Everything you ever needed to know about the legendary Craig David 🎶
Let us Fill You In...
Craig David is one of the biggest British artists of all time - and it's no wonder, with hits like '7 Days', 'Fill Me In' and 'Rewind'! But Craig isn't just a singer - he's a published author, with his first book What's Your Vibe? being released back in October 2022.
Although he's well-known for his brilliant songs, incredible writing skills and stunning vocals, Craig is also a hugely talented DJ - having performed his TS5 set all over the world. Let's take a look back at his career! Find out everything you need to know about Craig David right here...
Who is Craig David?
Craig David is a British singer, rapper, songwriter and DJ!
How old is he?
His birthday is 5th May 1981, making his current age 42-years-old.
Where is Craig David from?
He was born in Southampton in the UK. His parents Tina and George David are Jewish and Afro-Grenadian respectively.
How did he become famous?
After Craig worked on a cover of 'Wonderful Tonight' by Damage, he began working with Artful Dodger, appearing as a vocalist on their tracks 'Something' and 'What Ya Gonna Do'. He started writing and recording his own music, like 'Walking Away' and '7 Days', and then featured on 'Re-Rewind (The Crowd Say Bo Selecta)' by Artful Dodger which went to Number 2 and made him a household name.
Craig released his debut album 'Born to Do It' in August 2000, hitting the top spot in the UK charts and being certified 6x Platinum here too.
Did Craig take time out from music?
He didn't go on an official hiatus, but resented the caricature of himself on Leigh Francis' TV show Bo' Selecta!, in which he was frequently parodied. Craig told The Sunday Times in 2007: "The whole Bo' Selecta! thing was killing me for a while because this idiot had a cult following and I was the main caricature. It was hurtful beyond belief. There were times when I thought I just want to knock this guy out."
How many awards has he won?
As well as 14 BRIT Award nominations and two Grammy Award nominations, Craig has also won three Ivor Novello Awards, all in 2001: Best Contemporary Song for '7 Days', Best Dance Single for 'Woman Trouble' with Robbie Craig and Artful Dodger and Songwriter of the Year.
Craig has also bagged five MOBO Awards: in 2000, he won Best UK Newcomer, Best R&B Act and Best UK Single of the Year for 'Fill Me In', in 2001 he won Best UK Act and in 2016 he took home Best Male Act.
Also in 2001, Craig picked up two MTV Europe Music Awards for Best R&B and Best UK & Ireland Act.
On 30th December 2020, Craig was announced on the Queen’s New Year Honours List to receive an MBE in recognition of his services to music. Craig attended the ceremony at Windsor Castle with his mum and met Prince Charles (now King Charles).
Craig told us in an interview how he was so proud to receive the honour saying: "It was amazing, for me, being able to be there with my mum, in Windsor Castle to see where the Queen resides."
What is TS5?
TS5 is named after an apartment (Tower Suite 5) in Miami, where Craig used to live. He used to have house parties in his apartment, and later he would name his DJ set after his apartment. His success at his house parties spurred him on to DJ.
During his TS5 set you can expect to see Craig come out of the DJ booth, sing and mix songs. He has performed at venues all over the world including several music festivals.
Is he married?
He's not married! Craig has always stayed very private about his personal life and romantic relationships.
How many albums has he released?
Craig has brought out a whopping eight albums in his career spanning more than two decades: 'Born to Do It' in 2000, 'Slicker Than Your Average' in 2002, 'The Story Goes...' in 2005, 'Trust Me' in 2007, 'Signed Sealed Delivered' in 2010, 'Following My Intuition' in 2016, 'The Time Is Now' in 2018, and '22' in 2022.
Did he perform at the Platinum Party at the Palace?
He did! Craig David was one of the amazing artists to perform at Queen Elizabeth II's Platinum Jubilee Concert in May 2022.
Who else performed?
The show took place on 4th June 2022 and also saw performances from Eurovision singer Sam Ryder, George Ezra, and Mabel. Craig performed an extended version of his track 'Ain't Giving Up'.
Has he ever performed with Coldplay?
Yes, Craig joined Chris Martin and the rest of Coldplay on stage during two of their gigs at Wembley, as part of their 'Music of The Spheres' world tour, in August 2022. On the first night they sang Craig's songs, 'Live In The Moment', followed by his classic hit 'Fill Me In'.
On the second night, they performed 'Live In The Moment' followed by another classic hit, '7 Days'.
Check out Craig David's journey to fame and career highlights:
1991 - 'Re-Rewind'
Music is definitely in Craig David's blood. As a child, he was surrounded by music. His father George even played bass in a reggae band.
Despite being well-known in the underground MC world in the 90s and writing songs for British group Damage, Craig David only got his big break in 1999 when he featured on the track 'Re-Rewind' by garage duo Artful Dodger.
The song reached Number 2 in the charts and Craig soon became a household name.
2000 - 'Fill Me In'
In 2000, Craig released one of his greatest tunes to date, 'Fill Me In', and it was his first! The garage banger soared to the top of the charts.
2000 - First album 'Born To Do It'
Craig's debut album 'Born To Do It' was released 14th August 2000 by Wildstar Records. It went to Number 1 and eventually went 6x Platinum. It also achieved major success in the US, selling over a million copies.
Hosting smash singles including '7 Days' and 'Walking Away', the album placed Craig at the top and earned him three Ivor Novello Awards as well as six BRIT Award nominations in 2001.
Later in April 2009, MTV viewers voted 'Born to Do It' as number 2 on their 'Greatest Album of All-Time' poll. What an accolade!
2002 - 'Slicker Than Your Average'
Craig's first album was definitely hard to beat and his second, 'Slicker Than Your Average', was released in 2002. It had huge hits, 'What's Your Flava?', 'Hidden Agenda' and 'Rise & Fall' and reached Number 4 in the charts.
2005 - Change of sound and third album 'The Story Goes...'
In 2005, Craig announced that he had signed with Warner Music and put together his third album, 'The Story Goes...'. His sound shifted slightly and he began exploring more contemporary R&B. His song 'All The Way' put him back in the Top 3 in the charts and the album still did well.
2007 - 'Trust Me'
Craig switched up his look on his fourth album 'Trust Me'. He successfully sought permission from David Bowie to sample his 1983 Number 1 single 'Let's Dance'. The single was a top ten hit but his fourth record didn't perform as well as his first three.
2007 also saw him team up with UK grime legend Kano for their collaboration 'This Is The Girl' that sampled Jay Z's song 'Big Pimpin'.
2008 - 2009 Greatest Hits and new direction
In 2008, still quite early on in his career, Craig released a Greatest Hits album, full of his best known hits as well a new song 'Where's Your Love' featuring Tinchy Stryder and Rita Ora.
Craig then signed another new record with Universal Motown and released sixth album 'Signed, Sealed, Delivered'. It featured covers of classics from Stevie Wonder, Otis Redding, Marvin Gaye and Al Green.
In 2009, he moved to Miami and took a break. Craig bought a luxurious all-white penthouse in the sunny city, and began taking major interest in body-building and getting into shape.
Although he didn't go on an official hiatus, Craig reportedly resented the caricature of himself on Leigh Francis' TV show Bo' Selecta!, in which he was frequently parodied.
Craig told The Sunday Times in 2007: "The whole Bo' Selecta! thing was killing me for a while because this idiot had a cult following and I was the main caricature. It was hurtful beyond belief. There were times when I thought I just want to knock this guy out."
2011 - The Craig David comeback and TS5
Craig started making his way back to the mainstream in 2011 when his DJ name TS5 started uploaded the sets to Soundcloud, and on the back of this success Craig embarked on a huge world tour that took him all over the globe.
TS5 remains hugely successful to this day, taking Craig everywhere from Ibiza to Glastonbury.
In January 2013, David announced on Twitter that he had signed a publishing deal with Universal Music Publishing Group, he then took his TS5 shows on tour.
In 2015, Craig appeared on The X Factor and performed his breakthrough single 'Re-Rewind' with Reggie 'n' Bollie.
In 2016, he signed with Sony and was preparing for the ultimate comeback.
2016 - 'Following My Intuition'
Craig's comeback single 'When The Bassline Drops', featuring Big Narstie, flew straight into the Top 10.
In September 2016, he dropped his long-awaited comeback album 'Following My Intuition' and it was his first album to hit Number 1 since his debut 'Born To Do It'. He then headed on tour and played almost every festival under the sun.
2017 - 'The Time Is Now'
In 2017, Craig announced the release of the seventh studio album, 'The Time Is Now', which was released in January 2018 and featured hits like 'Heartline' and 'I Know You' featuring Bastille.
2019 - 2020 New songs and Love Island
Two years later, he released 'Do You Miss Me Much' and 'When You Know What Love Is' - which he performed in the Love Island villa during a guest DJ slot.
2021 - New music tease
In October 2021, Craig surprised fans and told them a collaboration 'Who You Are' which saw join forces with Grammy-nominated artist and acclaimed songwriter MNEK.
He's also hinted at a new album.
2021 - Craig David received an MBE from Prince Charles
In December 2021, Craig David received an MBE at Windsor Castle from Prince Charles. The singer too to Instagram to share some photos of him receiving the award telling his fans: 'As I sit here after a beautiful day with my mum at Windsor Castle 🏰 I just wanna say thank you to everyone that has played a part in my career to date & to everyone that supports me & enriches my life. I'm so grateful & I Love You ❤️💫 xxx'
2022 - Craig Davi performs at the Platinum Party at the Palace
Craig David was among the talented artists who performed at the Platinum Party at the Palace concert as part of Queen Elizabeth II's Jubilee celebrations on 4th June.
After his performance, he took to Instagram to say: 'After the last few years we've all had to face our own challenges individually & collectively, but in that time I've seen so many acts of courage, humility & grace from all of You that makes an occasion like this even more special to be a part of' (sic)
2022 - Craig releases his eighth album
On 30th September 2022, Craig released his eighth studio album, celebrating 22 years of his epic career! Aptly names '22', the album included tracks such as 'DNA' with Galantis, 'Who You Are' with MNEK and 'My Heart's Been Waiting for You' with Duvall.
2022 - Craig David's first book
In September 2022, Craig David announced he would be releasing his first book called What's Your Vibe?. The book covers this whole career and was released on 6th October of that year.
2024 - Love Island: All Stars performance
Craig delivered an incredible performance in the Love Island: All Stars villa in February 2024, delighting Islanders including superfan Anton Danyluk. Craig was also joined by Wes Nelson, with the pair teaming up for an epic performance of their collab 'Abracadabra'.
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