Heather Russell

Early life

Russell was born on August 10, 2000 in Toronto, Canada. Her parents Monica Cidade and James Russell, who are also musicians, raised her with her younger brother Robin. She expressed that she wanted to be a singer/songwriter at the age of 5, when she taught herself how to play the piano and began to write songs.

Musical career

After one month on YouTube, her original song "Beautiful" garnered the attention of Rob Fusari, who then signed Russell to a production deal. Simon Cowell discovered Russell's video on YouTube and immediately summoned her and her family to London to meet. Upon meeting, and witnessing her performance, Cowell signed Russell on the spot to a recording and publishing contract with Syco Entertainment.

Russell was offered three recording contracts in addition to Simon Cowell's offer, ultimately signing with Cowell at Syco Entertainment. She then signed for talent representation with Rob Light at CAA.

Since the age of 11, Russell has worked with Grammy award-winning producers and writers Babyface,Rob Fusari, Walter Afanasieff, Evan Bogart, Neffu, Smith Carlson, Onree Gill and Howard Benson. In 2013, Russell created her own label, BBox Entertainment which then signed a distribution agreement with Kobalt Label Services in the spring of 2015. BBOX/Kobalt will release Russell's debut EP, Phases, on October 2, 2015. The video for "Got This Feeling" premiered with Tiger Beat Magazine and was featured on Us Weekly

Influences

Growing up, Russell was introduced to different genres of music including soul, R&B, pop, rock and jazz standards such as Alicia Keys, The Beatles, Billy Joel, Beyonce, Bruno Mars, David Bowie, The Eagles, Ella Fitzgerald, Etta James, Frank Sinatra, Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga, Mariah Carey, Queen, Stevie Wonder, and Whitney Houston.

Musical style and themes

Russell is identified as a singer-songwriter. Her sound is predominantly pop/soul music.

Singles

EPs