MARINA

Biography

Marina Lambrini Diamandis, known professionally as MARINA, is a Welsh singer-songwriter born on October 10, 1985, in Brynmawr, Wales. Raised in Pandy, her parents divorced when she was four, and she lived with her mother. At 16, she moved to Greece to live with her father before returning to Wales two years later. Driven by her ambition to become a singer, she moved to London as a teenager, teaching herself to play the piano and using Myspace to release her early music.

Career Beginnings and "The Family Jewels"

MARINA initially used the stage name "Marina and the Diamonds," a reference to her fans rather than a backing band. She gained prominence after placing second in the BBC's Sound of 2010 poll. Her debut studio album, "The Family Jewels," was released in 2010. The album, which featured indie-pop and new wave styles, reached number five on the UK Albums Chart. It included singles such as "Hollywood" and "I Am Not a Robot".

"Electra Heart" and "Froot"

In 2012, MARINA released her second album, "Electra Heart," a concept album centered around a fictional character. This electropop record became her first number-one album in the UK and included the hit singles "Primadonna" and "How to Be a Heartbreaker". Her third album, "Froot," followed in 2015. For this record, she took on a more significant creative role, co-producing the entire album with David Kosten and writing all the songs herself. "Froot" entered the top 10 on both the UK Albums Chart and the US Billboard 200.

The Shift to MARINA

In 2018, she announced that she would be dropping "and the Diamonds" from her stage name, continuing her career as MARINA. This change marked a new artistic direction. Her first album under the new name was "Love + Fear," a double album released in 2019 that explored themes of duality. This was followed by "Ancient Dreams in a Modern Land" in 2021, which blended social commentary with her signature theatrical pop style.

Discography

Studio Albums:

- The Family Jewels (2010)
- Electra Heart (2012)
- Froot (2015)
- Love + Fear (2019)
- Ancient Dreams in a Modern Land (2021)