What Makes Adele So Special?

Adele stood still and motionless in an impassive black cardigan, blinking constantly at her piano, strings and snare drum – clearly suffering from pre-performance nerves.

2007 marked her breakthrough with Hometown Glory being performed for the first time on television show Later with Jools Holland.

The Biography

Adele has delighted audiences worldwide with her soulful vocals and infectious hits, selling over 120 million albums worldwide and topping charts in 18 countries. Now updated to reflect Adele’s fourth album 25, this global bestseller gives us insight into her impressive music career and personality.

Adele Laurie Blue Adkins was raised in Tottenham and Brockwell Park, singing along to radio shows with her father while learning guitar at school. After attending BRIT School and posting demos on MySpace, XL Recordings offered Adele a record deal; 19 subsequently reached number one in over 30 countries worldwide with popular singles such as “Someone Like You” and “Rolling in the Deep”.

Adele has had her fair share of personal challenges as well. To ensure her show stays running smoothly, Adele has assembled her own A-Team of producers and managers from around the globe who assist her.

Who Is Adele?

Adele is one of the most successful and beloved singers of this century, known for her emotive ballads and pop tracks that span emotional territory. She has broken and set multiple record sales records for her albums – even winning an Academy Award (Grammy Award) as album of the year; additionally she wrote and performed the theme song for James Bond movie Skyfall.

Adele made her television debut by singing Daydreamer on Later with Jools Holland in 2007. That same year, her debut album 19 was released featuring singles such as Chasing Pavements and Make You Feel My Love.

In 2023, she won a Grammy for her song Easy on Me and caused marriage rumors when she mentioned Paul as her husband in an interview. Soon thereafter, the couple were seen together at NBA star Anthony Davis’ wedding reception where they made Instagram official via a black-and-white photo booth image captioned with the word ‘heart.’ They could later be seen courtside at Game 5 of the NBA finals held in Phoenix.

How She Got Her Start

Adele is one of the few artists who has perfected the art of image manipulation. Her public persona is carefully managed in accordance with her musical work.

She left her comprehensive school at 14 (which she described as lacking ambition) to study performing arts at Croydon’s BRIT performing arts college, studying alongside Leona Lewis and Amy Winehouse among others. A demo posted to MySpace caught the attention of London record label XL Records who signed her shortly thereafter at 18 years of age.

Adele’s debut album 19 was an enormous success in 2008. Its songs such as ‘Chasing Pavements’ and ‘Make You Feel My Love’ showcased Adele’s talent at translating personal emotional experiences into popular appeal; her delicate yet tasteful arrangements and candid lyrics earned comparisons with Amy Winehouse while earning her a loyal fan base.

What’s Next?

Adele’s sophomore album ’21’ produced hit singles such as ‘Rolling in the Deep’ and ‘Set Fire to the Rain”. For this record she received numerous accolades such as the Brit Award for Female Solo Artist and Grammy for Album of the Year.

Adele’s third studio album, 25 debuted at number one in both the UK and US charts within one week of release, breaking records for first-week sales. Produced by longtime collaborators Greg Kurstin and Max Martin and featuring the hit single ‘Hello’ as its lead single, 25 was an immediate success worldwide.

Adele will conclude her Vegas residency, Weekends with Adele, this June and has recently hinted that her next album may include a world tour; however, this announcement came with one key caveat.

Adele may yet to announce her tour schedule, but there’s plenty of musical fun in the UK until then! Our guide of London’s best musical experiences should help keep you occupied until her date arrives. Using Trainline makes travelling around to see your favorite artists easy and cost-effective!