Amethyst Amelia Kelly (born June 07, 1990) was born in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, who made a name for herself in the music industry by moving to the United States at the age of 16 to pursue a career in music. She is a Australian Rapper and Songwriter. She is professionally known as Iggy Azalea.
Azalea first gained recognition for her music videos "Pussy" and "Two Times," which rapidly gained popularity on YouTube. She went on to release her debut mixtape, Ignorant Art, in 2011, and signed a recording contract with American rapper T.I.'s Grand Hustle label shortly thereafter.
Azalea's debut studio album, The New Classic, was released in 2014, and while it achieved commercial success by peaking in the top five on several charts worldwide, it received mixed reviews within the industry. The album eventually topped the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, making Azalea the first non-American female rapper to reach the top of the chart. The album was preceded by Azalea's debut single "Work" and the chart-topping single "Fancy" featuring Charli XCX, both of which hit the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. Azalea was also featured on Ariana Grande's 2014 single "Problem," which peaked at number two behind "Fancy." With these hits, Azalea became only the second musical act in history (behind The Beatles) to rank at number one and two simultaneously on the Hot 100 with their debut appearances on the chart. Additionally, she achieved three top ten hits simultaneously on the Hot 100 with the aforementioned songs and the album's fifth single, "Black Widow" featuring Rita Ora, which debuted later that year.
After her debut album, Azalea released a number of singles in anticipation of her intended second album, Digital Distortion. However, a series of conflicts with her label, as well as personal conflicts, resulted in the project being cancelled. This led to Azalea switching labels and releasing the EP Survive the Summer under Island Records in 2018. Further disagreements with the label led to Azalea becoming an independent artist and creating her own label, Bad Dreams, through a distribution deal with Empire. Her second album, In My Defense, was released in 2019, followed by another EP, Wicked Lips, that same year. In 2021, she released her third studio album, The End of an Era.
Azalea's accomplishments in the music industry have earned her a number of accolades, including two American Music Awards, three Billboard Music Awards, an MTV Video Music Award, a People's Choice Award, four Teen Choice Awards, and four Grammy Award nominations. She has amassed a large following on YouTube, with her official channel accumulating 3.4 billion views and 15 music videos receiving over 100 million views on Vevo. Despite the ups and downs in her career, Azalea has proven to be a resilient and innovative artist who has made a significant impact on the hip-hop and pop music scenes.
