Alexandra Burke was born in 1998 in London. Her mother, Melissa Bell, was a vocalist in the R&B and soul band Soul II Soul. Burke has a sister and three brothers. Alex started singing back in kindergarten, trying hard to copy her mother. When she was nine, Burke sang on stage in Bahrein during the performance of Soul II Soul. At 12, the future celebrity performed at a TV talent show, Star for a Night. She came in second.
After graduating from high school, Alexandra decided to devote her time to her music career. On weekend, she performed at the local nightclubs, worked with choir concerts Young Voices, and collected money for children with leukemia. In 2005, the young woman tried out for X-Factor but turned out to be too young for the project. Burke didn’t give up and continued honing her singing skills.
In 2008, the aspiring singer made another attempt. After ten weeks of grueling rehearsals and nerve-racking performances, Alexandra won the competition. As a prize, she got a contract with Syco label for 1 million pounds. In December 2008, she released her first official single, “Hallelujah”, which immediately topped the UK Singles Chart and sold 576,000 copies in the first week. The song earned a title of the most sold single of the year.
