Chris Chameleon Biography Innovative, prolific and endlessly creative, Chris Chameleon is currently being hailed as a phenomenon on the South African Music front. He has a style all his own and a reputation for mesmerizing audiences with his four octave voice range and irresistible stage personality. His versatile and exceptional talent has won him rave reviews and a total of sixteen impressive awards over the past 3 years, including a SAMA and a Medal of Honor from the South African Academy of Science and Arts. Background in brief In 1997, Chris Chameleon became the bassist and front man of one of South Africa’s proudest musical exports, Boo! In 7 years Boo! acquired an enormous cult following worldwide by performing 800 gigs in 17 countries, including 14 states in the USA as well as countries such as Hungary and Croatia. Boo! performed at many European and American festivals with the likes of the White Stripes, Limp Bizkit, Slipknot, Franz Ferdinand, Cypress Hill, Coldplay and many more. The band also received a South African Music Award (SAMA) in 2002 for ‘Best Pop Album.’ Boo! disbanded in 2004 giving Chameleon the opportunity to go solo and explore his South African roots by releasing the critically acclaimed ‘Ek Herhaal Jou’ (“I repeat you”) a composition of iconic 60's poet Ingrid Jonker's poetry. ‘Ek Herhaal Jou’ was nominated for a 2006 South African Music Award for Best Adult Contemporary Afrikaans Album. ‘Ek herhaal jou’ reached gold status in South Africa in July 2006 and platinum status in December 2007. Chris Chameleon released his first DVD “Volkleur” a few months after the release of “Ek Herhaal jou” in 2005. “Volkleur” is a perfect showcase of Chris`s phenomenal solo performances. The DVD was recorded at Die Boer in Durbanville and reached gold status in 2006. 2006 saw the simultaneous release of his first English solo rock album, ‘Shine’, an album that is loaded with power, passion and beautiful melodies, and a second Afrikaans album, ‘7 de Hemel’ which consists of songs performed by the versatile Chameleon as the popular character Liam in the nation`s favourite SABC 2 soap opera ‘7 de Laan’. ‘7de Hemel’ reached platinum status within its first 2 months of release. ‘Shine’ produced various chart topping singles on national commercial radio stations and was nominated for a SAMA 2007 Award for Best Alternative Album. The single “Anywhere” from album ‘Shine’ was entered for the International Songwriting Competition (ISC) and reached the semi-finals in February 2007. In July 2007, Chris Chameleon released his third Afrikaans album ‘Ek Vir Jou’ which achieved gold status in less than two months after its release. ‘Ek Vir Jou’ tells the story of the development of a romantic relationship: from love at first sight to the eventual unravelling of the romance. Chris Chameleon’s extraordinary songwriting ability is apparent in the fact that each of the eleven tracks constitutes strong individual singles, while at the same time they all form part of a chronological whole. Chris also released a live rock DVD in October 2007: “Flight of an Extraordinary Alien” Chris Chameleon`s exhilarating stage presence and mesmerizing 4-octave voicework is perfectly captured in this live DVD that was recorded in Stellenbosch Townhall in March 2007. Chris Chameleon`s popularity and world-class talent has also been evident from various awards that he has won over the past two years. These are: * Huisgenoot Tempo Award for Most Popular Afrikaans Album for “Ek Vir Jou.” 2008. * Vonk Award for Best Solo DVD for “Klassieke Chameleon” 2008. * SAMA Award for Best Afrikaans Contemporary Album – “7de Hemel.” 2007 * Medal of Honor: Awarded to Chris by the SA Academy of Science and Art for his contribution to Afrikaans Music. 2007 * FAK Award for Exceptional Cultural Achievement. 2007 * VONK Award for Best Male Solo Artist. 2007 * VONK Award for Best Songwriter for STERREDANK. 2007 * KANNA Award for Best Music Theatre Production at KKNK. 2007 * People`s Choice Award for KLASSIEKE CHAMELEON at Aardklop 2007 * Huisgenoot Tempo Award for Favourite Contemporary Artist. 2006 * Vonk Award for Best Male Artist. 2006 * Vonk Award for “Best Male Album“Ek Herhaal Jou.” 2006 * MK89 Award for Best Solo Video “Die Onverkrygbare.” 2006 * MK89 Award for Sexiest Video “Die Onverkrygbare.” 2006 * AMT Award for Best Male Album: “7de Hemel.” 2006 * AMT Award for Best Male video: “Groet.” 2006 (Further SAMA 2007 nominations included “Droomland” for Song of the Year and ‘Shine’ for Best Alternative Album.) English South African publications HEAT and GQ magazines have included Chris Chameleon in their top listings for 2007: Chris reached the no 6 position of the GQ Best Dressed Male Celebrity Top 10- list, and has been featured the last two years in a row on the HEAT Hot 100 Celebrity list. In August 2007, Chris Chameleon signed a record deal with the premier independent label in the Netherlands, Excelsior Recordings. ‘Ek vir jou’ is being distributed by Excelsior Recordings in the Benelux countries (The Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg.) In October and November of that year, Chris was invited to support one of the most popular groups in the Benelux, “Spinvis.” The tour was a great success. Rave reviews appeared in various Dutch publications and this tour was a springboard for what proved to be his most successful tour in the Benelux to date. In October – November 2008, Chris performed in 15 of The Netherlands’ most prestigious theatres. The Theater Tour was organised by reputable Kik Productions (http://www.kikproductions.nl/) based in Utrecht. Chris Chameleon enjoyed full halls and positive media coverage throughout. The tour ended on a particularly high note with a sold out show at the famous Kleine Komedie in Amsterdam. With Excelsior Recordings on his side and a growing fanbase in the Netherlands, Chris Chameleon is set to be a pioneering force for South African music in the Benelux countries. Awards 2008: Chris Chameleon was nominated in three categories for SAMA Awards 2008, including a nomination in the prestigious category for BEST MALE SOLO ARTIST. The other two nominations were in categories: Best Global Chart DVD for “Flight of an Extraordinary Alien DVD” and Best Afrikaans Contemporary Album for “Ek vir Jou.” Releases 2008: Chris Chameleon impressed both his audiences and critics alike with his new production “Klassieke Chameleon” which received standing ovasions at the Volksblad Festival, Cultivaria Festival, Aardklop 2007 and KKNK 2008. “Klassieke Chameleon” was recorded live on DVD on 26 and 27 January at the Aula Theatre in Pretoria and is available on DVD and CD. Chris Chameleon introduced another new and very different production “Driekuns” at the Voksbladfestival in Bloemfontein in July 2008. For the first time since his Boo! days, Chris is back on bass, accompanied by Jonathan Crossley on guitars, Leon Ecroignard on percussion and Ampie Omo on keyboard, trumpet, trombone and percussion. Chris performs new compositions of his own hits, as well as some personal favourites, including a few Boo! classics. A special element to “Driekuns” is that it is the first time since the Boo! split, that Chris has teamed up with Ampie Omo on stage again. “Driekuns” was also presented at the Cultivaria Festival in Paarl and at Aardklop in Potchefstroom in 2008 and will also be staged at KKNK, Oudshoorn in 2009. In October 2008, Chris Chameleon released the album “Made Available,” which is a taste of Chris Chameleon's music making passion for the last 17 years and an insight into the process involved in recording. This album was intended to explore a new approach for his next studio project but the final product was so pleasing to Chameleon’s ear that he decided to make this pre-production album available online and at live performances. Coming up in 2009 Chris Chameleon’s new Afrikaans solo album, “Kyk Hoe Lyk Ons Nou” will be released in March. Chris has teamed up with trusted producer, Theo Crous to create a sound which will signify a progression from the sound that has characterised his first three albums. The music will be featured in a kykNET documentary, “Kyk Hoe Lyk Ons Nou” (Look At Us Now) which takes a closer look at the Afrikaans community. Chris is also the featured host in the the abovementioned kykNET documentary, “Kyk Hoe Lyk Ons Nou.” The airdate of this four-part series has not yet been announced. This year, Chris also has tours planned to the United States, Namibia, England, United Arab Emirates and Germany. He has another exciting theatre tour planned in Belgium and The Netherlands from 12 October to 22 November to try to meet the demand of his ever-growing Benelux fanbase. For more information, be sure to check out his gig guide on www.chrischameleon.com/gig --- Chris Chameleon can take anyone on a musical journey that fuels their aural fantasies, simply with a guitar and his magical and unusual voice-work. If this last year is anything to go by, Chris Chameleon is set to be a pioneering force for South African music in the world ... watch this space! www.chrischameleon.com www.myspace.com/chrischameleon www.sonicbids.com/chrischameleon