Amy Victoria Wadge (born 22 December 1975) is an English singer and songwriter. She has co-written tracks with Ed Sheeran, including "Thinking Out Loud" for which she won the 2016 Grammy Award for Song of the Year.
Early life Wadge was born and brought up in Backwell, a small village just outside Bristol, England. Her father's passion for music influenced her enormously, and on the subject of her paternal influences she has said that she "grew up listening to early Elton John, Joni Mitchell and James Taylor. That was the stuff I cut my teeth on and now I listen to everything you can possibly imagine from hip hop to country".
While still at school, aged 14, Wadge signed her first record deal. She released her first single at the age of 16.Amy Wadge, Maverick-country.com
Career Songwriting Apart from writing songs for herself, Wadge has been active in collaborating with new performers in Britain, including Ed Sheeran. The two collaborated on a number of songs, and Sheeran titled his self-released 2010 EP Songs I Wrote with Amy. One track was included with the deluxe edition of Sheeran's album +. Wadge continued her collaborative relationship with Sheeran in 2014. The single "Thinking Out Loud", written on a guitar given to Sheeran, features on the album x.
Wadge has also written with Lewis Watson and has collaborated with Shannon Saunders and other artists. She wrote and performed the songs for the soundtrack of the BBC Wales series Keeping Faith in 2018, and for the second series, shown in 2019. Wadge also co-wrote "Consequences", the third single from Camila Cabello's debut album Camila.
Also in 2019, Wadge gave Bonnie Tyler three tracks ("Older" from Amy Wadge 2016, "Bad for Loving You" from Walking Disaster 2018 and "To the Moon and Back" from Recovery 2014) for the Bonnie Tyler album Between the Earth and the Stars.
In 2021, she co-wrote the song "All of My Friends" from the Delta Goodrem album Bridge Over Troubled Dreams.
In 2022, she co-wrote the UK's entry to the Eurovision Song Contest, "Space Man" by Sam Ryder.
Solo performer Having moved to Wales and graduated from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, Wadge started performing at open mic sessions in Cardiff's Toucan Club and soon started developing a fanbase and gaining critical recognition. She was quickly spotted and received encouragement from some of the big players in the city, among them Manics/Catatonia/Super Furry Animals producer Greg Haver, who recorded her debut mini-album, The Famous Hour. This album "brought her more attention and acclaim". She played alongside Stereophonics, Embrace and Lenny Kravitz at the launch party for BBC 6 Music.
In 2002, Wadge won "Best Female Solo Act" at the annual Welsh Music Awards, ahead of Charlotte Church. In 2003, she toured Australia with the Welsh Rugby Team during the Rugby World Cup with the song "Adre Nôl". Later that year, she retained her "Best Female Solo Act" at the Welsh Music Awards.
2004 saw her release her first full album, WOJ (a play on her surname, which is often mispronounced), to critical acclaim. In June 2004, she performed at London's Royal Albert Hall on a bill that included Jeff Beck and Jan Hammer, charted by Billboard magazine as one of the world's top-grossing concerts of the summer.
2006 saw the release of Wadge's second album, No Sudden Moves. The album includes a cover of the Manic Street Preachers single A Design for Life. 2008 saw the release of her third album, Bump, which (according to her own sleeve notes) was recorded over two days when she was 8 months pregnant. It includes a cover of "Don't Leave Me This Way" (originally recorded by Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, and later covered by The Communards).
On Monday 2 November 2009, Wadge released her new single "Hold Me" with new record label, Choice Music. She also released a Welsh version of the track ("") which was a fundraiser for her daughter's (Welsh nursery school), with 20p from the sale of every Welsh language download being donated to Mudiad Meithrin, a Welsh language nursery organisation.
In 2010 and 2011, Wadge and Pete Riley released a CD (Rivers Apart), as well as two live DVDs, and toured extensively together.Amy Wadge and Pete Riley , Moneypenny Agency Her single "USA? We'll Wait and See" was released in both English and Welsh.Pontypridd-based singer mum Amy Wadge gets back on the road to avoid stage fright, Wales Online
Personal life Wadge is married to actor Alun ap Brinley. They live near Pontypridd, in Wales.
Songwriting credits
+ Title Year Album Artist Written with "She"2011Songs I Wrote with AmyEd SheeranEd Sheeran"Where We Land""Fire Alarms""Fall""Cold Coffee""The A Team"+"Gold Rush""Once Before"2012Another Four Sad SongsLewis WatsonLewis Watson"Sink or Swim""Scars" rowspan="3" Shannon SaundersShannon Saunders"Comfortably Alone"2014"Bodies and Beats"Shannon Saunders, Eg White"Sink or Swim"The MorningLewis WatsonLewis Watson"Halo""Even My Dad Does Sometimes"XEd SheeranEd Sheeran"Thinking Out Loud""Make It Back to Me"2015Ben HaenowBen HaenowBen Haenow"Slamming Doors""Let Myself Try"AdoreJasmine ThompsonJasmine Thompson"Don't Let Me Let You Go"Jamie LawsonJamie LawsonJamie Lawson"Start Again"2016Beautiful LiesBirdyBirdy"Numb"Max JuryMax JuryMax Jury"Stand in the Rain" rowspan="2" JessaraeJessarae"When Christmas Comes Around"Matt TerryEd Sheeran"Broken"2017Only When We're NakedZak AbelZak Abel, Fred Cox"Craving You"The Waiting GameUna HealyUna Healy"All You Ever Need is Love""Stay My Love""2005"The AfterloveJames BluntJames Blunt, Steve Mac"Paradise"James Blunt"Barcelona"÷Ed SheeranEd Sheeran, Johnny McDaid, Foy Vance, Benjamin Levin"Nancy Mulligan"Ed Sheeran, Johnny McDaid, Foy Vance, Benjamin Levin, Murray Cummings"Save Myself"Ed Sheeran"Galway Girl"Ed Sheeran, Johnny McDaid, Foy Vance, Damien McKee, Sean Grahan, Liam Bradley, Eamon Murray, Niamh Dunne"I Don't Know" Molly Kate KestnerMolly Kate Kestner"Little By Little"2018Clare BowenClare BowenClare Bowen, Brandon Young"Hollow Hallelujah"Southern GothicTyminskiDan Tyminski, Jesse Frasure, Sarah Buxton,"Consequences"CamilaCamila CabelloCamila Cabello, Emily Weisband, Nicolle Galyon"Parallel Line"Graffiti YouKeith UrbanKeith Urban, Ed Sheeran, Johnny McDaid, Julia Michaels, Benjamin Levin"Sincerely Yours"GoldenKylie MinogueKylie Minogue, Jesse Frasure"Rollin'"Kylie Minogue, Sky Adams"Radio On"Kylie Minogue, John Green"Every Little Part of Me"Kylie Minogue, Sky Adams"Wonder Woman"Golden HourKacey MusgravesKacey Musgraves, Jesse Frasure, Hillary Lindsey"Run in the Rain"Lighting MatchesTom GrennanTom Grennan, Adj Buffone"Because"Thank You & GoodnightBoyzoneRonan Keating, Ed Sheeran"Ain't That Funny"A Northern SoulSheridan SmithSheridan Smith, Jimmy Hogarth"Are You Just Sleeping""Handle With Care""Remedy in the Melody""Rock Bottom""Ladies in the 90's" Lauren AlainaLauren Alaina, Jesse Frasure"If You"Story of MeMegan McKennaMegan McKenna"How Many Times""Story of Me""Everything but You""Paperboy"Jon Maguire, Catherine McGrath"By Christmas Eve"A Legendary ChristmasJohn LegendJohn Legend, Dan Lafrombe Evans"Faith's Song"Keeping Faith – EPAmy Wadge"We Fall Down""Here I Go Again""Pain""Evan's Song""Let The Light Back In""How Long""No Prayer""Not Enough""Steve's Song""End Of It All""The Haunting of Me"2019The Years In BetweenJamie LawsonJamie Lawson"Not Like Us"Fire & BrimstoneBrantley GilbertBrantley Gilbert, Brock Berryhill, Rhett Akins"Almost"Thomas Rhett, Ashley Gorley, Jesse Frasure"VHS"Thomas Rhett, Ashley Gorley, Jesse Frasure"Center Point Road"Center Point RoadThomas RhettThomas Rhett, Cleve Wilson, Jesse Frasure"Let It Be Love"OceanLady AHillary Scott, Jordan Reynolds"This" Megan McKennaMegan McKenna, Alex Stacey"Monsters"Once Upon a MindJames BluntJames Blunt, Jimmy Hogarth"FUNoah" rowspan="2" Noah CyrusNoah Cyrus, Varren Wade, London Holmes"This"Megan McKennaMegan McKenna"Blue"My Name Is Michael HolbrookMikaMika"Platform Ballerinas"Mika"Dear Jealousy"George Moore, Mika"Woman"The Good & The BadAnthony RamosAnthony Ramos, Jackson Morgan, Johan Carlsson, Ross Golan"Used to This"RomanceCamila CabelloCamila Cabello, Finneas O'Connell"First Man"Camila Cabello, Jordan Reynolds"Under Dog"2020AliciaAlicia KeysAlicia Keys, Ed Sheeran, Foy Vance, Johnny McDaid, Jonny Coffer"Stop"Anthony RamosAnthony Ramos, Sean Douglas, Jesse Shatkin, Joel Castillo"Airpods"Leave It BeautifulAstrid SAstrid S, Jakob Hazell, Svante Halldin"Bad Things"no one else, not even youMae MullerMae Muller, Westen Weiss"All of My Friends"2021Bridge over Troubled DreamsDelta GoodremDelta Goodrem"Visiting Hours"=Ed SheeranEd Sheeran, Johnny McDaid, Anthony Clemons, Jr., Michael Pollack, Scott Carter, Kim Lang Smith"Lifeline"Wild DreamsWestlifeMark Feehily, Shane Filan"Rewind"Feehily, Filan, Jessica Agombar, Nicholas James Gale"Space Man"2022There's Nothing but Space, Man!Sam RyderSam Ryder and Max Wolfgang"When I Get There"2023TrustfallP!nkDavid Hodges"Don't Do Me Good"2024Weird FaithMadi DiazMadi Diaz"Repeat It"2026Martin Garrix and Ed SheeranMartin Garrix, Ed Sheeran
Discography Albums Title ArtistYearCredits The Famous HourAmy Wadge2002Written & PerformedOpen2003Written & PerformedWoj2004Written & PerformedNo Sudden Moves2006Written & PerformedTougher Than Love2007Co-written & PerformedBump2008Written, Performed & ProducedAcoustig2009Written, Performed & ProducedRivers ApartAmy Wadge & Pete Riley2011Co-written & PerformedAfterglow2012Co-written & PerformedAmy WadgeAmy Wadge2016Co-written & Performed
EPs and singles ArtistTitleYearCreditsAmy Wadge"Saddest Eyes"2000Written & performed"Just in Time"2003Written & performed"USA? Oes Angen Mwy..."2005Co-written & performed "USA? We'll Wait and See..."2005Co-written & performed"A Design for Life" (cover)2006Performed"SXSW"2009Written, performed & produced"Hold Me" 2009Written & performed Recovery (EP)2014Written, performed & produced"No Use Crying Over Spilt Milk"2015Written, performed & produced"Keeping Faith"2018Written, performed"Keeping Faith" - Series 22019Written, performed"Keeping Faith" - Series 32021Written, performed
Other charted songs Year Title Peak position UK 2019 "Faith's Song" 74
Awards +YearAwarding BodyAward2002Welsh Music AwardsBest Female Solo Artist20032015The Royal Welsh College of Music and DramaFellowship2016The Recording Academy, Grammy AwardSong of the Year2016University of South WalesHonorary Doctorate of Music2016ASCAPSongwriter of the Year
References
External links
Official Amy Wadge website