Adele

Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (born 5 May 1988), known professionally as Adele, is an English singer-songwriter. She was the first recipient of the Brit Awards "Critics' Choice" and was named the number-one predicted breakthrough act of 2008 in an annual BBC poll of music critics, Sound of 2008. Since her debut album, 19, Adele has received much recognition both commercially and critically. The album debuted at number one and has been certified four times platinum in the UK. Her career in the US was boosted by a viewer record–breaking Saturday Night Live episode in late 2008. At the 2009 Grammy Awards, Adele won the awards for Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Adele released her second album, 21, on 24 January 2011 in the UK and 22 February in the US. The album was well received critically and made her a record-breaking success, selling 208,000 copies in its first week in the UK and debuting at number one on the UK Albums Chart, a position it managed to hold for 16 weeks. In the United Kingdom, 21 has been certified 12 times platinum for shipment of 3.6 million units. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 in the US, selling 352,000 copies in its first