Shell Ruin

Shell Marie Wilson (born August 8, 1982), better known by her stage name Shell Ruin, is an iconic American-born, British-based singer, songwriter, dancer and actress.

Born in Chicago, Illinois and raised in in London, England, Ruin is the eldest of three siblings and the daughter of legendary American record producer Quincy Jones. It is rumoured that American rock singer Buffi is Ruin's biological mother, although the real identity is unknown.

Ruin first rose to fame in 2001, performing as a member of the duo Voguegirl. For two years, the girl group were one of the regular acts to perform at the former London club night Nag Nag Nag (under the name The Vogue Girls), held at Ghetto nightclub. In early 2004, Voguegirl were signed to Overload Records, releasing one album, Drab Subscription, and enjoyed some commercial success before disbanding. Ruin's debut solo album Stories of a Girl (2005) was released shortly after. One more Top 5 single followed in August of that year before Ruin cancelled her second studio album and took over a year-long break from entertainment, becoming one of the most famous socialites of that era.

Staging what Rolling Stone magazine cited "The Greatest Comeback of All-Time", Ruin released Kill Pop and The Dirty Is Done respectively 2007. With her third studio album she created a new genre of pop music and paved the way for endless copycats.

In 2008 Ruin continued to ride her new-found status as the most innovative and original female artist in history, releasing further singles from The Dirty Is Done. Later that year would see the release of Charm Offensive, a more indie and experimental offering which completley contradicted the zaney crunk sounds of her third album. Ruin later said this was a deliberate move to separate herself from the female artists who had since copied her style. However, a year later Ruin would release the commercially successful Never Stop, a return to a more pop sound and image.

At the end of the decade, Ruin's behavior became more and more erratic, at one point faking her own death for a year. She returned in 2011 and released two further studio albums, The Original Doll and Panic Station. The latter was hailed as a return to form for Ruin but the album was another commercial failure despite its critical praise.

2003: Childhood and discovery
Shell Ruin was born Shell Marie Jones Wilson on August 10, 1987. Born in Chicago, Illinois and raised in in London, England, Ruin is the eldest of three siblings and the daughter of legendary American record producer Quincy Jones. It is rumoured that American rock singer Buffi Anderson is Ruin's biological mother, although the real identity is unknown. Ruin was God daughter to the late American pop icon Michael Jackson. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine in 2005, Ruin said "I have never wanted to use my family connections to further my own career. My father has offered to help produce my music, but I think I'm just too stubborn, [...] I can do this without his help."

In 2001, at the age of seveteen, Ruin recorded a soul-inspired album, titled Soul Searching for Alias Records after being scouted by an A&R rep at an open mic night in Soho, London. The album, and its lead single, the ironically titled "Could've Been," were due to be released in 2003 and acclaim started to gather for "the voice bigger than the girl" before Ruin's record deal fell through. Ruin wasn't granted the rights to any of her material recorded with the label, and she was left to start again. In late 2003, she began recording music with step-sister Rio Plath under the name Voguegirl. For two years, the girl group were one of the regular acts to perform at the former London club night Nag Nag Nag, held at Ghetto nightclub. In early 2004, Voguegirl were signed to Overload Records, releasing one album, Drab Subscription, and enjoyed some commercial success before disbanding.

2004—2005: Career beginnings
Further information: London Brat Pack

Voguegirl released their debut single "Go" in August 2004, which failed to recieve positive reviews and did not gather much success, along with their debut album Drab Subscription. They also embarked on the Voguegirl Present... Live and More!' tour, which sold considerably well. "I am quite proud of that album, it has more of a reflection of myself than the Stories of a Girl album" said Shell in the April 2006 edition of i-D magazine. After the cancelled release of a follow-up single, the duo disbanded. Ruin signed a solo contact soon after and released debut single "Not a Love Song" in October 2004.

Ruin returned at the end of December to start the promotional campaign for her debut solo album, Stories of a Girl, which was released on January 17, 2005. The album has become a cult pop-rock classic, influencing a wave of young female artists after her, including Taylor Brookes and Josie Matthews. The second single to be taken from the album was "Boys & Girls." Both the single and album charted at number six in the UK, despite a short absence. It was announced shortly after that Ruin would not release a third single from the album. Ruin also embarked on her first international solo tour, Boys and Girls of America. Ruin toured the Americas for two months before cancelling the last leg of the tour.

Between February and June 2005, Ruin started recording for a more electro-pop influenced album. Ruin released a third single in August 2005; seven months after the release of Stories of a Girl. Ruin showcased this new, electro sound and released "Loving Is Easy." Ruin's second studio album was scheduled to be released two weeks later but nothing happened until October 2005 when a fourth single, "Taboo," was released via white label. Numerous promo copies continued to appear on eBay but nothing was officially released.

Ruin was long associated with a circle of female musicians known collectively by the media as the 'London Brat Pack.' The group consisted of female artists including Alesha, Taylor Brookes, Kati, Josie Matthews and self-proclaimed mother of the group, Buffi. The group tend to drift apart from time to time and have endured several highly publicised fall-outs. As a group they were considered to be some of the most sought after celebrities in the year 2005.

After the cancellation of her second studio album in the fall of 2005, Ruin stopped working on new material but didn't leave the media spotlight. Throughout 2006, she participated in numerous charity events for Save the Children and UNICEF, and made a television appearance on Red Nose Day in March of that year.Ruin became more known for her appearances at fashion events and her social circle rather than her earlier music success. Ruin made several appearances in magazines such as i-D and POP, securing her position as 'one to watch' in the fashion world. She publicly expressed her dislike for the music industry on many occasions. In an interview with i-D in April 2006, Ruin said "As soon as I signed with a major label, I had no control over anything [...] I was too controlled. I sacrificed my music and my image."

In June 2006, Ruin announced on her official blog that Wonderland was a possible title for her second studio album. Soon after, two untitled songs leaked onto the internet, however it would be a further six months before any official news surfaced. In December 2006, Ruin co-hosted The Clothes Show Live at the Birmingham NEC.

2007—2008: Rise to prominence
On February 11, 2007, Ruin's new record label Ensemble issued a press release regaurding her second studio album. The title was confirmed as Kill Pop, with "Jealous Girls" as its second single. The album received critical acclaim thanks to its impressive list of producers which included Alesha, Ivy, girlASKboy, Buffi and Jack Stevens. On April 1, 2007, "Jealous Girls" charted, and peaked, at number four in the UK. The following week, Kill Pop also debuted at number four. Soon after the release of her second studio album, it was announced that Ruin would go on a nation-wide tour in May 2007 and release her sixth single; a double A-side consisting of "Dancing with Numbers" and "Warm Bitch." Ruin was criticised for the lack of promotion for the single, making hardly any public appearances and rarely doing televised performances. However, the song still debuted at number six.

These pattern of chart positions would continue later in Ruin's career, as "My Teaches," "Hair of the Dog" and "Gasoline" would go on to chart inside the Top 10 with little to no promotion. In May 2007, Ruin, Alesha, Buffi and Taylor Brookes announced that they would release the "Power Power" EP on July 9, 2007. The EP consisted of two brand new tracks, "Power Power" and "Cherry Bomb," plus eight re-recorded songs taken from their current studio albums. The EP was met by rave reviews from critics and fans alike and the promotional campaign kicked off with immense hype from the media. Adverts ran on Channel 4 throughout the campaign and both songs were A-listed by BBC Radio 1 within the first week of their initial release. A street team was ensembled by the record label, which consisted of three 'ghetto' ethnic women who went by the names Dimonique, Moesha and Trina. Street team prizes included a limited edition Power Power iPod.



Ruin started recording her third studio album, The Dirty Is Done in mid-2007, before its commercial release in the fall. The album was mainly written and produced by Ruin, with contributions from Alesha on "Intro" and "Kitsch Bitch Kool." Ruin recorded her collaboration "Strangers with Candy" with Cleo Clarice shortly after Clarice gave birth in 2007.

The album's sound was described as "bigger" by Ruin in an interview with POP magazine which was conducted in July, where she also stated that "The sound is a lot more complicated. I thought Kill Pop was quite 'alternative' sound-wise, but the songs on this album are a lot bigger and lyrically a lot more challenging ... I love it."

Ruin released the first single "My Teaches" to huge commercial success, becoming one of her biggest selling singles to date and being certified Platinum soon after its release. Despite this, Ruin abandon the project, leaving her record company Ensemble to release two further singles without music videos or promotion. "Hair of the Dog" was released to moderate success in January 2008, and won Ruin her first Urapopstar Award for the category of Best Songwriter. The album's third single "Gasoline" was used to advertise the American television show Gossip Girl in the UK.

2008: Artistic growth


In June 2008, Ensemble reissued The Dirty Is Done, presumably because of Ruin's recent praise for her songwriting abilities. The new songs included on the reissued version of the album, including the lead single "El Bastardo," are all out-takes from album's recording sessions. "El Bastardo" entering the Top 10, marked the return to work for Ruin. On August 22, "In for the Kill," a duet with Jack Stevens, was released as the final single from the album. The song became Ruin's first, and Stevens' thirteenth number one single.

Recording sessions for the Ruin's fourth studio album took place between March and June 2008. In an interview with Baby Baby Baby magazine, Ruin said "There are songs on this album which are completely made up of percussion, guitar, keyboards, that sort of stuff. A lot of the songs are very minimal, and more personal to me." The album, Charm Offensive, was released on 22 September, 2008. The album is significant in that it marks the third change of direction for Ruin, and was her highest charting to date, debuting at number two.

Ruin released "Bear (Attacking)" as the second single from Charm Offensive on November 3, 2008. Due to the lacklustre sales of the album, and commercial failure of "Bear (Attacking)," Ensemble reissued the album in December 2008. Ruin released the commercial-sounding "Keys to the City" as the third single. Music critics compared the song to her more commercially successful material, but the single charted at #24 after Ruin failed to make a music video or promote the song. Even Radio 1, who had previously been loyal to Ruin, refused to playlist the song.

Ruin is thought to have conceived her first child in July 2008, although it wasn't until October that speculation of her pregnancy began due to Ruin making no announcement. She gave birth to a baby girl, Zowie Zephyr Luna Lily, three months prematurely, on December 5, 2008 in The Royal London Hospital. Ruin made headlines with her supposed erratic behaviour during the birth, and by checking herself out of the maternity ward less than twenty-four hours after giving birth. She was photographed in a twenty-four hour convenience store in the early hours of December 6, shouting racial abuse at the Indian cashier, and saying "What the fuck have you done with my baby, I want my baby now." British newspaper The Daily Mail reported Ruin's behaviour in an article titled "Shell Ruin: Welcome to Motherhood."

2009: Commercial success


In early 2009, Ruin halted the production of Alesha's sixth studio album Bigger Than God when she heard the song "The Pretty Ones". Ruin's lawyer was granted permission to delay Ensemble's production of the album after filing a request with a court in London. Ruin's lawyer told the court that the track was "defamation of character". Alesha described the song as an appraisal of "the new generation of superstars" and insisted that there were "no hard feelings or bad intentions" towards anybody. Bigger Than God went to stores on its scheduled release date anyway, out of fears that songs co-written by Alesha on Ruin's forthcoming album would be compromised. Ruin would eventually make a cameo appearance in the video for the song in September 2009.

Ruin confirmed to BlackBook magazine in March 2009 that she was recording her fifth studio album, scheduled for release in summer 2009. The album was described by Ruin as "a more pop vision, and more commercial than Charm Offensive." Ruin released her fifth studio album, Never Stop, on May 11, 2009. The first single to be released from the album was "Love, Inc.," a song which touched upon the current global recession. The album saw Ruin return to the more commercial sound and image of her earlier eras. Ruin released the second single from the album, "Joy Division", in June 2009.

Ruin made a prominent appearance and is credited as co-director for Alesha's "Brooklyn to Brixton" music video, which was premiered on 5 June, 2009. Ruin wrote both songs on the double A-side Tiara Coles single "Body Phenomenon"/"Crowd Control" and features on the latter. The single was postponed twice and eventually cancelled. In August 2009, 4Music aired an edited version of the 2008 documentary Deep Comatose, which was renamed Shell Ruin: What Became of Me.

"Delusions of Grandeur", a duet with Alesha, was released on November 16, 2009. Ruin had performed the song at the Urapopstar Awards just hours before faking her death. Self-hyped as one of their best singles yet, the song received universal acclaim from music critics. It topped the singles chart upon its release, making it Ruin's second number one. The Agony and the Ecstasy, a greatest hits collection, was released three weeks after the single. It charted at number five and was certified silver within two weeks.

2010-2011: The Holy Trinity years


Towards the end of the decade, Ruin's behavior became more and more erratic. At the end of 2009, she cancelled her 90-date Live at Last! world tour without explanation and six weeks later faked her own death. Ruin spent most of 2010 in hiding in Morocco with her three-year-old daughter Lily.

In December 2010, Ruin came out of hiding and embarked on a tour of small venues in the UK, performing all new material. All of the sold-out shows received poor reviews, with the British press disapproving of Ruin's new rock direction. Her sixth studio album, The Original Doll, was released in January 2011 to the worst reviews and sales of Ruin's career. The majority of the material on the LP was unrecognisable in comparison to "the Shellesha sound" which Ruin and Kurdadze had been building on since 2007. The LP contained almost no "radio-friendly" material. In February of that year however, Ruin made a successful live comeback at the Urapopstar Awards, where she performed a medley alongside Alesha and Putanovska. The military themed performance would be the inspiration behind Ruin's next studio album.

Less than six months later, Ruin released her seventh studio album, Panic Station. The album was cited as a return to form for Ruin, who received mainly positive reviews for the album. However, journalists began reporting of "The Shell Ruin effect", which included bias negative reviews of her music and a shift in public perception since her staged death in 2009. Both lead singles, "Living Proof" and "Dictator", sold poorly world-wide despite positive reviews.

Shortly after the failure of the Panic Station era, Ruin announced that she would be taking an indefinite break from music and focusing on her acting career. In August 2011, Ruin released The Albums box set which debuted at #7 with sales of over 50,000 - her most successful endeavor in two years. At the end of the summer Ruin also embarked the Cowboys and Angels Tour, her first world tour in four years. In September 2011, Ruin released her eighth studio album It's My Life. The album consists of cover versions and was available to download for free from the iTunes store. In a message on her official website, Ruin stated that It's My Life was "strictly for the fans" and would be a parting gift before she took her hiatus from music.

2012: Acting career
In September 2011 after being turned down for many Hollywood movie roles, it was announced that Ruin had successfully auditioned for the role of Kathy Barlow on British soap Coronation Street. Kathy, the long-lost daughter of Deidre and Ken Barlow, is thought to be a controversial character who will join the street in early 2012.

Music production
Main article: Shell Ruin production discography

Ruin is a Urapopstar Award-nominated and sought-after songwriter and producer. Working both alone since the beginning of her career and with Alesha since 2007, Ruin has become renowned for her compositions. In 2005, Ruin wrote and produced Kati's second single "Morning After Blues" and Izzy's debut single "Tonight". The following year, Ruin wrote several songs for Kati's Asian-only album, Antidote.

In 2007, Ruin wrote the number one single "Bad Boyfriend" for IDOL winner Stacy Hart. They continued their work together in 2009 when Ruin penned the lead single and several songs for her second studio album. In 2008, Ruin worked closely with Tiara Coles when writing her second studio album, Philharmonic CameraFlash Chronic. Ruin wrote and produced seven songs for the album.

Ruin has also become renowned for her work with Alesha. The pair have worked closely on each other's studio albums since 2007. Ruin wrote both the lead singles from The Second Coming and Bigger Than God respectively. Emily Henning's entire third studio album, due in November, was written and produced by Alesha and Ruin. Henning, who was inspired by Alesha's "darker" compositions for Matthews' 2007 album Resurrection, hoped to move away from what she described as a "commercial sound", in favour of more creativity and a darker edge to her music. Alesha and Ruin often works with Putanovska. Her fifth album The Glitterati features Ruin's productions, such as the lead single "Worship Me (Song 4 Putanovska)" and two other songs.

Other artists to perform works by Ruin include Jack Stevens, Intoxicated, Arwyn Knight, Sandi Cohen and Twisted Disco.

Legacy and influence
According to Rolling Stone, Shell Ruin "remains one of the greatest pop acts of all time". She is also "the world's second highest earning female singer on earth", despite not having a great amount of record sales. In 2007, Ruin was listed by VH1 as fifth in the Greatest Women of Rock & Roll. On March 10, 2008, she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Ruin's work is universally acclaimed and she is considered to be one of the most influential and original female artists in the history of music. In 2008, TIME magazine placed Ruin in the Time 100 list of "World's Most Influential people" for having "influence across many genres". Ruin is reknowned for her work for other artists. Ruin has written over ten number one singles for other artists with long-time collaborator Alesha. Ironically, her collaboration with Jack Stevens, "In for the Kill," is Ruin's only number one single to date, and holds the record for lowest selling number one single of all time. Writer-author Santiago Fouz-Hernández, in his book Shell Ruin: Notorious for Nothing, has commented that Ruin was responsible for a wave of new female artists in 2007 and 2008. She has also been credited with the introduction of European electronic dance music into the mainstream of American pop culture.

Ruin has also received acclaim as a role model for businesswomen in her industry, "achieving the kind of financial control that women had long fought for within the industry". Writing in The Times in 2009, music journalist Robert Sandall reported that in a 2004 interview with Ruin it had been clear that being "a cultural big hitter" was more important than pop music, a career she described as "an accident". He also noted the contrast between her anything-goes sexual public persona, and a secretive and "paranoid" attitude towards her own finances (for example, firing her own brother as interior designer when he charged her for a light-fitting, estranging him in the process), An analysis of Ruin's business acumen by academics at the London Business School presents her as a "dynamic entrepreneur" worth copying, identifying her vision of success, her understanding of the music industry, her ability to recognise her performance limits (and thus bring in help), her "sheer hard work" and her ability to change as key to why she has been a striking commercial success.

Throughout her career Ruin has repeatedly reinvented herself through a series of visual and musical personas, as well as expanding her career to become a film and stage actor. Fouz Hernandes argues that this reinvention is one of her key cultural achievements.

Public persona
Despite being one of the most sought-after female celebrities in the world, Ruin chooses instead to stay preserved and rarely gives interviews. She is know for being somewhat aloof. She does not rule out all interviews, however. In May 2007, she took part in MTV's popular documentary programme The Truth; giving a very prolonged interview and spoke of her plans in music and the creative process of her second studio album.

Anna Wintour, Editor of Vogue magazine, famously refused to work with Ruin during 2007, and is yet to have met with her since their first encounter in December 2006. When asked by a journalist in 2007 why this was, Wintour famously replied "Shell Ruin is mentally unhinged." In October 2007, her only promotion for her third studio album The Dirty Is Done would be as the cover star of the Autumn edition of POP magazine, which was conducted in July 2007. Her next interview would not be until a year later, as part of the promotion for Charm Offensive, in which she appeared on the cover of Baby Baby Baby magazine and gave a full and frank interview, stating that this would be her final album.

In 2008, Ruin released a five-part documentary, Deep Comatose, which she had been filming since 2006. The Guardian said "the documentary is a rare in-sight into Shell's world, however weird and wonderful it may be." A year later, she successfully sued television network MTV for failing to cancel the airing of Shell Ruin: In 24 Hours, which she felt was "defamation of character" and "portrayed her in the wrong light". From 2004 onwards, Ruin has been named in the Top 5 Most Searched Celebrities list, compiled by search engine Google.

Awards and recognition
Ruin has made numerous appearances at the annual Urapopstar Awards; the first being in 2005. She presented a second award at the 2006 ceremony when she famously appeared on stage with Annalina Sweden and Vivian. Ruin was later rushed to A&E suffering a severed spinal cord after Annalina pushed her off stage.

Ruin was nominated for Best Female at the fourteenth Urapopstar Awards, and Best Video and Best Songwriter at the fifteenth ceremony, winning the latter category for "Hair of the Dog." Ruin will host the seventeenth Urapopstar Awards in November 2007 with long-time collaborator and close friend Alesha.

Select discography
For a detailed list of releases, see: Shell Ruin discography.


 * Studio albums
 * The Dirty Is Done (2007)
 * Charm Offensive (2008)
 * Never Stop (2009)
 * Panic Station (2011)


 * Compilation albums
 * The Agony and the Ecstasy (2009)


 * Other releases
 * Iconography (2009)
 * The Albums (2011)