Louchie Lou & Michie One

Louchie Lou & Michie One are a British female ragga/soul duo from London, best known for the single "Shout (It Out)", plus their collaboration with Suggs on the single "Cecilia", both of which reached the top 10 of the UK Singles Chart.[1]

Louchie Lou & Michie One
OriginLondon, England
Genres
Years active1993–present
Labels
Past members
  • Louise Gold (Louchie Lou)
  • Michelle Charles (Michie One)

Career

edit

Louchie Lou (Louise Gold) and Michie One (Michelle Charles)[2] met in 1991 at a Rebel MC gig.[3] In 1993, they released their debut single, "Rich Girl", which samples the showtune "If I Were a Rich Man" from the musical Fiddler on the Roof.[4] Later that year they had their first chart hit with "Shout (It Out)", which reached number 7 in the UK Singles Chart.[2][3] It is a mash-up of the 1964 Lulu hit, originally recorded by The Isley Brothers, with the Henry Mancini composition, the "Peter Gunn theme" as performed by The Art of Noise and Duane Eddy from 1986.

For their 1995 album debut, II B Free, Louchie Lou & Michie One collaborated with Sly and Robbie, and Quincy Jones' son QDIII.[3] The album was released in October 1995 and contains the singles "Shout (It Out)", "Somebody Else's Guy (Me Did Love You)", "Champagne & Wine", "Secret Fantasy", "Get Down on It", "Free" and "Good Sweet Lovin'", which were all released between 1993 and 1996.[1] International tours in Japan and the Far East along with a headline engagement at Japansplash festival brought visibility to Asian audiences.[3]

Their second album, Danger-Us, released in the summer of 1996, features the single "The Honeymoon Is Over" as well as a cover version of the Brazilian hit, "Crickets Sing for Anamaria". That same year they were featured as vocalists on Suggs' hit, "Cecilia".[2] Danger-Us again featured QDIII and Sly and Robbie, with additional production work by Jazzwad (Buju Banton, Shabba Ranks) and Buzz Productions (Maxi Priest, Barrington Levy).[3]

They have since released various compilation albums, including 7 Years of Plenty.

Michie One released a solo album entitled Power of One, although this was not issued in the UK. She is currently working on further solo material, and featuring her vocals on dance music tracks.

In 2004, Gwen Stefani remade "Rich Girl" for her single of the same name.[5] In 2022, Puerto Rican singer Ozuna sampled Louchie Lou & Michie One's track for his song, "Somos Iguales".[6]

Discography

edit

Studio albums

edit
Release date Information UK
4 September 1995 II B Free
23 June 1997 Danger-Us

Compilation albums

edit
Release date Information UK
8 July 1996 Remix! Remix! Remix!
22 October 2001 7 Years of Plenty

Singles

edit

As lead artist

edit
Release date Single UK Album
17 May 1993 "Shout (It Out)" 7 II B Free
2 August 1993 "Somebody Else's Guy" 54
18 October 1993 "Rich Girl" Non-album single
7 November 1994 "Champagne & Wine" 131 II B Free
6 March 1995 "Secret Fantasy" 84
14 August 1995 "Get Down on It" 58
9 October 1995 "Free" 93
3 June 1996 "Good Sweet Lovin'" 34
16 September 1996 "Free" (reissue) 97
19 May 1997 "The Honeymoon Is Over" 87 Danger-Us
19 October 1998 "Don't Stand So Close to Me" Non-album single
13 September 1999 "Body Rock" 7 Years of Plenty
16 October 2000 "10 Out of 10"
28 April 2017 "Priceless"
(featuring Ding Dong & Bravo)
Non-album single
edit
Release date Single UK Album
1 April 1996 "Cecilia"
(Suggs feat. Louchie Lou & Michie One)
4 The Lone Ranger
9 September 1996 "No More Alcohol"
(Suggs feat. Louchie Lou & Michie One)
24
1996 "Empty Eyes"
(Jack Radics feat. Louchie Lou & Michie One)
- Affairs of the Heart
1997 "Sisteren"
(Sayoko feat. Louchie Lou & Michie One)
- MIX UP
2018 "Area Code"
(Dreadzone feat. Louchie Lou & Michie One)
- Dread Times
2022 "Double Six Domino"
(Miss Fritty feat. Louchie Lou & Michie One)
- Gangsta Lady

References

edit
  1. ^ a b "LOUCHIE LOU & MICHIE ONE | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". www.officialcharts.com.
  2. ^ a b c Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 330. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Louchie Lou & Michie One". NME. Archived from the original on 2 March 2009. Retrieved 15 February 2009.
  4. ^ Stavropoulos, Laura (22 July 2019). "Jasmine Solano's Introduction To Dancehall Music". uDiscover Music. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
  5. ^ Stavropoulos, Laura (23 November 2022). "'Love.Angel.Music.Baby.': How Gwen Stefani's Blonde Ambition Launched An Empire". uDiscover Music. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
  6. ^ Avila, Daniela (10 October 2022). "Puerto Rican Star Ozuna Talks Family, Music and FIFA as He Drops 'Ozutochi'". People. Retrieved 31 December 2022.