Lady Miss Kier

Lady Miss Kier
Lady Miss Kier
Background information
Birth name Kierin Magenta Kirby
Born (1963-08-15) August 15, 1963
Youngstown, Ohio, U.S.
Origin New York City, U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s) Singer-songwriter, DJ, record producer
Instruments Vocals
Years active 1986–present
Labels Elektra
Pluto Moon
Associated acts Deee-Lite
Website www.ladykier.com

Kierin Magenta Kirby (born August 15, 1963), better known as Lady Miss Kier, is an American singer, DJ, fashion icon, and activist. She was the vocalist for the internationally acclaimed band Deee-Lite, followed by a career as a DJ and solo songwriter. She is also known widely for her social, environmental, and human-rights activism.

Early life

Kirby was born in Youngstown, Ohio, and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She spent time in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where she attended Kempsville High School, and Washington, D.C.; in 1982, at age 19, she settled in New York City to pursue a career in fashion design. She briefly attended the Fashion Institute of Technology to study textile design. She supported herself as a waitress, bartender, coat checker, bathroom attendant, go-go dancer, and art gallery receptionist while concentrating on design.

Music career

Deee-Lite

In 1986, Kirby met Ukrainian-born Dmitry Brill ("Supa DJ Dmitry") in New York, when she made him silver platform boots and a glitter blue spacesuit for his band, Shazork. That same year, she began experimenting with singing and writing music with Brill.[1]

Shortly after their first show in 1986, Brill was introduced to Towa Tei, a Japan-raised Korean DJ. Combining Kirby's vocal and writing talents with Brill's sampling skills and Tei's techno mixing, the three formed the band Deee-Lite. They had performances every month, with Kier designing new costumes for each one. When the band signed a seven-album deal with Elektra Records she stopped go-go dancing, which she previously had continued to do at Bentleys and The Copa.

Deee-Lite's sound was a mix of house, techno and dance elements. Deee-Lite shot to stardom in 1990 with the release of their first album World Clique and the hit "Groove Is in the Heart". In 1991, MTV nominated Deee-Lite for several Video Music Awards, including Video of the Year, Best Dance Video, Best New Artist, Best Breakthrough Video, and Best Editing in a Video.

Kirby was very involved in the band's output: writing, producing, and performing the bulk of the band's songs. Known as much for their outrageous personae and costumes as for their music, the three took on larger-than-life alter-egos: Super DJ Dmitri, Jungle DJ Towa Towa, and Lady Miss Kier. Kirby is credited with designing and creating the look of the band, as well as much of the artwork accompanying the band's albums and marketing material. Her initial look relied on revamped and exaggerated retro '60s fashions. Her signature look was a zip-up catsuit, platform shoes and flipped hair-do.

Deee-Lite followed their successful first album with Infinity Within, a politically charged second album, in 1992. Their third album Dewdrops in the Garden was released in 1994 and saw a return to house roots with a new, more naturalistic tone. Neither of the two follow-up albums matched the commercial success of their debut. The second and third albums were hampered by difficulties with the label, which refused to promote, support touring, or fund contractual videos. The band functionally broke up during the writing of their third album in 1993, but Kirby and Brill decided to finish the project and tour together to promote the album before going their separate ways. In 1996, a remix album was released, and a greatest hits album was released in 2001.[2]

International DJ and songwriting solo career

Brill's and Kirby's relationship fractured, and Deee-lite disbanded in 1995.[3] "When Dmitry and I split up, that was the end of the band," Kirby said. "It was sad because I loved the band. I didn't want to leave the band and the music and I missed my writing partner, but we couldn't get along."[3]

In 1995, after quitting the band, Lady Miss Kier moved to London where she began touring as a deejay and learning the technical end of production, recording, and engineering. In the late 1990s, she collaborated on the albums of Bootsy Collins, I Kamanchi and A Guy Called Gerald. In 2002, she contributed an exclusive solo track called "I'm Not Staying at Home" to the compilation Straight Up & Dirty.[4] Since going solo she has featured and co-written with artists such as Full Cycle, George Clinton, Junie Morrison, A Guy Called Gerald, Apollo Heights, and several P-Funk luminaries. Outside of the studio, she continued to showcase her live performances with new material for various music, film, and art festivals, as well as headlining numerous Gay Pride events worldwide. In 2012 she began performing a Deee-Lite tribute for various occasions, including the 2013 Paris Fashion Week for Kenzo[5] as well as a tribute to legendary NYC DJ Mark Kamins at Santos Party House.[6]

As a DJ, she has spun internationally for over 17 years at thousands of clubs and major festivals including Coachella Festival (2007),[7] Berlin's Berghain (2010)[8] and Sydney Mardi Gras (2012),[9] as well as radio programs such as East Village Radio[10] and Sirius XM.[11]

Live performances

In 2005, motivated by the invasion of Iraq, she began internationally performing live new unreleased music, including the DFA release of the anti–war song "Bulletproof".[12] She has headlined numerous festivals and gay pride events as well as opened for James Brown's last tour at the Good Vibrations festival in Australia.[13]

Style and fashion icon

In 1990 she was on the cover of Vogue.[14] In 1991, when internationally acclaimed designer Emilio Pucci was given a lifetime achievement award from CFDA Fashion Awards, she was asked to star in the tribute video.[15] In 2010, Elle named her one of Music's 25 Most Influential Style Icons with Grace Jones, Beyoncé, Debbie Harry, and M.I.A.[16] In 2010, Glamour named Lady Miss Kier as one of the Top Influential Music Style Icons with Rihanna, Lady Gaga, and Gwen Stefani.[17] In 2012, Vogue quoted her experience with John Fluevog and the rise of "The Munster" which was made famous as a symbol of the 1990s house/club underground DJ scene.[18] Additionally, Fluevog credits her as the reason the shoe shot to popularity on its website's company history timeline, and credit her as the reason its company was successful.[19] In 2012, Rookie Mag wrote about her status as a style icon and the same year [20] respected shoe designer Jerome Rousseau named a shoe inspired by her after the singer. The shoe was called "Kier Iredescent".[21] In 2013, W cited Lady Miss Kier with Chloë Sevigny and Twiggy as current fashion influences. In 2013, Ladygunn magazine featured a full spread on the singer in its Legends issue[22] and was asked by Kenzo to be the performer for its Paris Fashion week party.[5]

From 2007 to 2012, the house of Mugler used her song for its website campaign.[23][24] In 2015, she was referenced in The Guardian as an inspiration for designer Jeremy Scott's Fall 2016 line, which debuted at New York Fashion Week.[25] In 2015, Essie nail polish brand released a pink polish inspired by her, called Groove Is in the Heart, described as "don't stop 'til you get enough! this wildly happy peachy pink neon is ready to rave all night long".[26] In 2015, Givenchy's Milan Fashion Week show drew inspiration from her, borrowing a lyric from her World Clique album song "Power of Love", using the line "I believe in the power of love" as part of how it branded the debut of its Fall 2016 line.[27] In 2016, Vogue Magazine interviewed Lady Miss Kier, calling her a "Club Kid Icon", referencing how world class designers know her as a "legend and a lady", highlighting how designers such as Thierry Mugler have borrowed from her look.[28]

Movies and books

Her music has been used in a multitude of movies, including The Heat (2013),[29] House of Versace (2013),[30] Crazy Sexy Cool: The TLC Story (2013),[31] Charlie's Angels (2000), Wigstock (1995), Party Girl (1995), Dumb and Dumber (1994), Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989) and several television episodes.

In 1995, Lady Kier was featured in Wigstock: The Movie, which included live footage of her performing and a song on the soundtrack.[32] In 2001 she was included in Summer Love: The Rave-umentary.[33] In 2005, Lady Miss Kier was the featured artist on the podcast Ron-Kat-Delic Show. Her words also were shared through a number of published books, including Verbal Abuse – No 3 by Chi Chi Valenti,[34] Creative Time: The Book: 33 Years of Public Art in New York by Anne Pasternak,[35] Creative License: The Law and Culture of Digital Sampling by Kembrew McLeod and Peter DiCola[36] and All Music Guide to Electronica: The Definitive Guide to Electronic Music by Vladimir Bogdanov.[37]

Panels and appearances

Lady Kier used her popularity as a platform to promote social and environmental awareness. With the release of Deee-Lite's second album, Infinity Within, they are the first group to have released an EcoPack, which reduces plastic packaging more than 50% and became the new norm,[38] winning her the Environmental Media award by the World Wide Fund for Nature. In 1991, Kirby was featured in "The Most Exciting Woman in Music (1991)" public service announcement, which promoted women's rights to choose when and whether to have children, with musicians such as Kate Pierson (The B-52's), Crystal Waters, Tina Weymouth (Talking Heads), Kim Gordon (Sonic Youth) and MC Lyte.[39] In 1991, Lady Miss Kier was an award presenter at The Reebok Human Rights Awards.[40]

Lady Miss Kier has spoken at Princeton University's "Youth Music and Youth Culture",[41] Cooper Union's multimedia presentation "Hiccup" in 1993, Apple's 1995 "Future Arts Panel" with Peter Gabriel and Electronic Frontier Foundation founder, John Perry Barlow, George Washington University's Law School Summit Future of Music Coalition in 2007[42] and New York University's "NYU Panel Nelson Sullivan: Vlogging in the 80s" in 2013.[43] In 2013 she was featured in an exhibit entitled "NYC 1993", which was presented through New York City's New Museum.[44] Beyond the installation, her voice recording was played via pay phones throughout the New York area. In 2013, Lady Miss Kier was the featured voiceover artist in The Jazz Foundation of America's animated promo for the event "A Great Night in Harlem"[45][46]

Space Channel 5 and lawsuit

In 2003, Kirby sued video game company Sega, claiming that the character of "Ulala" in its game Space Channel 5 was an unauthorized use of her likeness.[47] Kirby claimed that Sega offered to pay her US$16,000 to license her name, image and songs for the game, though she rejected its offer. Kirby alleged that the video game maker later used her resemblance anyway (including the name Ulala – referencing Kirby's signature phrase "Ooh la la" in her recorded and live performances), at which point she initiated the lawsuit. She ultimately lost the suit.[48]

Political views and activism

Lady Kier is widely known not only as a singer, DJ and fashion icon, but also as a social, environmental, and human rights activist.[49] She is a vocal advocate for LGBTQ rights and a longtime celebrated ally of the LGBTQ community.[50] As such, she is frequently invited to host, perform, MC, and DJ gay pride parades and associated events internationally.[51] She is staunchly pro-choice and is a women's rights advocate, was featured in TV informercial promoting pro-choice political action "The Most Exciting Women In Music" alongside Corina, Juliet Cuming, Kim Gordon (Sonic Youth), MC Lyte, Kate Pierson (B-52's), Crystal Waters, Tina Weymouth (Talking Heads, Tom Tom Club) in 1991.[52] A strong supporter of environmental causes, her album "Infinity Within" was the first CD ever released using eco-pak packaging, cutting the amount of plastic used by half. A portion of the album's profits was pledged to Greenpeace and she was recognized for her efforts with an environmental media award from the World Wildlife Fund.[53] As part of her environmental activism, she called attention to the issue of global warming on the Deee-lite album Infinity Within with her song "I had a dream I was falling through a hole in the ozone layer" [54] and Vogue Magazine has highlighted her "interest in supporting environmental causes".[28] She is an anti-war activist and in 2010, she released a new version of the P-Funk track "Bulletproof" with Ray Mang with lyrics calling attention to the perils of war and denouncing global militarization after the song was featured in 2005 during her world tour.[55] She is a longtime leader in getting out the vote and encouraging Americans to register to vote, her music video "Vote Baby Vote" was featured for MTV's "Rock The Vote" in 1992 and was highlighted by Rolling Stone Magazine as one of the top "ten major moments in rock the vote history".[56] During the 2016 U.S. Presidential election, she ultimately voted for Green Party candidate Jill Stein [57] but was an outspoken and enthusiastic supporter of Bernie Sanders. To promote Bernie Sanders, she hosted an art exhibit at Hole Gallery in New York City and a fundraiser called "Bernin' Up NYC" to rally supporters get out the vote.[58]

References

  1. ↑ "Deee-Lite Biography: OLDIES.com". Oldies.com. Retrieved 2013-04-23.
  2. ↑ "Lady Miss Kier - Gig Reviews - Music - Entertainment". Smh.com.au. 2006-02-13. Retrieved 2008-11-13.
  3. 1 2 "Lady Miss Kier - Gig Reviews - Music - Entertainment". Smh.com.au. 2006-02-13. Retrieved 2008-11-13.
  4. ↑ "Lady Kier Discography". Discogs.com. 1963-08-15. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  5. 1 2 "V Magazine / Party With Kenzo". Vmagazine.com. Archived from the original on 2015-08-16. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  6. ↑ Augustin, Camille (2013-04-17). ""Everybody" Celebrates Mark Kamins at Santos Tribute Tonight". Vibe. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  7. ↑ "Lady Miss Kier - Coachella 2007". Coachella Recordings. 2007-04-28. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  8. ↑ "Berghain Berlin | Programm: 31 December 2010". Berghain.de. 2010-12-31. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  9. ↑ "Here's Mardi Gras 2012!". Samesame.com.au. Archived from the original on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  10. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-01-10. Retrieved 2014-01-10.
  11. ↑ Belverio, Glenn (2013-06-01). "Diane, A Shaded View on Fashion: "SARKO TAYLOR BAR" with Anita Sarko & Scott Taylor on SiriusXM CHANNEL 28 THE SPECTRUM Saturdays @ 11pm PST 2am EST". Dianepernet.typepad.com. Archived from the original on 2015-07-13. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  12. ↑ "Ray Mang disco sizzler for DFA, with vocals from Deee-Lite's Lady Miss Kier - FACT Magazine: Music News, New Music". Factmag.com. 2010-03-19. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  13. ↑ "Groove is still in her art". Star Observer. Archived from the original on 2015-07-13. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  14. ↑ "Lady Miss Kier Vogue Italia 1990 – Le Blow". Leblow.co.uk. 2013-10-27. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  15. ↑ "Lady Kier from dee-lite + Pal Joey '91 'Pucci u say love?'", YouTube, retrieved 2007-01-17
  16. ↑ Bailey, Alyssa. "Influential Women in Music - Influential Musicians". Elle.com. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  17. ↑ David, Jessica. "The 25 Most Influential Style Icons in Music | Celebrity Fashion and Style Pictures (Glamour.com UK)". Glamourmagazine.co.uk. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  18. ↑ Archived January 10, 2014, at the Wayback Machine.
  19. ↑ "Fluevog Shoes | About John Fluevog". Retrieved 2015-10-05.
  20. ↑ "Secret Style Icon: Lady Miss Kier - Rookie". Retrieved 2015-10-05.
  21. ↑ "Jerome C. Rousseau Kier Iridescent Sandals". Shopbop. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  22. ↑ "Lady Miss Kier". Ladygunn. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  23. ↑ Musto, Michael (1993-03-05). "Designers' celebrity muses". EW.com. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  24. ↑ "Free Music Videos, Video Interviews, Music Video News, Live Sessions and Clips". Nme.Com. Archived from the original on 2014-01-10. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  25. ↑ York, Lauren Cochrane in New. "Jeremy Scott at New York fashion week: 60s pop culture through an 80s prism". the Guardian. Retrieved 2015-10-05.
  26. ↑ "groove is in the heart by essie". Essie. Retrieved 2015-10-05.
  27. ↑ Mau, Dhani (September 26, 2015). "Here's What Went Down at Givenchy's Insane Milan Fashion Week Party".
  28. 1 2 "'90s Club-Kid Icon Lady Miss Kier on Her Latest Fashion Obsessions". Vogue. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
  29. ↑ "The Heat (I) (2013) Soundtracks". IMDb.com. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  30. ↑ "Capsule Show". Capsule Show. Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  31. ↑ "Bustle". Bustle. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  32. ↑ "Lady Miss Kier – Touch Me With Your Sunshine – Listen and discover music at". Last.fm. 2013-11-26. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  33. ↑ Archived January 10, 2014, at the Wayback Machine.
  34. ↑ "Verbal Abuse Magazine – Dispatches From the Nightclub Literati". Mothernyc.com. 2007-02-08. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  35. ↑ "Today in Music: A look back at pop music". UPI.com. 2002-06-25. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  36. ↑ "Creative License Book Release | Future of Music Coalition". Futureofmusic.org. 2011-02-26. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  37. ↑ All Music Guide to Electronica: The Definitive Guide to Electronic Music – Vladimir Bogdanov – Google Books. Books.google.com. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  38. ↑ "The Most Trusted Place for Answering Life's Questions". Answers. 2007-12-13. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  39. ↑ "Video: The Most Exciting Women in Music ~ Frequency". Frequency.com. 2011-08-14. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  40. ↑ "The Reebok Human Rights Awards | Black History". 2013-03-16. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  41. ↑ Powers, Ann (1992-11-24). "In Theory and Practice, Defining Youth Music". NYTimes.com. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  42. ↑ "FMC Newsletter #60 | September 6, 2007 | Future of Music Coalition". Futureofmusic.org. 2015-07-08. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  43. ↑ "NYU Fales Library Hosts A Panel Discussion Nelson Sullivan Vlogging In The 80s". Nyu.edu. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  44. ↑ "NYC 1993: Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star". New Museum. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  45. ↑ Archived August 15, 2014, at the Wayback Machine.
  46. ↑ "A Great Night in Harlem: Animated Promo". YouTube. 2013-04-25. Retrieved 2015-07-12.
  47. ↑ "Lady Kier VS Sega". Ladykier.com. Archived from the original on 2006-12-06. Retrieved 2006-12-11.
  48. ↑ Kirby v. Sega (Court of Appeal of California, 2nd District, Div. 8 2006-09-25). Text
  49. ↑ "Illustrated Homage To Deee-Lite's Lady Miss Kier". OC Weekly. 2017-02-24. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
  50. ↑ "Style Icon: Lady Miss Kier « Grown Ass Lady". grownasslady.com. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
  51. ↑ Mikey Sin (2012-07-04), Mayor Rob Ford calls Lady Miss Kier (Deee-lite) at Pride Toronto, retrieved 2018-07-12
  52. ↑ CheeseFoodProduct (2011-11-07), The Most Exciting Women in Music, retrieved 2018-07-12
  53. ↑ "Eco-Pak - cdHistory". www.studio-nibble.com. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
  54. ↑ Deee-Lite – I Had a Dream I Was Falling Through a Hole in the Ozone Layer, retrieved 2018-07-12
  55. ↑ WestSavannah (2010-02-02), Ray Mang (featuring Lady Kier) - Bulletproof, retrieved 2018-07-12
  56. ↑ Runtagh, Jordan (2016-07-12). "10 Major Moments in Rock the Vote History". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
  57. ↑ "Lady Miss Kier". Facebook.
  58. ↑ "Bernie In The Bronx: "If We Win NY We Are Going To Make It To The White House!"". Gothamist. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
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