Tasmin Archer
Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Use British English Template:Infobox musical artist
Tasmin Archer (born 3 August 1963) is a British pop singer from Bradford, England. Her first album, Great Expectations, spawned the hit "Sleeping Satellite", which reached number one in the United Kingdom<ref name=occ/> and Ireland.<ref name=ie/> She won the Brit Award for British Breakthrough Act in 1993 and has since released three more studio albums.
Early life
Archer was born in Bradford, Yorkshire, to Jamaican parents. She attended Grange Upper School and, after leaving, first worked as a sewing machine operator. She attended Bradford College in 1980 to study typing, and later became a clerk at Leeds Magistrates' Court.<ref name=bio>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Archer joined a group called Dignity as a backing vocalist, and played with different bands around the Bradford area. She helped out at a recording studio in Bradford called Flexible Response Studios, and subsequently began working with musicians John Hughes and John Beck as "The Archers". During this time, Archer developed skills in the music business.<ref name=interview />
Musical career
Great Expectations
Archer signed to EMI in 1990 and released her first single, "Sleeping Satellite," in September 1992, which went to number one on the UK Singles Chart.<ref name=occ/><ref name="British Hit Singles & Albums">Template:Cite book</ref> The single also enjoyed success in the US, where it peaked at number 32 on the Billboard Hot 100.<ref name=Hot100/> The album Great Expectations followed in October 1992. It reached number eight on the UK Albums Chart,<ref name=occ/> and achieved gold disc status by December for sales of more than 100,000 copies.<ref name=bpi>Template:Cite web</ref> Further singles from the album followed, and although they were Top 40 hits in the UK, they did not achieve the same level of success as her début.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Archer donated the royalties from her second single "In Your Care" to Childline. The song was about child abuse.<ref name=bio /> In 1993 Archer won a BRIT Award for the Best British Breakthrough Act. She later joked that she kept her award in her kitchen cupboard and used it for cracking nuts and tenderizing steak.<ref name=interview>Template:Cite web</ref>
Bloom
After disappearing from the limelight, Archer reappeared in 1996 with her second album Bloom. However, the single "One More Good Night with the Boys" failed to reach the UK Top 40, and the album peaked at number 95.<ref name=occ/> In late 1997, disagreements with EMI left Archer somewhat disillusioned and feeling like she had been treated as a commodity. She decided to take a short break from the industry, after being let go by EMI.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> This break lasted two years.
After the break, Archer felt the time was right to start writing again, but now she was hindered by writer's block. Although this did not prevent her from being initially creative, she found it difficult to finish anything musically.<ref name=interview2>Template:Cite web</ref>
On
Template:BLP unreferenced section After working through the block and starting in 2002, Archer and Hughes worked on a new album. Initially this was going to be titled Non-Linear, but later became On.
On was released on 25 September 2006 on Archer's own label, Quiverdisc. It was preceded on 20 September by a download-only single, "Every Time I Want It (Effect Is Monotony)", a radio edit of the album track "Effect Is Monotony".
Other work
In a 2006 interview, Archer said she and John Hughes were pursuing opportunities to write for film and TV soundtracks.<ref name=interview2 /> Subsequently, the partners provided work for EastEnders and other shows.Template:Fact
A Cauldron of Random Notes (2025)
In late 2024 Archer mentioned the name of her new album, A Cauldron Of Random Notes. On 17 June 2025, she mentioned that the first single, "Vibration of Life" would be released on 20 June 2025.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
"Vibration of Life" was released across streaming platforms as intended on 20 June 2025, with both an official music video and lyric video shared on YouTube.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> "Segregation Seeds" is the name of the second single, similarly released on 8 August 2025.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
The upcoming release date of A Cauldron Of Random Notes is 12 September 2025.
Awards and nominations
| Year | Awards | Work | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | Brit Awards | Herself | British Breakthrough Act | Template:Won | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| British Female Solo Artist | Template:Nom | ||||
| "Sleeping Satellite" | British Video of the Year | Template:Nom | |||
| RSH Gold Awards | Herself | Power Groove of the Year | Template:Won | <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> {{safesubst:#if:| |
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Discography
Studio albums
| Year | Album | Peak positions | Certifications | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK <ref name=occ/> |
AUS <ref name=aus/> |
AUT <ref name=aut>Template:Cite web</ref> |
GER <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
NZ <ref name=nz/> |
SWE <ref name=swe/> |
SWI <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
US <ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> | ||||
| 1992 | Great Expectations | 8 | 56 | 26 | 34 | 31 | 38 | 26 | 115 |
| |
| 1994 | Shipbuilding (8-track mini album, US only) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1996 | Bloom | 95 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006 | On | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2025 | A Cauldron of Random Notes | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released. | |||||||||||
Compilations
- Premium Gold Collection (2000)
- Singer/Songwriter (2004)
- The Best Of (2009)
- Sweet Little Truths: The EMI Recordings 1992–1996 (2020) – 3-CD set containing remastered, expanded versions of Great Expectations and Bloom plus B-sides, remixes and live versions.
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak positions | Certifications | Album | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK <ref name=occ>UK chart peaks:
|
AUS <ref name=aus>Australian (ARIA) chart peaks:
|
FRA <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
GER <ref>German singles chart peaks:
|
IRE <ref name=ie>Template:Cite web</ref> |
NL <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
NZ <ref name=nz>Template:Cite web</ref> |
SWE <ref name=swe>Template:Cite web</ref> |
SWI <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
US <ref name=Hot100>Template:Cite magazine</ref> | ||||
| 1992 | "Sleeping Satellite" | 1 | 14 | 6 | 12 | 1 | 8 | 12 | 4 | 5 | 32 | BPI: Silver<ref name=bpi/> | Great Expectations |
| 1993 | "In Your Care" | 16 | 145 | — | — | — | — | 37 | — | — | — | ||
| "Lords of the New Church" | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | 40 | — | — | — | |||
| "Somebody's Daughter" Template:Small | — | — | — | 57 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Arienne" | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1994 | "Shipbuilding" (4-track EP) | 40 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Shipbuilding | |
| 1996 | "One More Good Night with the Boys" | 45 | 189 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Bloom | |
| "Sweet Little Truth" | 176 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 2006 | "Every Time I Want It (Effect Is Monotony)" Template:Small |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | On | |
| 2025 | "Vibration of Life" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | A Cauldron of Random Notes | |
| "Segregation Seeds" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released. | |||||||||||||
References
External links
Template:Tasmin Archer Template:Brit British Breakthrough Template:Authority control
- 1963 births
- English women songwriters
- Brit Award winners
- 20th-century Black British women singers
- 20th-century British women singers
- Musicians from Bradford
- Living people
- English women pop singers
- 21st-century Black British women singers
- 21st-century British women singers
- SBK Records artists
- English people of Jamaican descent