Samantha Jade Gibbs (born 18 April 1987), known as Samantha Jade, is an Australian singer-songwriter and former child model from Perth, Western Australia. She has written tracks for artists including JoJo and Ashley Tisdale. On 20 November 2012 Jade won the fourth series of The X Factor (Australia), the first female to win the Australian series. She subsequently signed with Sony Music Australia and released her winner’s single “What You’ve Done to Me”, which debuted at number one on the ARIA Singles Chart.
Biographyedit:
Early lifeedit:
Samantha Jade Gibbs was born in Perth, Western Australia. Her father is of Anglo-Indian descent, while her mother is of Scottish descent. She began modeling at the age of four and at age nine she won a talent show after singing “Amazing Grace”. She attended Hampton Senior High School. In 2002 her first studio recordings were made with Platinum mixer/producer Conley Abrams in Los Angeles. These were recorded for a Perth label which folded that year. In 2003 the Gibbs family moved to Los Angeles in order for Jade to pursue her singing career. That year, a song she co-wrote, “Secret Love”, was recorded by JoJo for the soundtrack of the 2004 film Shark Tale. In 2004 Jade signed a multiple album recording contract with US record label Jive Records.
2006-2011: Jive Records and Affinity West Entertainmentedit:
In 2006 Jade recorded the title track “Step Up” for the 2006 Universal Pictures Dance Drama film Step Up which was produced by Rapper and Music Producer Wyclef Jean. The single which had little promotion appeared for one week on the Billboard Pop 100 peaking at #92. In 2007 Jade released her follow-up single “Turn Around” which underperformed. Jade began recording her debut album My Name is Samantha Jade with Music Producers Darkchild, Timbaland, Max Martin and Stargate. “Apple” the album suffered numerous set-backs and was not released. In 2007 Jade co-wrote and sang back-up vocals on the track “Positivity” on Ashley Tisdale’s debut album Headstrong.
Jade was later dropped from Jive Records and attempted to continue to work on music independently with American record label Affinity West Entertainment. That same year Jade made her acting debut in the film Beneath the Blue a sequel to Eye of the Dolphin. The film was released in 2009. Jade notably recorded a track the following year with David Guetta and Laidback Luke for David Guetta’s fourth studio album One Love which was released in August. The track did not make the final track-listing but is featured as a bonus track on certain international releases. In July 2009 Jade released her third single “Secret” in Australia which failed to chart. The official music video for the single was directed by Valerie Babayan. In August 2009 Jade performed on Kerri-Anne to promote the single. In November 2011, Jade relocated to Perth and began working at her father’s mining factory counting stock.
2012: The X Factor Australia and Samantha Jadeedit:
In a final attempt to return to the music industry, Jade successfully auditioned for the fourth series of The X Factor in 2012. She sang “Breakeven” by The Script, during which judge Guy Sebastian notably teared up. Jade eventually made it to the live shows as part of the Over 25s category. Jade performed the following songs on The X Factor:
Show
Song choice
Theme
Result
Auditions
“Breakeven”
Free choice
Through to super bootcamp
Super bootcamp
“No Air”
Through to home visits
Home Visits
“Bleeding Love”
Through to live shows
Live show 1
“Wide Awake” / “Without You”
Judges’ Choice
Bottom two/Saved by Judges
Live show 2
“Freefallin”
Party All Night
Safe
Live show 3
“Everytime”
Top 10 Hits
Safe
Live show 4
“Run to You”
Legends
Safe
Live show 5
“You Can’t Hurry Love” / “I Will Be”
’80s
Bottom two/Saved via deadlock
Live show 6
“Scream”
Latest and Greatest
Safe
Live show 7
“UFO” / “At Last”
Made in Australia
Bottom two/Saved via deadlock
Live show 8
“Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)”
Judges’ Challenge
Safe
Semi-final
“Heartless”
Power and Passion
Safe
“Where Have You Been”
Final
“Breakeven”
Audition song
Winner
“Take a Bow”
Last shot song
“Scream”
Song of the series
“What You’ve Done to Me”
Winner’s single
During the grand final decider, on 20 November 2012, Jade was announced as the winner. She received a recording contract with record label Sony Music Australia and a Nissan Dualis car. After winning The X Factor, Jade’s winner’s single “What You’ve Done to Me” was released digitally via iTunes. After three days of release, the song debuted at number one on the ARIA Singles Chart. It was certified triple platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), denoting sales of 210,000 copies. Jade’s self-titled debut album was released on 7 December 2012, featuring re-recorded versions of the songs she performed on The X Factor. The album debuted at number three on the ARIA Albums Chart and was certified gold, denoting shipments of 35,000 copies.
2013: Tours and New Albumedit:
In January 2013, Jade headlined the X Factor Live Tour performing shows in the Gold Coast, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth. In February 2013, Jade began writing music for her forthcoming studio album due for release later in 2013. “Firestarter”, the lead single from her forthcoming studio album, was released on 28 June 2013. Jade has announced that along with the release of her new album she will have a headlining tour across Australia in late 2013.
