Grace Jones began her career as an actress after having studied theater at Onondaga Community College. Born in 1948 in Spanish Town, Jamaica the siren relocated to Syracuse, New York at the age of 17. By the mid-to-late 1970s, Jones had secured a record deal with Island Records.
She enjoyed a string of dance-club hits thanks to a huge gay following and shortly after became a muse to famed photographer Andy Warhol. Warhol photographed Jones on numerous occasions and often had her accompany him to the famous Studio 54 in New York City.
During the 70s she had three hit albums Portfolio (1977), Fame (1978), and Muse (1979).
With a new decade came a new album (the acclaimed Warm Leatherette in 1980), a new sound, and a new look for Grace. The new look created along with stylist Jean-Paul Goude is the one we most know the model, actress, and singer by: the square flat-top, the severely contoured makeup, and elaborate costumes. Later the stylist and artist would have a son together.
Throughout the 80s, Jones’ music would continue to do well especially with her 1981 hit “Pull Up to the Bumper” (off the Night Clubbing album) which spent seven weeks at #2 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart, and became a Top 5 single on the U.S. R&B chart.
In the mid 80s and early 90s, she had a string of memorable roles in films such as Conan the Destroyer alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger…
as “May Day” in the fourteenth James Bond movie A View to a Kill…
And alongside comedian Eddie Murphy in 1992′s Boomerang.
Nowadays Grace still graces (no pun intended) the runway and silver screen. In 2001 she appeared in the film Wolf Girl and in 2006 appeared on the Diesel runway.
2008 saw the release of another well-received album (Hurricane) and was in talks of releasing another compilation album in 2009, but its release was pushed back indefinitely.
The now 62-year-old artist still performs her music and is celebrated a thousand times over in fashion spreads and her influence shows in artists today like Lady Gaga and Rihanna. Of which Grace is none too pleased.
Grace will always be Grace…lol.
~Danielle
