Adele

Adkins was brought up by a single young mother in different working-class areas of London. Adkins enjoyed listening to current pop music in her early years and also learning how to play the clarinet and the guitar. However, it wasn't until her early teens, after she came across the rhythm and blues vocalist Etta James and other mid 20th century performers, that she began to consider a musical career. She was enrolled in an institution for secondary education in the performing and visual arts that was funded by the government. A friend posted songs Adkins had composed onto Myspace. Her work was quickly discovered by record labels and signed an agreement with XL Recordings in 2006.