Bic Runga 251407 223692638 2008-07-05T08:24:13Z 90.194.3.161 /* External links */ {{Infobox Musical artist |Name = Bic Runga <!-- Commented out because image was deleted: |Img = Bic-Runga-Birds2.jpg|250px --> |Img_capt = Image from the album "Birds" |Background = solo_singer |Birth_name = Briolette Kah Bic Runga |Alias = |Born = {{birth date and age|1976|1|13}} |Died = |Origin = [[Christchurch]], [[Canterbury, New Zealand|Canterbury]], [[New Zealand]] |Instrument = [[Singer|Vocals]]<br>[[Guitar]]<br>[[Drums]] |Genre = [[popular music|Pop]]/[[Folk music|Folk]] |Label = [[Sony Music|Sony]] / [[BMG]] |Associated_acts = }} '''Briolette Kah Bic Runga''' [[New Zealand Order of Merit|MNZM]] (born [[13 January]], [[1976]]) is a [[New Zealand]] [[singer-songwriter]] whose first solo album, ''[[Drive (album)|Drive]]'', debuted at number one in the New Zealand charts, and has since become one of the highest-selling New Zealand artists of all time. Runga has also found success internationally in Australia, the [[Republic of Ireland]] and to some extent in the UK. Regarding the pronunciation of "Bic": "'You say it Bec, rather than Bic,' explains New Zealand singer-songwriter Bic Runga. 'It's Chinese, it's a strange vowel sound which doesn't seem to translate in Australia. It means the colour of jade, which I suppose is just green.'"<ref>[http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/09/12/1031608299990.html "Bic from the brink"] by Alexa Moses, ''[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]'', [[September 13]] [[2002]]</ref> Both [[Elton John]] and [[Led Zeppelin]]'s [[Jimmy Page]] can be counted amongst her fans.<ref>[http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1501119/story.cfm?c_id=1501119&objectid=10415127 Cheers, Bic - 15 Dec 2006 - NZ Herald: Entertainment News, Reviews and Gossip from New Zealand and around the World<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> In 2006, Runga was made a [[New Zealand Order of Merit|Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit]] in the annual New Zealand Honours List. ==Biography== ===Early life=== Runga was born in [[Christchurch]]. Her mother, Sophia Tang, was a [[Chinese Malaysian]] lounge singer in [[Malaysia]] when she met Joseph Runga, a [[Māori]] soldier on leave from [[Vietnam War|Vietnam]]. They both moved to New Zealand to live. Runga grew up in [[Hornby, New Zealand|Hornby]], [[Christchurch]] surrounded by a musically-inclined family, and started recording songs with her sisters, [[Boh Runga|Boh]] and Pearl, when she was only four years old. Runga's older sister Boh is now a vocalist in the New Zealand rock group [[Stellar*]], while Pearl is a session singer. She learned how to play [[drums]] at the age of eleven, and [[guitar]] at about fourteen. Runga also learned to play the [[musical keyboard|keyboard]] around this time. She attended [[Cashmere High School]], joining high school bands and performing with local [[jazz]] groups by her mid-teens. ==Musical career== ===Early releases=== Runga and [[Kelly Horgan]] entered the 1993 [[Rockquest|smokefreerockquest]] in [[Wellington]] under the name of "Love Soup". They won third place and a music contract with [[Pagan Records]]. Using a [[Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council|QE II Arts Council]] grant, Runga recorded the first ''Drive'' [[extended play|EP]] in Wellington. Unsatisfied with the direction that her music was being taken, she moved to [[Auckland]] in 1994 and spent a year writing and performing. In 1995, she sent a new [[demo (music)|demo]] of "Drive" to [[Sony Music]], who signed Runga in September of that year and bought her Wellington recordings from Pagan Records. Sony had her re-record the song with more instruments, but it was eventually her demo that was used on the upcoming album. It entered the Top 10 in New Zealand and won her the [[Silver Scroll Songwriting Award]] in 1996. She next released "[[Bursting Through]]", her first single from her upcoming album, also entitled ''Drive''. ===''Drive'' (1997)=== Early success eventually led to the release of her album ''[[Drive (album)|Drive]]'' in 1997. Runga's song "[[Sway (Bic Runga song)|Sway]]", along with a duet with [[Dan Wilson (musician)|Dan Wilson]] of [[Semisonic]] called "[[Good Morning Baby (song)|Good Morning Baby]]", both made their way into the film ''[[American Pie (film)|American Pie]]''. Six singles were released from the album, while "Sway" was released in New Zealand, [[Australia]], the [[United Kingdom]], and [[Germany]]. Runga has recorded not one, but two songs called "Drive". The first was her own, which appeared on her debut album of the same name. The second was a 1999 collaboration with fellow New Zealanders [[Strawpeople]], providing guest vocals for their cover of [[The Cars]]' classic [[Drive (The Cars song)|1984 hit]]. === ''Together in Concert: Live (2000)'' === In 2000, she toured with [[Tim Finn]] and [[Dave Dobbyn]], resulting in a release of a live album of the tour. ===''Beautiful Collision'' (2002)=== Runga released her second solo album, ''[[Beautiful Collision]]'', in 2002. It entered the New Zealand charts at number one. ===''Birds'' (2005)=== Her third studio album, ''[[Birds (Bic Runga album)|Birds]]'', was released in New Zealand on [[November 28]], [[2005]]. It was her third studio album in a row to enter the New Zealand charts at number one. The first single, "[[Winning Arrow]]", can be heard at her official site. ''Birds'' has currently gone triple platinum. ===Personal life=== Runga moved to [[New York]] for a while, but then decided to move back to New Zealand, lived in [[Paris]] for a year, and then [[London]]. Runga has since returned home to New Zealand. In January 2007, Runga announced on her MySpace blog that she was pregnant<ref>[http://www.nzherald.co.nz/topic/story.cfm?c_id=264&objectid=10422241 Bic Runga soon to change her tune from rock to lullabies - 03 Feb 2007 - Music news and reviews - NZ Herald<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>. On Friday 20th July Bic gave birth to a baby boy, the first child for her and her partner, photographer Darryl Ward. Bic's son has been named Joseph, after her late father. == Discography == [[Image:Bicrunga.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Bic Runga performing live in Dublin]] {{Sound sample box align right}} {{Listen |filename=Bic Runga - Beautiful Collision - Get Some Sleep.ogg |title=Bic Runga "Get Some Sleep" (2002) |description=Sample from the single "[[Get Some Sleep]]" by Bic Runga |format=[[Ogg]]}} {{Listen |filename=Bic Runga - Beautiful Collision - Something Good.ogg |title=Bic Runga "Something Good" (2002) |description=Sample from the single "[[Something Good (Bic Runga song)|Something Good]]" by Bic Runga |format=[[Ogg]]}} {{Listen |filename=Bic Runga - Beautiful Collision - Listening for the Weather.ogg |title=Bic Runga "Listening for the Weather" (2002) |description=Sample from the single "[[Listening for the Weather]]" by Bic Runga |format=[[Ogg]]}} {{sample box end}} === Studio albums === {| class="wikitable" !align="center" rowspan="2"|Year !align="center" rowspan="2" width="230"|Information !align="center" colspan="3"|Chart positions !align="center" rowspan="2"|Sales and certifications |- !width="25"|<small>[[ARIA Charts|AUS]]</small> !width="25"|<small>[[Recording Industry Association of New Zealand|NZ]]</small> !width="25"|<small>[[Irish Albums Chart|IRL]]</small> |- |[[1997 in music|1997]] |''[[Drive (album)|Drive]]'' *First studio album *Released: August, 1997 *Format: [[Compact Disc|CD]] |<center>49 |<center>1 |<center> |<small>[[Recording Industry Association of New Zealand|RIANZ]]: Platinum </small> |- |[[2002 in music|2002]] |''[[Beautiful Collision]]'' *Second studio album *Released: [[July 1]], [[2002]] *Formats: [[Compact Disc|CD]] |<center>41 |<center>1 |<center>10 |<small>[[Recording Industry Association of New Zealand|RIANZ]]: Platinum </small> |- |[[2005 in music|2005]] |''[[Birds (Bic Runga album)|Birds]]'' *Third studio album *Released: [[November 28]], [[2005]] *Format: [[Compact Disc|CD]] |<center>26 |<center>1 |<center>20 |<small>[[Recording Industry Association of New Zealand|RIANZ]]: Platinum </small> |- |} === Live albums === *''[[Together in Concert: Live]]'' (2000) (with [[Tim Finn]] and [[Dave Dobbyn]]) *''[[Live in Concert with the Christchurch Symphony]]'' (2003) *''[[The Acoustic Winery Tour - Ascension Vineyard, Matakana, NZ]]'' (2007) === EPs === *''[[Drive (EP)|Drive "Lovesoup" EP]]'' (1995) *''Live in Concert with the Christchurch Symphony EP'' (2004) === Singles === *"Drive"(1996) #10 New Zealand *"[[Bursting Through]]" (1996) #33 New Zealand *"[[Sway (Bic Runga song)|Sway]]" (1997) #7 New Zealand #10 Australia #26 Ireland *"[[Suddenly Strange]]" (1997) #26 New Zealand *"[[Roll into One]]" (1997) #48 New Zealand *"[[Hey (song)|Hey]]" (1998) *"[[Good Morning Baby (song)|Good Morning Baby]]" (1999) #15 New Zealand *"[[Sorry (Bic Runga song)|Sorry]]" (1999) *"[[Get Some Sleep]]" (2002) #75 United Kingdom #3 New Zealand #27 Ireland *"[[Something Good (Bic Runga song)|Something Good]]" (2002) #4 New Zealand *"[[Listening for the Weather]]" (2003) #14 New Zealand *"[[Winning Arrow]]" (2005) #23 New Zealand *"Say After Me" (2006) === Compilations === Bic Runga has made an alternative version of Sway for ''[[Even Better than the Real Thing Vol. 2]]'' == Film career == Runga played a 'Vietnamese lounge singer' in the 2005 film ''[[Little Fish (film)|Little Fish]]'', and covered [[Gene Pitney]]'s "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart". == References == {{reflist}} ==External links== *[http://www.bicrunga.com Official website] *[http://www.thewire.co.nz/bic/ Bic Runga's blog] *{{myspace|bicrunga}} *[http://www.bicrunga.net.nz Comprehensive fansite] *{{imdb name|id=1001815|name=Bic Runga}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Runga, Bic}} [[Category:1976 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Chinese New Zealanders]] [[Category:Female guitarists]] [[Category:Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit]] [[Category:New Zealand songwriters]] [[Category:New Zealand musicians]] [[Category:New Zealand Māori people]] [[Category:New Zealand female singers]] [[Category:English-language singers]] [[de:Bic Runga]] [[nl:Bic Runga]] [[ja:ビック・ルンガ]] [[no:Bic Runga]] [[pl:Bic Runga]] [[simple:Bic Runga]]