Pictured are Peters, Westlife members Shane Filan, Kian Egan, Nicky Byrne, and Mark Feehily, and BMI’s Collins. photo by Jim Hagans

]]> 2003-02-26T17:00:00-05:00 http://www.bmi.com/news/entry/233079 Artists, Basement Jaxx, Sting, Westlife, Musical Styles, Dance, Pop Some of BMI's biggest British songwriters and artists were among the winners at the 2002 Brit Awards, held on February 20 at Earls Court 2 in London. Established in 1977, the Brit Awards is a charity event that donates all proceeds to the British Record Industry Trust, better known as the Brit Trust, an organization that encourages the exploration and pursuit of the educational, cultural and therapeutic benefits of music.

The Brit Awards is one of the UK's most exciting, most talked about and most successful music events. The awards ceremony was televised the next day on the UK's ITV.

BMI's Brit Awards Winners:

British Group
Travis

British Newcomer
Blue

British Single
"Dont Stop Movin" by S Club 7

British Video
"21 Seconds" by So Solid Crew

British Dance Act
Basement Jaxx

Pop Act
Westlife

Outstanding Contribution
Sting

That image may soon change, thanks to the current success of the 17-year-old Dublin native's debut album, Gotta Tell You, whose seamless combination of youthful energy and sophisticated production has made Mumba one of the pop scene's hottest new performers. The album's effervescent title track is already a Top 10 smash in the U.S., and dance-oriented tunes like "Baby Come Over" and "Body II Body" seem likely to follow in that tune's chart footsteps.

When asked recently what separates her from other contemporary teen divas, Mumba, who co-wrote seven of her album's 12 songs and cites Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson as her favorite vocalists, responds, " There are a lot of female artists my age around at the moment, but they're all American and blonde and blue-eyed and smiley. I'm totally the opposite of that. I want to show a bit more attitude and I have an opinion."

Indeed, the artist's exotic looks (her mother is from Ireland and her father is from Zambia) set her apart from the pack, as does an imposingly soulful vocal persona that belies her tender age. "I've always had a deep, husky voice, even when I was a little girl," she notes. A precocious performer who first took up dancing and singing at the age of three, Mumba attended Dublin's famed Billie Barry Stage School, and subsequently won a lead role in a stage production of the Gilbert and Sullivan update The Hot Mikado. A chance meeting with Boyzone/Westlife manager Louis Walsh led to a berth in Walsh's management stable, ultimately resulting in the high-profile launch of Mumba's recording career.

It's easy to see why impresario Walsh was struck by Mumba's talent, charisma and ambition. Indeed, the artist recently told Entertainment Weekly, "I've got film agents in America now, and I'm going to be working with the Ford modeling agency in the near future."

While the prospect of conquering America might seem like a rather tall order, Samantha Mumba seems unfazed. "It's a big thing, but I'm up for the challenge," she says.

Hailing from the small Irish town of Sligo, Westlife members Kian Egan, Mark Feehily and Shane Filan first performed together in a local stage production of Grease and singing cover tunes during intermissions. The group was eventually spotted on TV by Louis Walsh, manager of U.K. pop sensations Boyzone, who got them a gig opening for the Backstreet Boys in Dublin. Walsh eventually signed on as Westlife's co-manager with Boyzone member Ronan Keating. Auditions for the fledgling group attracted Dublin pals Nicky Byrne, who'd been pursuing a promising soccer career, and Bryan McFadden, who'd acted in an Irish TV series and was already carving out a niche as a singer. Though the auditions were initially intended to recruit a fourth Westlife member, the group liked Byrne and McFadden so much that both were hired.

Having already conquered most of the civilized pop world, Westlife now has its sights set firmly on the U.S. "America is totally a priority for us," says Byrne. "We've worked our socks off in England and the rest of Europe, but America is really where we want to break. . . . We want to be a worldwide success and so America is the place to do it."