| Sophie Madeleine | |
| Birth Name: | Sophie Ball |
| Origin: | Brighton, England |
| Instrument: | Ukulele, vocals, guitar |
| Years Active: | 2009–2014 |
| Associated Acts: | Rocky and Balls, Hannah-Rei |
| Label: | Xtra Mile Recordings |
| Occupation: | Singer-songwriter / copywriter |
Sophie Madeleine (born Sophie Ball) is a ukulele player from Brighton.[1] She released three solo albums; her third album, Silent Cynic, was released on 1 November 2013 after a crowdfunding campaign on PledgeMusic.[2] [3]
Madeleine graduated from Bath Spa University with a BA in Commercial Music and a master's degree in Songwriting. While at Bath Spa, she was in the finals of the Musicians Benevolent Fund Songwriting Awards 2005[4] and she was in the band Oriole.[5]
She produced her first album as a final year project at Bath Spa.[6] She wrote her first ukulele song, Take Your Love With Me, for her then-boyfriend who had bought her that first ukulele. She also plays tenor guitar.[6] A song from her first album, You Are My Favourite, was released as a charity single to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support in memory of her father Ben, with a video featuring people from around the world who filmed themselves playing the song.[7]
Also while in Bath, she met Hannah Rockcliffe (Hannah-Rei) with whom she formed the comedy-song duo Rocky and Balls,[8] posting videos together on YouTube and recording one album in 2011.[9] Her second album was self-produced at home, and then mixed by Danton Supple. It was released in 2012, and initially sent out personally by Madeleine in a limited run.[10]
Her third solo album was recorded in a studio in Brooklyn, the first to be entirely studio-based, which she described as "one of the most stressful experiences of my life".[6] She published The Official Sophie Madeleine Ukulele Tab Book in 2013.[11]
She became a copywriter at a Brighton-based advertising company in late 2014.[12]
In 2015 she announced her retirement from music.[13]
She supported Gruff Rhys, the lead singer of Super Furry Animals, on tour.[14] In 2010, she performed at FestiFeel! along with Newton Faulkner and Babyhead to raise awareness of breast cancer[15] and she performed at The Great Escape Festival's launch.[16]
Madeleine's success on YouTube has led to her being called an "internet sensation".[17] Her music is covered by other artists so often that Finger magazine has crowned her "Queen of the Ukulele".[18] She has over four million views on her YouTube channel.[19]
Frank Turner is a fan of Madeleine's and has played her single "Oil and Gold" on his Steve Lamacq's BBC Radio 2 show.[20] Brighton Source wrote that Madeleine's second album, The Rhythm You Started, is "a ray of sunshine every time we press play".[21] The magazine Computer Music ran a full-page feature on Madeleine in its 2010 "How To Make It in Music" February special.[22]
On 8 July 2010 "Take Your Love With Me (The Ukulele Song)" reached number 4 on iTunes' New Zealand Singer-Songwriter Music Chart.[23] In 2012, Madeleine was interviewed on a Portuguese television documentary about ukuleles called Apanhei-te cavaquinho, for RTP2, where she also performed her song "Take Your Love With Me (The Ukulele Song)".[24] Madeleine appeared on MTV Brasil in a short feature dedicated to her career.[25]
Her songs have been used on the soundtracks of several TV advertisements, notably on adverts for Postbank (You Make Me Happy),[26] Pets at Home (You Make Me Happy),[27] Macy's (Take Your Love With Me)[28] and A1 Telekom Austria (One Fine Day).[29] Her music has also been used on the soundtrack for the BBC programme The Great British Home Movie Roadshow in a segment featuring Spike Milligan.[30]