Esther[1] Renay Dean (born April 15, 1986), known professionally as Ester Dean, is an American R&B singer, songwriter, and record producer. She rose to prominence as a pop songwriter in the late 2000s and wrote numerous hit songs for singers including Rihanna, Katy Perry, Britney Spears, and Beyoncé through the 2010s. She has acted in numerous films, including the 2012 musical comedy Pitch Perfect and its sequels.
Ester Dean | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Dean in 2017 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Esther Renay Dean |
| Born | April 15, 1986 Muskogee, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 2006–present |
| Labels | |
Life and career
editEsther Renay Dean was born in Muskogee, Oklahoma to single mother Hester Dean, and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma as the youngest of five children.[2][3] She is of Black Indian descent. She began singing at a young age. [4] When Esther was 15, her mother moved her and her sister Deandria to Omaha, Nebraska, where she began working as a session singer and writing for local musicians. At the age of 20, Dean moved to Atlanta with $500 to pursue a career as a songwriter and record producer. She was discovered by music producer Christopher "Tricky" Stewart, who overheard Dean singing along in the crowd of a Gap Band concert.[5] On the strength of her voice and songwriting ability, Tricky signed Dean for a publishing contract.[6]
Dean later parted ways with Tricky and relocated to Los Angeles, where she was introduced to Polow da Don and signed a deal with Zone 4 Records under the aegis of Interscope Records.[5] In 2009, Dean released her debut single as a lead artist, "Drop It Low", which featured singer Chris Brown and production by Polow da Don; the song peaked at number 38 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and became her only Top 40 single as a lead artist.
Dean's commercial breakthrough came when she collaborated with Stargate on the number one Rihanna single "Rude Boy". She continued to write hit songs for Rihanna, including "What's My Name" and "Where Have You Been", as well as Katy Perry's "Firework" and Nicki Minaj's "Super Bass".
In 2011, Dean contributed to the soundtrack for the animated film, Rio by Blue Sky Studios.
She has written, and sometimes produced, Top 40 hits for artists including Rihanna, Christina Aguilera, Florence + The Machine, Beyoncé, Drake, Selena Gomez, Mary J. Blige, Kelly Clarkson, Ciara, The Pussycat Dolls, Usher, Kelly Rowland, R. Kelly, Britney Spears, and Lil Wayne.
She appeared as Cynthia Rose in Pitch Perfect, released in 2012, and reprised the role in the sequels Pitch Perfect 2 (2015) and Pitch Perfect 3 (2017).
In 2022, she was on the jury panel for American Song Contest representing Oklahoma.[7]
Artistry
editVoice
editDean possesses a mezzo-soprano range. Her vocals were described by Billboard as "raw, energetic vocals [that] cover a wide range: from club banger to melodic doo-wop/hip-hop."[8] Dean's vocals have also been described as similar to Rihanna and Nicki Minaj. "The songwriter's voice is pitched dead center between two artists. The first is frequent collaborator Rihanna...the other is Nicki Minaj when she sings."[9]
Songwriting style
editIn a 2012 article in The New Yorker, Dean described her preferred method of songwriting: "I go into the booth and I scream and I sing and I yell, and sometimes it's words but most time [sic] it's not...and I just see when I get this little chill [on her upper arm, below the shoulder] and then I'm, like, 'Yeah, that's the hook.'"[5]
Filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Rio | Boy in Gondola (voice) |
| 2012 | Ice Age: Continental Drift | Sloth Siren and Gutt's Siren (voice) |
| Pitch Perfect | Cynthia-Rose Adams | |
| 2015 | Pitch Perfect 2 | |
| 2017 | Pitch Perfect 3 | |
| 2020 | Trolls World Tour | Legsly (voice) |
Television
edit| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Crazy Ex-Girlfriend | Vanessa | Episode: "That Text Was Not Meant for Josh!" |
| RuPaul's Drag Race | Guest Judge (season 8) | Episode: "Bitch Perfect" | |
| 2019–2020 | Songland | Herself - Judge | |
| 2020 | The Voice | Herself - Guest Judge | Episode: "Live Final Top 5 Performances" |
| 2020–2022 | Central Park | Hazel (voice) | 7 episodes |
| 2021 | Clash of the Cover Bands | Herself - Judge | Season 1 |
| 2021 | Trolls: Holiday in Harmony | Legsly (voice) | short Christmas special |
| 2022 | American Song Contest | Herself - Oklahoma Judge | 8 episodes |
Discography
editAccolades
edit| Year | Ceremony | Nominated Work | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | BMI R&B/Hip-Hop Awards | "Hot Tottie" (as a writer) | Award-Winning Urban Songs | Won | [10] |
| "I Am" (as a writer) | Won | ||||
| "Rude Boy" (as a writer) | Won | ||||
| "Sex Therapy" (as a writer) | Won | ||||
| 2012 | Grammy Awards | Loud (as a producer and writer) | Album of the Year | Nominated | [11] |
| BMI Pop Awards | Herself | Songwriter of the Year | Won | [12] | |
| "Firework" (as a writer) | Pop Song of the Year | Won | |||
| Award-Winning Pop Songs | Won | ||||
| "Super Bass" (as a writer) | Won | ||||
| "Rude Boy" (as a writer) | Won | ||||
| "S&M" (as a writer) | Won | ||||
| "What's My Name?" (as a writer) | Won | ||||
| BMI R&B/Hip-Hop Awards | "Super Bass" (as a writer) | Urban Song of the Year | Won | [13] | |
| Award-Winning Urban Songs | Won | ||||
| "What's My Name?" (as a writer) | Won | ||||
| 2013 | BMI Pop Awards | "Mr. Know It All" (as a writer) | Award-Winning Pop Songs | Won | [14] |
| "Turn Me On" (as a writer) | Won | ||||
| "Where Have You Been" (as a writer) | Won | ||||
| MTV Movie Awards | Pitch Perfect (shared with the cast) | Best Musical Moment | Won | [15] | |
| Annie Awards | Ice Age: Continental Drift (as a producer) | Best Music in a Feature Production | Nominated | [16] | |
| 2015 | Hollywood Music in Media Awards | "Dancing in the Dark" (as a writer) | Best Song – Animated Film | Won | [17][18] |
| 2016 | BMI London Awards | "Hey Mama" (as a writer) | Dance Award | Won | [19] |
| Award-Winning Pop Songs | Won | ||||
| BMI Pop Awards | Award-Winning Pop Songs | Won | [20] | ||
| 2021 | Canadian Country Music Awards | "Champagne Night" (as a writer) | Songwriter of the Year | Won | [21] |
References
edit- ^ Dean, Ester [@esterdean] (December 12, 2014). "Lol my real name is Esther" (Tweet). Retrieved March 21, 2022 – via Twitter.
- ^ "Ester Dean Talks Debut Album & 'Pitch Perfect' Success". Billboard. January 14, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
- ^ "Melody Maker". Oklahoma Today. Archived from the original on January 8, 2019. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
- ^ "Interview: Ester Dean – Singer and Songwriter". Blogcritics. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
- ^ a b c Seabrook, John (March 26, 2012). "The Song Machine". The New Yorker. Vol. LXXXVIII, no. 6. pp. 48–55. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
- ^ "Top Writer/Artist Ester Dean Talks About Her Hits With Rihanna, Katy Perry, Nicki Minaj & Kelly Clarkson". Songwriter Universe. December 4, 2013. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
- ^ Maas, Jennifer (March 21, 2022). "How 'American Song Contest' Voting Will Work Via TikTok, and Who's on the 56-Member Jury Panel (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
- ^ "Ester Dean: Artists To Watch 2010". Billboard. January 15, 2010. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
- ^ "The Singles Bar: Ester Dean ft. Nicki Minaj, "Gimme Money"". Popdust. February 23, 2012. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
- ^ "Snoop Dog Honored At BMI Urban Awards". bmi.com. Archived from the original on June 21, 2013. Retrieved December 16, 2020.
- ^ "ESTER DEAN: Grammy History". grammy.com. November 19, 2019. Retrieved December 16, 2020.
- ^ "Ester Dean, Benny Blanco and Pitbull share Songwriter of the Year crown; "Firework" named Song of the Year; Universal Music Publishing Group earns Publisher of the Year". bmi.com. May 16, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2020.
- ^ "Ester Dean, Kane Beatz, Nicki Minaj and Pop Wansel also take top honors". bmi.com. September 8, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2020.
- ^ "Ester Dean, Benny Blanco and Pitbull share Songwriter of the Year crown; "Firework" named Song of the Year; Universal Music Publishing Group earns Publisher of the Year". bmi.com. May 15, 2013. Retrieved December 17, 2020.
- ^ "Rebel Wilson and The Avengers dominate ceremony". Daily Telegraph. April 15, 2013. Archived from the original on April 19, 2013. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
- ^ "2013 Annie Awards: Winners List". Deadline. February 3, 2013. Retrieved December 16, 2020.
- ^ Feinberg, Scott (November 12, 2015). "Hollywood Music in Media Awards: 'Hunting Ground,' 'Furious 7,' '50 Shades of Grey' Claim Top Prizes". Billboard. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
- ^ "2015 winners". Hollywood Music in Media Awards. Archived from the original on August 8, 2016. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
- ^ "The hit was written by Giorgio Tuinfort, Afrojack, Sean Douglas, Ester Dean and Alan & John Lomax, and made famous by David Guetta, featuring Nicki Minaj and Bebe Rexha". bmi.com. October 10, 2016. Retrieved December 16, 2020.
- ^ "BMI Honors Taylor Swift and Legendary Songwriting Duo Mann & Weil at the 64th Annual BMI Pop Awards". bmi.com. May 11, 2016. Retrieved December 17, 2020.
- ^ "Dallas Smith cleans up at Canadian country music awards on historic night".
External links
edit
- Ester Dean at AllMusic
- Ester Dean at IMDb
