Donna Allen is an American dance-pop singer, born in Key West, Florida , and raised in Tampa . At one point a cheerleader for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers , she got her start performing in the bands Hi-Octane, Trama and Maxx. During her tenure with MAXX she was courted by Alan Walden (Capricorn Records/Hustler Productions) before launching a solo career. [1] She also sang backup on tour for Gloria Estefan for nine years.
Career [ edit ]
Allen's first disc was the Lou Pace-produced 1986 album, Perfect Timing , and over the next few years she launched several hits on the US Billboard Hot Dance/Club Play chart .
She had two Top 10 hits in the UK Singles Chart with " Serious " (1987, #8) and " Joy and Pain " (1989, #10). [2] 1995's "Real", her last US chart hit, was taken from the soundtrack to the Sylvester Stallone film The Specialist .
The UK dance act Strike used her chorus hook line from "Serious", as the basis for their club hit, " U Sure Do " released in 1994.
Allen provided the vocals to Soulsearcher's 2003 dancefloor smash Feelin' Love.
"He is the Joy" appeared on the Precious soundtrack (2009).
The Voice [ edit ]
In 2013, she made an attempted comeback by competing in Season 5 of NBC 's singing competition, The Voice . On the inaugural day of the season, broadcast on September 23, 2013, she performed Joe Cocker 's song " You Are So Beautiful " with two of the four judges, namely Adam Levine and Christina Aguilera , hitting their "I Want You" button and turning their chairs. Allen opted to be in Team Adam for the season. [3] During the Battle Rounds, she was defeated by fellow Team Adam teammate Tessanne Chin , the eventual winner of Season 5.
| Stage | Song | Original Artist | Date | Order | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blind Audition | " You Are So Beautiful " | Joe Cocker | September 23, 2013 | 1.3 | Adam Levine and Christina Aguilera turned Joined Team Adam |
| Battle Rounds | " Next to Me " (vs. Tessanne Chin ) | Emeli Sandé | October 14, 2013 | 7.5 | Defeated |
Discography [ edit ]
Albums [ edit ]
| Year | Title | Label | US R&B Chart [4] | US Top 200 [4] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Perfect Timing | 21 Records | 33 | 133 |
| 1988 | Heaven on Earth | Oceana Records | 28 | - |
Singles [ edit ]
| Year | Title | Chart positions [5] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 | US R&B | US Hot Dance/Club Play | US Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales | UK Singles Chart [2] | ||
| 1986 | "Serious" | 21 | 5 | - | 17 | 8 |
| 1987 | "Satisfied" | - | 14 | 33 | - | 92 |
| 1987 | "Sweet Somebody" | - | 55 | 48 | - | - |
| 1988 | "Heaven on Earth" | - | 19 | - | - | - |
| 1989 | "Can We Talk?" | - | 43 | - | - | - |
| 1989 | " Joy and Pain " | - | 3 | - | 25 | 10 |
| 1995 | "Real" | - | - | 23 | - | 34 |
| 1997 | "Saturday" (East 57th Street featuring Donna Allen) | - | - | - | - | 29 |
| 1999 | "He Is the Joy" | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2010 | "He's Got the Power" | - | - | - | - |
- |
Donna Allen is an American dance-pop singer, born in Key West, Florida , and raised in Tampa . At one point a cheerleader for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers , she got her start performing in the bands Hi-Octane, Trama and Maxx. During her tenure with MAXX she was courted by Alan Walden (Capricorn Records/Hustler Productions) before launching a solo career. [1] She also sang backup on tour for Gloria Estefan for nine years.
In 2013, she made an attempted comeback by competing in Season 5 of NBC 's singing competition, The Voice . On the inaugural day of the season, broadcast on September 23, 2013, she performed Joe Cocker 's song " You Are So Beautiful " with two of the four judges, namely Adam Levine and Christina Aguilera , hitting their "I Want You" button and turning their chairs. Allen opted to be in Team Adam for the season. [3] During the Battle Rounds, she was defeated by fellow Team Adam teammate Tessanne Chin , the eventual winner of Season 5.
