single "Got Me Saying Ooh".

His record deal with BMG fell through in less than a year due to restructuring at the record label.

He had to eventually take a job working as an accounts manager at NatWest in Enfield, North London.

At age 24, his mother died of cancer and he found listening to Eric Clapton's "Tears in Heaven" brought "clarity" and aims to "write songs as moving as this".

Lemar's second single "Dance (with U)" reached number two on the UK Singles Chart in early 2003.

His first album Dedicated was released late in 2003 with additional singles "50/50" and "Another Day" also achieving chart success in the UK.

Following the success of the album, he commenced his first headlining tour of the UK.

After completing his UK tour, Lemar was the opening act for Justin Timberlake's UK tour dates.

Thus, he is considered the "most successful graduate.

On 12 November 2004 Lemar guested on Radio 1's Live Lounge and performed a cover of U2's song "Vertigo".

He has also performed for Prince Charles' Prince's Trust.

In early November 2004, Lemar released his first single from the album Time to Grow.

"If There's Any Justice" reached number three on the UK Singles Chart, and has become one of Lemar's most recognised songs.

Time to Grow was released following the single and peaked at number 8 on the UK Albums Chart, to date, the album has been certificated 2× Platinum by the BPI.

Two other singles were released from the album, "Time to Grow" and "Don't Give It Up".

He is also one of the artists included on Band Aid 20's single "Do They Know It's Christmas?".

4 September 2006 saw Lemar return with his eighth single, entitled "It's Not That Easy", which became his sixth UK top ten hit.

A week later his new album The Truth About Love was released, which saw guest appearances from Styles P from The L.O.X., Mica Paris and Joss Stone.

The album became Lemar's highest charting album to date, peaking at number three on the UK Albums Chart, outpeaking Time to Grow (number eight) and Dedicated (number sixteen).

Two more singles were released from the album, "Someone Should Tell You" and "Tick Tock".

At the Brit Awards in 2007, Lemar was hoping to arrive in a makeshift limo, with James May from the BBC's Top Gear as the driver.

Lemar ultimately got frustrated with May and got out of the car after May repeatedly got lost.

He featured on Sway's first single "Saturday Night Hustle" from the album The Signature LP.