Biography

Emerging from a long studio session Porcelain Black dodges the sun by shifting between shadows. The radiant and dour seem to follow the singer wherever she goes, and she loves it. "Everything that I do is a mix of light and dark," she says. "The contrast represents my music, my hair, my personality." 

Fusing hard-hitting rock roots with the sticky, pulsating beats of 2101 label head and producer RedOne (Usher, U2, Jennifer Lopez, Enrique Iglesias, Pitbull, Lady Gaga), Black has created a sound she likens to the would-be offspring of Marilyn Manson and Britney Spears. "It's industrial, dark, danceable pop," she says. "Bad ass and positive." 

While visiting RedOne's studio in November 2009 Black's vibe and epic vocals made an instant impact. "I wanted to sign her on the spot," RedOne recalls. "She reminded me of Joan Jett. She's got it all: the attitude, the talent, the look. She can scream and do things with her voice that nobody can do. She is uncompromising in pursuing her own creative vision. She's taking everything that's old and making it futuristic and bringing rock and roll back in her own way." 

Now signed to 2101 via a joint venture with Universal Republic Records, Black's first single "This Is What Rock N Roll Looks Like" Feat. Lil Wayne fuses roaring guitars with thunderous dance-pop, a vibe maintained throughout most of her daring, not-yet-titled debut. "Rock and roll is about attitude," says the heavily tattooed singer, who was once asked by Courtney Love to sing backup when the alt rocker found her on MySpace under Porcelain and the Tramps. "We're the kids that belong to the night, but just because you're a bad ass doesn't mean you're a bad person. Rock and roll is about embracing people." 

Recorded in Madrid, Sweden, New York and L.A., Black's album engages sinners on the striking "Living In Sin." "People who point fingers and judge are hypocrites," she explains. "So you just have to blow a kiss and wink with your middle finger." On "How Do You Love Someone" she unmasks a layer of vulnerability when addressing her adolescence. "Momma never taught me how to love, Daddy never taught me how to feel," she sings. But, she contests, "My dad was really loving. This is about my stepdad."

Following her parent's separation when she was 6, Black's mother remarried into a cookie cutter lifestyle. "My mom really wanted me to fit into that," she recalls. "It made me feel corrupt." At 15 Black discovered her father had cancer and was kicked out of two high schools in three months. "I never fit in," she says. "My dad was dying of cancer and people were treating me like shit. I was a loner." At age 16 her father died, but not before leaving a lasting musical mark on his daughter. "My first concert was ACDC with my dad," she remembers. "We'd listen to Led Zeppelin, David Bowie, and Jimi Hendrix." 

A hairstylist who occasionally worked for Vogue, Black's father took his daughter backstage at fashion shows and along to photo shoots. "He owned his own salon and while his clients' hair would set he'd turn on a Marshal amp and put on his Kurt Cobain wig and jam out to Nirvana on his guitar. It was rad." 

Also inspired by dancing, Black took jazz, tap, hip-hop, and ballet. "I was training to go on Broadway or come out to L.A. and be a backup dancer," says the gritty Detroit native, who used to buy vintage clothes and re-sell them to make ends meet. "But I was wasting my time," she attests. "I knew I wanted to do music." 

Invited by pal Lil Wayne to join the "I Am Music II" tour alongside Nicki Minaj, Travis Barker and Rick Ross, Black says she's pumped to hit the road with artists she loves, perform in killer platform heels and leave her mark. 

A fierce female with one hell of a wail, Black has never apologized for who she is. "Embrace the fact that you're different," she avows. "I want people to feel empowered. When somebody pisses me off that's when I'm really inspired. Rock and roll is about attitude, what you say and how you say it."