Fiona Apple
Fiona Apple
Fiona Apple Maggart, Fiona Apple McAfee-Maggart
A late-1990s overnight sensation, singer-songwriter and pianist Fiona Apple was cast as the antidote to packaged pop divettes like Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera. Considering her angst-ridden lyrics and her propensity to shock interviewers, some critics classed her among such provocateurs as Alanis Morissette and Sinéad O'Connor; others, listening to her jazz-tinged, full-throated, accomplished debut, compared her to Laura Nyro and Nina Simone.
Apple signed to Sony Music and released her debut album, Tidal at age 19. The lead single “Criminal” earned Apple a Grammy and a place in the Top Ten, partially due to its controversial music video.
Apple followed up in 1999 with When The Pawn…, whose full title is a 90-word poem inspired by negative feedback on her debut. Extraordinary Machine followed years after, though it experienced some delays.