Tinashe Kachingwe Biography

Tinashe Jorgensen Kachingwe (born February 6, 1993), known mononymously as Tinashe, is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, record producer, actress, and model. Born in Lexington, Kentucky, Tinashe moved to Los Angeles as a child to pursue a career in entertainment. Her notable roles included as a motion-capture model in the animated film The Polar Express (2004) and recurring roles in Out of Jimmy's Head (2007-2008) and Two and a Half Men (2008-2009).

Between 2007 and 2011, Tinashe was a member of the girl group The Stunners. Following their disbandment, she released the critically acclaimed, self-recorded mixtapes In Case We Die (2012) and Reverie (2012). Following their success, Tinashe signed with RCA Records and released her third mixtape, Black Water (2013). Her debut single, "2 On", reached number one on the Rhythmic airplay chart, and peaked at number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. Her debut studio album, Aquarius (2014), received further critical acclaim which was noted by music critics as one of the most "solid" debuts by a new female artist in years and garnered her nominations for Soul Train and BET Awards. Her collaboration with Snakehips and Chance the Rapper, "All My Friends", won the Ivor Novello Award for Best Contemporary Song in 2016. Tinashe's second studio album Nightride (2016) reached number 8 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart in the United States. Joyride (2018), her third studio album, peaked at number 58 on the Billboard 200 chart in the United States and reached number 6 on the UK R&B Albums chart. Tinashe describes her music as "rhythmic pop" that explores the genres of alternative R&B, pop, and hip hop. Rolling Stone has called her music "dark, alluring and dangerous".

Life and career

1993-2006: Early life

Tinashe Kachingwe was born on February 6, 1993, in Lexington, Kentucky, and is the eldest child of college professors Michael and Aimie Kachingwe. Her father is a professor who teaches acting at California State Polytechnic University and a first generation immigrant of the Shona people of Zimbabwe, while her mother, who is of Danish, Italian, Norwegian, Irish, and English descent, teaches physical therapy at California State University, Northridge. Her parents met each other on a blind date during their time as undergrads at the University of Iowa. Tinashe's name means "We are with God" in the Shona language. She has two younger brothers, Thulani and Kudzai. She and her family moved to Los Angeles, California when she was eight years old. She attended Crescenta Valley High School for a year before finishing early to pursue a career in music full-time. She began studying ballet, tap, and jazz dancing at the age of 4, and continued to compete in various styles as a part of a dance company until she was 18.

2007-2010: Career beginnings, The Stunners and solo debut

Tinashe scored roles in a number of TV shows, movies, and children's videos in the early 2000s, including the movies Cora Unashamed (2000), Call Me Claus (2001), Masked and Anonymous (2003), and two TV series: Rocket Power (2004) and Avatar: The Last Airbender (2007). These led to a regular role in the TV series Out of Jimmy's Head in 2007-2008 and a recurring role on Two and a Half Men in 2008-2009. Although she was uncredited in the poorly received Masked and Anonymous, Roger Ebert observed at the film's 2003 Sundance Film Festival premiere "the one performer in the movie whose performance actually was applauded; that was a young black girl named Tinashe Kachingwe, who sings 'The Times They Are A-Changin'' with such sweetness and conviction that she is like a master class." He concluded his review of the movie: "If I had been asked to serve as consultant on this picture, my advice would have amounted to three words: more Tinashe Kachingwe."

In 2007, Tinashe joined girl group the Stunners, founded by Vitamin C. Her bandmates were friends Marisol Esparza, Allie Gonino, Hayley Kiyoko, and Kelsey Sanders. Six months after their formation, the group signed with Columbia Records, and later signed a production deal with Lionsgate Entertainment for scripted television show for MTV. On March 18, 2009, they released a single and video, "Bubblegum." In October, the group released a five-song EP, influenced by artists such as Madonna, Gwen Stefani, and Rihanna. The music video for their promo single, "We Got It", was released on February 22, 2010, and they performed the song on The Today Show and The Wendy Williams Show. After signing with Universal Republic Records in 2010 they released a single, "Dancin' Around the Truth." The music video premiered on June 2, 2010, just before the group was announced as an opening act on Justin Bieber's My World Tour.

After the Bieber tour the Stunners returned to the recording studio, but disbanded in 2011, and Tinashe began pursuing a solo career. On May 3, 2011, Tinashe gave her first televised solo performance during a Dodgers"?Cubs game, singing "God Bless America".

On June 24, 2011, Tinashe released her first solo music video, a cover of Lil Wayne's single "How to Love". The song was later released as a free digital download via Tinashe's official website. Following the video's release, Tinashe confirmed she had officially been released from her recording contract with Universal Republic. Tinashe was featured on the dance single "Artificial People" by OFM, released on September 12, 2011. On November 25, 2011 Tinashe released the music video for "Can't Say No", her first original solo song. The track samples Britney Spears's song "Blur" from her sixth studio album, Circus. The song was released for download on November 28, 2011.

2011-2014: Independent releases and Aquarius

In Case We Die, Tinashe's debut solo mixtape, was released in February 2012, recorded in her home studio. The mixtape spawned four singles, the first being promotional song, "Chainless", released to iTunes on December 19, 2011. "My High" was released for streaming on her official website. The music video for single "This Feeling" directed by Cole Walliser was released on May 1, 2012 to Global Grind. The mixtape's final single, Boss, was released August 20, 2012, after the song was featured in an episode of the VH1 series Single Ladies. The music video for the song was self-directed. The mixtape was received positively by the blogosphere.

On July 13, 2012, Tinashe announced that she had signed with RCA Records. Following the signing, her second mixtape, Reverie, was released on September 6, 2012 through her official website. The mixtape released three singles: the first "Stargazing", released on August 21, 2012; the second, "Ecstasy", released on December 18, 2012; and the final, "Who Am I Working For?", released on March 12, 2013. Upon its release, reviews for Reverie were generally positive.

From August to November 2012, a series of remixes of songs from Tinashe's two mixtapes leaked online to critical acclaim. On November 26, 2013, Tinashe released her third mixtape, Black Water. The mixtape was composed of thirteen tracks produced by Dev Hynes, Boi-1da, Ryan Hemsworth, and Tinashe herself. The single "Vulnerable", which features rapper Travis Scott, was declared a "Must-Hear Pop Song of the Week" by MTV's Buzzworthy on November 26, 2013.

Tinashe worked on her debut studio album in 2014. Recording took place in Los Angeles, London, Atlanta, New York, and Toronto. Tinashe worked with several producers, including Clams Casino, Ryan Hemsworth, Stuart Matthewman, DJ Mustard, T-Minus, Mike Will Made It, Boi-1da, Fisticuffs, Best Kept Secret, Ritz Reynolds and London on the track. On January 13, 2014, Tinashe released her first single from her debut album, "2 On". The song features American rapper Schoolboy Q, and was produced by DJ Mustard. The song entered the US Billboard Hot 100 chart at number 89, and has since peaked at number 24.

On June 29, 2014, Tinashe made her national television debut, performing her single "2 On" at the BET Awards pre-show. That same day, she also announced that her anticipated debut album, Aquarius, would be officially released on October 7, 2014. Speaking about the theme of the album, Tinashe said: "It combines the essence of all my previous work. I've stayed true to who I am. Obviously, there's some progression as I've grown as an artist, and I'm influenced by new things and what not. I think my fans will be really happy with it. I think it really embodies who I am and where I am creatively right now". The second single, "Pretend" featuring ASAP Rocky, was released on August 22, 2014. "Aquarius" debuted at number 17 on Billboard 200 with 18,000 copies sold in its first week.

2015-present: Amethyst, Nightride, Joyride, and Nashe

"All Hands on Deck" became the last single off of Aquarius. Although the single failed to crack the Billboard Hot 100 charts, the music video created much buzz online by peers and fans for its choreography and visuals. Tinashe kicked the year off with a visual bang too, appearing on the cover of the Jan 15 issue of V Magazine.

In late January 2015, Tinashe was reported working with writers and producers from Prescription Songs (Cirkut, Ammo, Rock City, Jakob Kasher, Chloe Angelides), Max Martin and Taylor Parks on her second studio album. On March 16, 2015, Tinashe released a seven-song mixtape entitled Amethyst for free download. The project was recorded in Tinashe's bedroom during her Christmas vacation, and features production from Ryan Hemsworth, Iamsu!, DJ Dahi, Smash David, Ritz Reynolds, Nez & Rio and Mae N. Maejor. In between time, Tinashe invested in several self-directed music videos from her album Aquarius such as "Aquarius", "Bated Breath", "Cold Sweat", and "Bet/Feels Like Vegas" with no label support.

On September 2, 2015, Tinashe released a teaser for her then second studio album Joyride on YouTube. She explained to Billboard the meaning behind the title: "I always had it in the back of my head, but it started to become more and more relevant to my current state of my career. With all this traveling I've done this past year and everything I've gone through, it just really feels like an adventure, a journey, a ride", and when asked why she feels she isn't being heard she stated, "I feel like I've been working really hard this year at developing a fan base, a touring base. I'm continuing to grow, but you always feel like you're a little bit under appreciated, undervalued. Especially for me, it's exciting to have new music and to give people a chance to rediscover me again."

On September 9, Tinashe leaked the buzz single called "Party Favors" featuring rapper Young Thug as a way to get the ball rolling from her label. On October 2, 2015, Tinashe released another song "Player", featuring Chris Brown. On October 21, 2015, Tinashe was featured on British electronic duo Snakeships' track All My Friends which also featured Chance the Rapper which reached the top 20 in five countries.

In the summer of 2015 Tinashe joined Nicki Minaj for U.S. concerts on the Pinkprint Tour, and in September and October she toured South America with Katy Perry on the Prismatic World Tour. Meanwhile, she was featured in a November 2015 fashion spread in Vogue, and was the cover feature in the Winter 2015 issue of Dazed Magazine (formerly Dazed & Confused).

Tinashe announced the Joyride World Tour on January 12, 2016, to support the album Joyride. Beginning in February 2016, it was scheduled through May 2016 including dates in North America, Europe, Asia, and Oceania. The tour was ultimately canceled as Tinashe wanted to focus on making new songs for the album. Tinashe also revealed another promotional single, "Ride of Your Life", on February 2, 2016.

In February 2016, MAC Cosmetics announced a limited-edition collaboration with Tinashe for its #MACFutureForward campaign, along with Halsey, Lion Babe, and Dej Loaf. In April she was again featured in Vogue

During the summer, Tinashe was set to debut on Hot 97's Summer Jam main stage as the only female artist but the event was canceled due to an extreme weather alert. On July 15, 2016, Tinashe released a new single "Superlove". The music video directed by Hannah Lux Davis made its debut on August 12, 2016, on MTV's Snapchat and gained rave reviews. The video on YouTube reached one million views in just a day and a half. On September 15, 2016, with a MTV Wonderland performance, Tinashe dropped "Company" as Joyrides second single. Unlike her previous work, "Company" was written by The-Dream without Tinashe as co-writer. On October 25, 2016, Tinashe was confirmed working with American singer Britney Spears for a remix version of Spears' song, "Slumber Party", as Spears posted a photo on social media with the singer. It was compared favourably to Slave 4 U and Boys and that it "Saved 2016" Alexa Camp of Slant Magazine noted that the scene where Spears crawls on a dining room and licks spilled milk reminded her of a scene from Madonna's 1989 video for 'Express Yourself.'" Camp also stated that "the video employs sexuality"?and homosexuality"?purely for the benefit of the male gaze." While naming it "a fun, outrageous, and expensive-looking clip", Anna Gaca of Spin opined that the video is "miles better than the forced, brand-filled video for 'Make Me,' and the addition of Tinashe's vocals is enough to make you wonder why they ever released the song without her."

Tinashe appeared on the cover of Nylons October 2016 issue, just as designer brand Alexander Wang was collaborating with her in a video for its Fall 2016 campaign.

On November 4, 2016, Tinashe released a digital album and short film titled Nightride which she said had been in production for two years alongside her third studio album Joyride.

In March 2017, Tinashe joined Maroon 5 on their Maroon V Tour. The same month, Pepsi, in association with iHeartMedia, Shazam, and Viacom, announced that Tinashe would join its music platform, The Sound Drop. On March 16, Tinashe premiered a new single, "Flame". It was also confirmed that Tinashe would appear in the new season of Empire. On April 2, 2017, as part of WrestleMania 33 in Orlando, Tinashe performed "America the Beautiful" in front of a crowd of 75,000 - the largest crowd ever assembled at the Orlando Citrus Bowl.

In June she appeared at two concerts with Aaron Carter at Hot 107.9's Birthday Bash. In August 2017 she was the cover feature, along with an interview, in Galore. On September 22, 2017 she headlined Bronco Fusion at Cal Poly Pomona.

On July 11, 2017 Tinashe stated that she is working on her second album, Joyride, with producers Mike WiLL Made It, TM88, Metro Boomin, Diplo, Boi-1da, Charlie Handsome and others. On January 18, 2018, she released "No Drama" featuring Offset, the lead single from her long-anticipated album, Joyride. "Faded Love" featuring Future was released as the second single on February 12, 2018. Joyride was released on April 13, 2018.

On June 9, 2018, record producer Hitmaka revealed that he is executive producer on Tinashe's upcoming album titled Nashe. The lead single "Like I Used To" was released on July 13, 2018.

On September 12, 2018, Tinashe was announced as one of the celebrities who will compete on season 27 of Dancing with the Stars. Her professional partner is Brandon Armstrong.

Artistry

Musical style and voice

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Tinashe writes and produces most of her music in her home studio, and describes her musical style as follows:

She describes her biggest flaw as an artist as "not fitting into a particular genre."

After the Stunners disbanded, Tinashe "bought a bunch of equipment, a camera, and microphones", and began to teach herself how to record and mix music. She has written and recorded many of her songs in her bedroom. She also filmed and edited her own music videos with Pro Tools and Final Cut Pro, and uses Logic Pro to produce her beats. Tinashe cites YouTube as her "teacher".

Tinashe's style has been compared by industry critics and fans to Janet Jackson, The Weeknd, and Aaliyah.

Influences

Tinashe was inspired by the music her parents would play in the house when she was young. She cites Sade, Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Britney Spears, and Christina Aguilera as her influences.

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Personal life

As a child, Tinashe faced bullying from her peers:

</ref>}} Tinashe resides in Los Angeles, has a bedroom studio, and has a black belt in Taekwondo.

On February 2, 2016, Tinashe posed for Complex and invited them to her home to do a feature about her family. According to the feature, she still resides at home with her family in a suburb 30 miles north of Los Angeles.

Discography

See Tinashe discography for more information

• Aquarius (2014)
• Nightride (2016)
• Joyride (2018)

Tours

Headlining

• Aquarius Tour (2014-2015)
• Joyride Tour (2016)

Opening act

• Nicki Minaj's The Pinkprint Tour (2015)
• Katy Perry's The Prismatic World Tour (2015)
• Maroon 5's Maroon V Tour (2017)

Stage

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2007	13		Pre-Broadway season; The musical ran from January 7, 2007 through February 18, 2007, at The Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles

Filmography

Films

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2003	Masked and Anonymous	Mrs. Brown's Daughter
2004	Time Out	Shawnee	Short film
2004	The Polar Express	Hero Girl	Motion capture
2006	Akeelah and the Bee	Cissi
2006	Holly Hobbie and Friends: Surprise Party	Carrie Baker	Voice
2006	Holly Hobbie and Friends: Christmas Wishes	Carrie Baker	Voice
2007	Holly Hobbie and Friends: Secret Adventures	Carrie Baker	Voice
2007	Holly Hobbie and Friends: Best Friends Forever	Carrie Baker	Voice
2011	Justin Bieber: Never Say Never	Herself

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2000	Cora Unashamed	Josephine	Television film
2001	Call Me Claus	Young Lucy	Television film
2004	Rocket Power	Leilani Makani	Voice; Episode: "Island of the Menhune"
2007	Avatar: The Last Airbender	On Ji	Voice; Episode: "The Headband"
2007-08	Out of Jimmy's Head	Robin	Main role
2008-09	Two and a Half Men	Celeste Burnett	Recurring role (season 6-7)
2016	Fashion Police	Guest host	Episode: "The 2016 Grammy Awards Special"
2017	Empire	Herself	Season 3
2018	Dancing with the Stars	Contestant	Season 27

Awards and nominations

Year	Awards	Category	Work	Outcome
2014	Soul Train Music Awards	Best Dance Performance	"2 On" featuring Schoolboy Q
2015	YouTube Music Awards	50 artists to watch	Herself
	BET Awards	Best New Artist
	BMI R&B/Hip-Hop Awards	Most Performed R&B/Hip-Hop Songs	"2 On"
	Soul Train Music Awards	Best New Artist	Herself
2016	Ivor Novello Awards	Best Contemporary Song	"All My Friends" (with Snakehips and Chance the Rapper)