there are plenty of wonderful female singers out there

In an interview for Channel V's Speakeasy (i miss that show), Dido shares her brother Rollo's opinion on her desire to be a singer: "He was like, oh, you're rubbish; there are plenty of wonderful female singers out there, why should anyone bother to listen to you... Typical brotherly support."

I love Dido. I do. That her real name is Florian Cloud just makes me love her more. The fact that she was part of Lilith Fair, and I have a clip of her in a ponytail, from the days before her pixie haircut, just makes it more special. The fact that she was nominated for two consecutive years as Best New Artist at the Brit Awards is proof that Dido is truly extraordinary.

But this is not about the singer behind Thank You and Here With Me. This is about the artist behind Hunter, the video for White Flag, and the artist whose song was sampled by Eminem and subsequently appeared on the video with Devon Sawa. (sidenote: Devon Sawa. Remember when he was coverboy for BOP? BOP editors must've had two aneurysms each when he appeared in the video for Stan.) Because there is a darker side to the sweet-faced brit, and who can argue with a darker side?

Sure, I joke that she's a Sarah McLachlan replacement, since there was a time that Dido took over the role of McLachlan's of illustrating movie moments with their music. Of course, people only used two or three of Dido's songs while Sarah had a whole discography to choose from, but the point remains the same. (also? take a look at the videos for Sarah's Fallen and Building A Mystery and compare it to Dido's Life For Rent. It's just funny.)

A handful of songs illustrate why I love Dido so. Three songs that illustrate breaking up: Hunter, which anyone would know, what with that wtf video that came with it. Then there is All You Want, which is the ultimate I-loved-you-once breakup song. Don't Think of Me is a vengeful take on a breakup. Each one is actually tinged with anger, but the soft vocals of Dido could easily lull you into a false sense of security.

And how can you not love a singer who has confessed to forgetting the lyrics to her most famous song? Seriously.

The songs are lovely. And the projected release date for her third album is later this year, and i anticipate avidly.



"How can anyone not remember the words 'my tea's gone cold'? Now I can just hold the microphone out and let the audience sing it, but at the time, I was just... Now I always have lyric sheets with me onstage."
- Dido