Grace Jones is one of the iconic figures in world music. She largely influenced the flow of music in the 80s, combining elements of outrageousness, art and high fashion in her work. In addition, Grace Jones is known as one of the few black actresses to appear in the famous James Bond film series.
Biography and early years
Grace Jones was born on May 19, 1948 in the Spanish city of Jamaica. Some sources indicate her year of birth is 1952, while the singer herself claims that she does not track her age. She spent her early childhood there and was raised by her grandparents in a very religious environment, while her parents settled in Syracuse, New York.
As a child, Jones was very thin and shy and was often the victim of ridicule from her classmates. In those years, she did not show a single drop of that bright personality, which later became her hallmark.
When Jones was 13, she and her siblings joined their parents in Syracuse. The parents also followed a strict course of raising their children. After graduating from elementary school, Jones studied Spanish and theater history at Onondaga Community College and Syracuse University. However, gradually rebellious tendencies began to appear in her, and one day the girl left home, leaving for Philadelphia to take part in the play. The following year, she moved to New York, where she signed with the Wilhelmina modeling agency, but achieved only limited success. In the hope of developing a modeling career, Grace went to Paris in 1970.
Working as a model and starting a musical career
In Paris, a girl with an exotic appearance was received much more favorably than in New York. She soon became a model for some of the world's leading designers, including Yves Saint Laurent and Helmut Newton. During this time, she took part in filming for the covers of ELLE and Vogue magazines, made friends with Jerry Hall, Jessica Lange, Giorgio Armani and Karl Lagerfeld.
Jones' success as a model soon opened up new career opportunities for her. After Jones landed a small role as a drug dealer in an obscure movie called Gordon's War (1973), Jones signed to Island Records. She began working with producer Tom Moulter and over the next few years released three albums - Portfolio (1977), Fame (1978) and Muse (1979). While none of them brought any significant commercial success, Jones' risky performances at famous York nightclubs like Studio 54, where she was often seen with Andy Warhol, have won her a loyal following in the creative and gay communities.
As popular music began to change in the early 1980s, Grace Jones changed her style of sound, abandoning the popular 70s disco genre in favor of a new wave. The singer also completely changed her personal image, adopting the androgynous image that made her famous. Her next two albums brought her widespread fame. In them, Grace Jones has recorded covers of popular songs by artists and groups such as Normal, the Pretenders, Roxy Music, Iggy Pop and the Police. Singles from the albums "Warm Leatherette" (1980) and "Nightclubbing" (1981) topped the charts, and the song "Pull up to the Bumper" became a hit.
Film work
Following the release of the highly successful 1982 album Living My Life, Jones decided to try her luck again on the big screen. In 1984 she appeared in the movie Conan the Destroyer, and in 1985 she starred in the famous Bond film with Roger Moore in the movie A View to Murder. For her participation in both films, Grace Jones received a Saturn Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
Over the next decade, Grace balanced between a career in film and music. In 1985, she released the single "Slave to the Rhythm" and a compilation album titled "Island Life". The following year, she appeared in the film Vamp and recorded the album Inside Story. In 1989, the next album, Bulletproof Heart, was released, which was practically ignored by the public. In 1992, she appeared in the Eddie Murphy film "Boomerang" as the model Strange. Her co-stars are Holly Barry, Martin Lawrence and David Alan Greer.
Career in the new millennium
Despite diminishing commercial success, Jones continues to record albums, act in films and perform on stage. Several collections of her work have been released in the new millennium, including the three-disc retrospective The Ultimate Collection (2006) and the Disco box set (2015). In 2008, she released Hurricane, her first full-length album in nearly twenty years. Jones has also performed with artists as diverse as Luciano Pavarotti and Kylie Minogue.
For her creative contributions to world music, Grace Jones has been named by VH1 as one of the greatest women in rock and roll history. Many famous performers, such as Lady Gaga, Rihanna and Santigold, name her among the personalities who inspired them to work in music. In 2015, Grace Jones published a book of memoirs called I'll Never Write My Memoirs. Also, the BBC TV channels filmed a documentary about her "Grace Jones - The Musical of My Life".
In October 2018, Grace Jones was awarded the Order of Jamaica.
Personal life and family
Due to her outrageous image, Grace Jones practically lost ties with her own family. Her father, being a leader of the church, was forced to abandon her at the request of church leaders, who deny him the position of bishop because of their kinship. Grace's mother, Marjorie, supported her daughter's activities, but also could not publicly associate her name with her music.
For four years, Grace Jones had a romantic relationship with Dolph Lundgren, who at the time of their meeting was her bodyguard. It was Jones who was responsible for his acting career, as she nominated him for the role of a KGB officer in the movie A View to Murder. Grace Jones also had a long-term relationship with designer Jean-Paul Goode, with whom she was connected not only by common activities, but also by a joint child, the son of Paolo.
In an official relationship, Grace Jones was twice. Her first husband is producer Chris Stanley, with whom they registered a relationship in 1989. The second husband of the famous singer in 1996 was her bodyguard Atila Altownbai.
