Gabrielle

Louise Gabrielle Bobb (born July 19, 1969), better known by her middle name Gabrielle, is a British singer and songwriter from Hackney, London.

During her childhood, she was afflicted with ptosis on her right eye, making her the subject of bullying and teasing from her fellow classmates and leading to her eventual use of an eyepatch, a pair of sunglasses, and even her own hair to conceal it.

In 1991, she recorded the song “Dreams” as a 12" vinyl release for the label Victim Records. This version, containing a sample of American singer Tracy Chapman’s song “Fast Car,” became an underground hit and attracted the interest of Go! Discs, which she would sign to as part of their Go! Beat subsidiary. A version of “Dreams” without the sample of “Fast Car” would soon follow as her debut single in the summer of 1993, with her debut album, Find Your Way, coming not long after on October 18, 1993.

Her self-titled second album, Gabrielle, was released in 1996 and became her first to become Platinum certified, largely from the success of the single “If You Ever,” a duet between her and English boy band East 17 that’s a cover of American R&B group Shai’s 1992 single “If I Ever Fall In Love.”

Her third album Rise (released exactly six years after her debut) became her most successful to date—not only becoming her first to top the UK Album Charts, but also becoming four times Platinum certified, in addition to all of its singles charting within the Top 15 of the UK Singles Chart.

She continues to release music, with her most recent album being 2024’s A Place In Your Heart. She is also a mother of two: her son, Jordan, and her daughter, Patricia.