The top-selling female artist in Australian history, singer Tina Arena has begun to fulfil Billboard Magazine's prediction that she will be the next global female superstar from Australia. Time Magazine Australia voted her one of the Top 10 divas in the world. Wynonna Judd has recorded two of her songs. At the World Music Awards in Monte Carlo, Arena's childhood idol, Diana Ross, approached her, asked for a copy of her album and told her, "You have a magnificent voice. Your songs are superb." Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber and Jim Steinman invited her to perform the title song for their new musical Whistle Down The Wind, which she sang at Lloyd Webber's 50th birthday celebration in April at London's Royal Albert Hall. And the singer has just made her debut on Sony Classical, with tropical salsa star Marc Anthony, singing the duet "I Want To Spend My Lifetime Loving You", the lead track from the Tristar Pictures romantic adventure film The Mask Of Zorro (SK 60627), written by Oscar® winners James Horner and Will Jennings of Titanic fame.
In the first week of September, Epic Records U.S. releases In Deep, a record Arena says is "international in spirit. It's also essentially a live record, because concerts are what I thrive on. I didn't want to make a record that sounded like my last one but instead wanted to make a record that reflected my growth as a singer, writer, performer and human being over the two year period when I travelled continuously." The first single is "If I Was A River," written by Oscar® nominee Diane Warren and arranged by Arena.
In Australia, In Deep debuted at No. 1 and has now passed triple platinum sales. It has so far yielded three hit singles -- "Burn", "If I Didn't Love You" and "Now I Can Dance". "Burn" (also recorded by Tina in Italian and Spanish) made history when it became the fastest-added Australian song of all time in radio. It subsequently debuted at No. 2 in the national charts and shipped gold on release.
The title for In Deep comments on the success Arena had with her 1995 album Don't Ask. It sold two million copies world-wide and was the highest selling album of 1995 in Australia. "Chains", the first single, reached No. 1 and was certified double platinum. Arena dominated the prestigious ARIAs (Australian Record Industry Association awards, the Australian version of the Grammys) with five wins for Female Artist Of The Year, Song Of The Year, Best Pop Release, Song Of The Year and Highest Selling Australian Album. In addition, she was the Variety Clubs Entertainer Of The Year, received a radio industry "Raward" for Best Australian Performer on Radio, won the Australasian Performing Rights Association (APRA) award for Song Of The Year for "Wasn't It Good," and performed at the 1996 World Music Awards in Monte Carlo, where she picked up the Best Selling Australian Artist award.
In Deep was recorded in Los Angeles, with production duties divided between Foreigner guitarist Mick Jones (who produced albums for Van Halen and Billy Joel), Dave Tyson (who collaborated with Arena on Don't Ask), and Walter Afanasieff, who has worked extensively with Mariah Carey.
Chris Lord-Alge was again responsible for mixing the record. Arena plans a series of live performances in the U.S. to coincide with the album's release.
Born in Melbourne, Australia, Arena made her live debut singing "You're My World" at a family wedding. At eight she was working on a national television show, Young Talent Time, learning her craft. Until she was 15, she spent six days a week working on the show after school. Young Talent Time was seen by an Australian audience of over six million people every Saturday night for almost ten years in Australia. By her late teens, Tina had a No. 1 dance record and appeared in musicals such as Joseph And His Amazing Technicolour Dream Coat, Soul and Dynamite. After seeing her in the Australian production of Joseph, Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber asked Tina to perform on Broadway and the West End -- an invitation she reluctantly had to turn down as she had to start work on Don't Ask.
Arena divides her time between Melbourne and Los Angeles.
