Helen DeMacque
Helen "Pepsi" DeMacque | |
---|---|
![]() Pepsi DeMacque performing as part of Pepsi & Shirlie at the Liverpool Echo Arena on 25 June 2011. | |
Background information | |
Also known as | Pepsi |
Born | Paddington, London, England | 10 December 1958
Genres | Pop |
Occupation(s) | Singer |
Years active | 1981–present |
Labels | |
Formerly of | Pepsi & Shirlie |
Helen "Pepsi" DeMacque-Crockett (born 10 December 1958) is a British pop singer, best known as a backing singer for Wham! and a member of the Pepsi & Shirlie duo in the 1980s.
Early years
[edit]Helen "Pepsi" DeMacque was born in London after her parents emigrated to Britain in the 1950s from St Lucia.[1]
Music career
[edit]![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/00/Pepsi_and_Shirlie_at_the_Liverpool_Echo_Arena_25_June_2011.jpg/220px-Pepsi_and_Shirlie_at_the_Liverpool_Echo_Arena_25_June_2011.jpg)
DeMacque became one of two singers/dancers for the group Wham! in 1983. She replaced Dee C. Lee, (who left to join The Style Council) and performed alongside Shirlie Holliman,[2] first appearing in the music video for "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go".
When their work with Wham! ended, Holliman and DeMacque formed their own act, named Pepsi & Shirlie. Created immediately after Wham!'s final Wembley concert, the duo had a more upbeat and pop sound. The group had two UK Top 10 hits: "Heartache", produced by Phil Fearon and Tambi Fernando, reaching No. 2 in the UK Singles Chart,[3] and "Goodbye Stranger", produced by Tambi Fernando and Pete Hammond, which reached No. 9.
Pepsi & Shirlie went on hiatus in 1989, but briefly returned in 2000 to record backing vocals on the UK number one Geri Halliwell hit "Bag It Up".[3] The duo also reunited to perform for the Here and Now 10th Anniversary tour which kicked off on 24 June 2011.[4]
In 1998 and 1999, DeMacque collaborated with Mike Oldfield, participating in his tour Then & Now in 1998 and two events, the premiere of Tubular Bells III in London and the concert Art in Heaven/Millennium Bell for the transition to the year 2000 in Tiergarten in Berlin. Pepsi also performed on a song from the album The Millennium Bell.[5]
In 2011, she sang with Forthright, a group of producers and mixers in London.[2]
Film career
[edit]DeMacque has also worked as a film and TV actor, including a portrayal of Josephine Baker.[2] As a stage actor, she appeared in James Rado, Gerome Ragni and Galt MacDermot's musical, Hair,[2] at the Old Vic Theatre in London with Michael Bogdanov directing.
Personal life
[edit]DeMacque was domiciled in Wellington, New Zealand, for a number of years, working at a gift shop on Lambton Quay. While in Wellington she collaborated[6] with New Zealand electronic artist (Jeremy Geor) 50
Her nephew was the 2018 Eurovision Song Contest contestant representing Austria, Cesár Sampson.[8]
In 2021, DeMacque and Shirley Kemp released their joint autobiography, Pepsi & Shirlie: It's All in Black and White, published by Welbeck.[9] The book gives an account of their time touring the world, performing first with Wham! and then in their own right, as a duo.[10]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "About Jussail". Retrieved 7 November 2015.
- ^ a b c d Jury, Louise (22 October 2011). "How we met: Pepsi and Shirlie". The Independent. Archived from the original on 9 May 2022. Retrieved 7 November 2015.
- ^ a b "Interview with Shirlie Holliman". yogworld.com. Retrieved 15 November 2008.
- ^ "Here and Now: The very best of the 80s". Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 7 November 2015.
- ^ Lemieux, Patrick (2014). The Mike Oldfield Chronology. Across the Board. ISBN 9780991984060. Retrieved 7 November 2015.
- ^ "Kiwi dance music: The class of 2002". NZ Herald. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- ^ "MAGMED LIMITED people – Find and update company information – GOV.UK". find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- ^ ESCunited (9 April 2018), Eurovision Song Contest 2018 – Austria – Cesar Simpson – Interview in London 2018, retrieved 19 April 2018
- ^ White, Vikki (30 September 2021). "Wham!'s Pepsi and Shirlie dish on wild times with George Michael in new book". mirror. Retrieved 23 January 2023.
- ^ "Pepsi & Shirlie".
External links
[edit]- Helen DeMacque at IMDb
- Helen DeMacque discography at Discogs
- Pepsi & Shirlie discography