MARINA AND THE DIAMONDSBy Anam Raza

BACKGROUND AND PERSONAL LIFEMarina Lambrini Diamandis is a Welsh singer/songwriter born in Brynmawr in Wales and grew up in the nearby village of Pandy. She has one older sister. Their mother is Welsh, while their father is Greek. Marina's parents divorced when she was four. In her childhood, she attended Haberdashers' Monmouth School for Girls. Her parents separated when she was 16 years old; she initially moved to Greece with her father and earned an International Baccalaureate, then returned to Wales two years later; she and her mother then moved to Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, where she worked for two months at a petrol station in order toearn money to move to London. Diamandis first beganwriting music when she was 18 years old; she movedto London to attend dance school, but quit two months later. She studied music at the University of East London and transferred to a classic composition course in Middlesex University the following year, but after two months she dropped out.

BEGINNING OF MUSIC CAREERDiamandis later travelled for several unsuccessful auditions. In 2005, she created the stage name "Marina and the Diamonds"; after coming to prominence, "the Diamonds" was established as a reference to her fans, instead of her backing band. Diamandis self-composed and produced her earlier demos with GarageBand, and independently released her debut extended play Mermaid vs. Sailor through Myspace in 2007. She came tothe attention of Neon Gold Records' DerekDavies in 2008, which managed her for sixmonths, and was hired as the supporting actfor Australian recording artist Gotye. InOctober, Diamandis finalised a recording contract with 679 Artists, a subdivision of Warner Music Group.

THE FAMILY JEWELS 2009-2010Diamandis' debut single "Obsessions" was released on 14 February 2009, while her second extended play The Crown Jewels EP followed on 1 June. That summer, she performed at BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend, the Glastonbury Festival, and the Reading and Leeds Festivals. Diamandis was ranked in second place on the Sound of 2010 poll organised by BBC. "Mowgli's Road" was released as the lead single from Diamandis' debut studio album. It was followed by "Hollywood“ which reached number 12 on the UK Singles Chart.Diamandis' debut studio album The Family Jewels was released on 15 February 2010; it debuted at number five on the UK Albums Chart with first-week sales of 27,618 copies, and was eventually certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry. Atlantic Records signed Diamandis in the United States. Through the label, she released her third extended play The American Jewels EP, and later released The Family Jewels in the United States. The latter project debuted at number 138 on the US Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 24,000 copies."I Am Not a Robot" was serviced as the third single from The Family Jewels, after originally being included on The Crown Jewels. Diamandis commented that she decided to re-release the track because "people seem to empathize and relate with the song, regardless of gender or age." The song peaked at number 26 on the UK Singles Chart. "Oh No" followed as the fourth single from the record, and reached number 38 in the United Kingdom. The fifth and final single "Shampain" peaked at number 141 on the UK Singles Chart, consequently underperforming by comparison with its preceding singles. To further promote The Family Jewels, Diamandis embarked on The Family Jewels Tour, which visited Europe and North America throughout 2010 and 2011.

ELECTRA HEART 2011-13In summer 2011, Diamandis performed as the opening acts for American recording artist Katy Perry's California Dreams Tour. Diamandis released the track "Radioactive" through the iTunes Store; it peaked at number 25 on the UK Singles Chart. Her second studio album was preceded by its lead single "Primadonna“. The song is notable for being Diamandis' highest-charting track on the UK Singles Chart, where it reached number 11.The final product Electra Heart is a concept album lyrically united by the ideas of "female identity" and "a recent breakup". Diamandis created the titular character "Electra Heart" as a protagonist for the project; she portrays the personas "Teen Idle", "Primadonna", "Homewrecker", and "Housewife ", which represent several female archetypes of stereotypical American culture. The project debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart with first-week sales of 21,358 copies. It became Diamandis' first chart-topping album in the United Kingdom. The album was eventually certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry for exceeding shipments of 60,000 units."Power & Control" was released as the second single from Electra Heart. Later that month, it was announced that "How to Be a Heartbreaker" would be released as the second single in the United States and the third single in the United Kingdom. Diamandis commented that the track had not made it onto Electra Heart however it was featured in the revised track listing for the American version. Throughout 2012, Diamandis travelled for The Lonely Hearts Club Tour, her second headlining concert tour, and opened for Coldplay’s Mylo Xyloto Tour. Diamandis released a music video for the previously unreleased title track "Electra Heart"; it depicted the death of the character, and symbolically ended the promotional campaign for Electra Heart.

FROOT 2014-PRESENTAfter spending one month in New York City, Diamandis announced that she had begun writing material for her upcoming third studio album in February 2013. In July 2014, Marina posted a snippet of "I'm Not Hungry Anymore", a song that was ultimately cut from Froot. In September 2014, she shared a part of her new song "Froot" on Instagram. The song was released on 10 October to celebrate Marina's birthday and announced to be the title track.

The album was announced for release on 3 April 2015 with a new track from the album being announced each month. The album debuted at number 8 on the Billboard 200 chart. Currently, Froot is her highest charting album in the United States.

MUSICAL INFLUENCESA self-described "DIY musician" and "indie artist with pop goals", Diamandis considers her music to be "alternate pop". Whereas The Family Jewels incorporated prominent elements of new wave music, Electra Heart was heavily inspired by electropop musical styles. Diamandis opined that the United States was more welcoming of said musical transition than the United Kingdom, and suggested that the American audience embraced the humour behind the latter "tongue-in-cheek record".

She has jokingly stated that "I probably have a bit of a different sound because I don't really know what I'm doing!", referencing her lack of formal musical training. Diamandis' lyrical content typically analyses components of human behaviour; she has noted that she would have become a psychologist had she been unsuccessful in the music industry. Diamandis is also a feminist and wrote her song "Sex Yeah" as a "feminist statement”.

OTHER WORKSDiamandis is notable for her "experimental" clothing; she has described her fashion styles as "vintage, cheerleader, and cartoon".On 11 August 2013, Diamandis launched her own fashion line, 11 Diamonds. Her first line of T-shirts were designed in collaboration with DEER DANA, Francisco Canton, and Yippy Whippy, and distributed by Diamandis' label, Neon Gold Records. In December 2013, Diamandis released a shirt referencing her "Anti-socialite" lyrics, featuring artwork by Baron Von Fancy.

STAGE NAME"I created the name 'Marina and the Diamonds' 5 years ago and I never envisaged a character, pop project, band or solo artist. I saw a simple group made up of many people who had the same hearts. A space for people with similar ideals who could not fit in to life's pre-made mold.

I was terribly awkward for a long time! I really craved to be part of one thing because I never felt too connected to anybody and now I feel I have that all around me."

STRUGGLES WITH DEPRESSION"It was almost like I had been burdened by something my whole life and then suddenly that went away..." she added. "I can't even describe how amazing it is... you suddenly realise why people are happy and why people enjoy things. I think I used to believe that being depressed was part of my personality or that I was born like that, but it's quite shocking to realise that perhaps that isn't the case.” –About her third album ‘FROOT’.“Teen Idle” is an anamnesis of Marina’s high school years, speaking in hindsight of the remorse and sadness that had plagued her throughout. Marina’s ingenious title exudes the double meaning towards her convictions of an idolized teenage dream with an empty reality.“Instead of being sixteen and burning up a Bible”She’s saying that when she was 16, she didn’t do what anyone else did. She wasn’t out sinning. She regrets it. Alternatively, she could be saying that she was so outcasted, instead of doing things like running for prom queen, she was out burning bibles. Meaning, she was out looking for answers to religion, life, etc. instead of enjoying the life of a teen; an idle teen.“Feeling super super super suicidal” Marina explained to Amazon that this song is the “Story of my suicidal cheerleader youth! This song was like my last hurrah of adolescence.” The third “super” is exclaimed in an overly perky way, similar to the way cheerleaders shout their cheers. A bit of irony since she’s saying she feels suicidal, and a nod to the cheerleader she wishes she was.