Claire Richards

With record sales of over 20 million and 14 top ten hits in the UK, Claire Richards was part of pop sensation Steps having huge success in the late 1990s, before returning as a torch singing solo star in 2019. Born in Hillingdon, Middlesex Richards grew up singing along to Whitney Houston and Carpenters albums and took part in school stage productions before signing a record deal on her 18th birthday with her first group TSD. Joining Steps in 1997 after responding to an advert in 'The Stage' magazine, the group capitalised on a line-dancing craze that had swept the nation by adding a high energy Euro-disco backbeat to a fiendishly catchy hoedown and a memorable dance routine, quickly scoring their breakthrough hit '5,6,7,8'. Other major successes included their chart-topping cover of the Bee Gees' disco classic 'Tragedy', number one album 'Steptacular' and a succession of sold-out arena tours, before they split in 2001 and Richards and band mate H formed a duo and released one unsuccessful album. Steps briefly reformed in 2011 and released fourth studio album 'Light Up the World', but in the meantime Richards started a family and enjoyed life away from the spotlight, only making occasional television appearances and releasing the odd fitness DVD. She began to get her taste for performing back, though, when she took part in ITV show 'Popstar to Opera Star', on which she trained to be a classical soprano and after a stint in 'Celebrity Big Brother' and as a panellist on 'Loose Women', she was part of another successful Steps comeback tour and album 'Tears On the Dancefloor' in 2017. With her voice back to its best, Richards fulfilled a lifelong ambition by releasing her debut solo album 'My Wildest Dreams' in 2019 and later supported her hero Celine Dion on tour. Written with producer Steve Anderson and esteemed American songwriter Diane Warren, the album was typically full of orchestral pop ballads and synth singalongs, featuring singles 'On My Own', 'End Before We Start' and 'Shame On You'.

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