Grace Jones Biography

Grace Jones, with her family name of Mendoza, was born in Spanishtown, Jamaica, probably in 1952, although no-one knows her real date of birth! From an early age Grace Jones realized she was different, her exotic looks out-shone the other children in Syracuse, New York, when she moved with her family still a child. It wasn't long before the multi-lingual twenty-something was discovered as a fashion model, and she signed up for the Whilamina Modeling Agency in New York. At this time she even shared a bed-sit with another aspiring model, Jerry Hall. Grace Jones' Amazonian looks, made her one of the most sought-after models in the fashion world, regularly jet-setting around the globe, especially Paris! Grace's wild life led her out partying at night, every night! So much so, that she was noticed by a record company and asked to make an album in 1977. She naturally agreed and as she was still a model, she called her first album "Portfolio". The album had medium success, Grace Jones was particularly popular with her gay audience, and the hit from the album "I Need A Man" was an anthem for the 70's. The other hit, the classic "La Vie en Rose" is still remembered even today as one of the best covers of the song, as well as one of Grace's!

Grace Jones fit right into the disco craze of the late ‘70s. 1978 and '79, saw the release of Grace Jones' other disco albums, "Fame" and " Muse", although panned by the critics her first 3 albums are good disco and gave her room the artistically grow and mature. Grace Jones then had a reputation of a raunchy sage show, such as performing in a brides-gown with suspenders and 4 male strippers! But it was in 1980, when Grace released the album "Warm Leatherette" that's she truly began getting noticed musically! She met the artist John-Paul Goude, and with him created a whole new androgynous look and persona, this is the Grace that is remembered today! Moving away from the fading popularity of disco, Grace went R&B/soul and rock. Grace's look was so strong in the 80's that it won her several film roles too! "Conan The Destroyer" had her cast as Zula the warrior woman, "Vamp" had her in the lead role without uttering a word in the whole film and still stealing it. Still busy with music, Grace recorded her most famous album to date "Nightclubbing" in 1981. Here, Grace toys with reggae as well as more rock, the song "Pull Up The Bumper" was a huge success, but with "Living My Life" in 1982, Grace goes back to her roots, with the single "My Jamican Guy".

Grace Jones ruled the road, too. With sell-out tours to her "One Man Show" endless television appearances [including her famous Russel Harty Show stint, [where she beat the host!], Grace couldn't have been more famous. 1985 saw the release of "Slave To The Rhythm", one of Grace's biggest successes. However Grace's personal life was a mess, her relationship with her mentor, John Paul Goude was over, leaving her with their son, Apollo. In 1986, she released "Inside Story" with minimal success. But this didn't stop Grace, she carried on in 1989 with "Bulletproof Heart", unfortunately this didn't do well either, by this time, Grace Jones was addicted to Cocaine and ended up in debt and on trial in Kingston for possession. In 1992 she declared bankruptcy! But Grace was back in 1993, with the dance/techno single "Sex Drive", this song would reach Number 1 on the USA Billboard Dance Chart! The early '90's saw Grace Jones record a number of songs for soundtracks, which many believe are her best work! "Evilmania" from Freddy The Frog, "Let Joy and Innocence Prevail" from Toys, as well as others, kept Grace Jones in the spotlight as she worked on her new album and a few films such as "Boomerang", where she played "Strange" the tigress Supermodel!

Grace Jones found success in the late ‘90s. 1998 proved to be a good year for Grace Jones, she went on a promotional tour of the UK, with a new image! She recorded a new song with dance artist Tricky, "Hurricane / Cradle To The Grave", which is a much sought-after Grace Jones rarity as it was never released because Grace didn't approve the production! But Grace did record an excellent song, "Storm" for the Avengers soundtrack, again biding time for her new album! Recently, Grace has been modeling again, especially for Philip Treacy hats, which she is hardly ever seen without! For 2000, Grace Jones cut "The Perfect Crime", a great up-tempo song for Danish TV. Also she reveals she is working on a script for a film set in Jamaica. Grace Jones has also signed deals with MCY.com for a brand new album in late 2000 and is constantly touring, performing her legendary concerts.
Grace Jones still performs. In November of 2004, she performed her hit "Slave to the Rhythm" at a tribute concert for Trevor Horn at Wembley arena. She received rave reviews, despite being absent in the music scene for some time. In February 2006, Grace was the celebrity runway model for Diesel's show in New York. She strutted the runway, with her own fierce attitude and style. Since that appearance, rumours have circulated of a comeback.