She might be one of the most popular female artists ever, but isn’t it time you knew more about Adele than the fact she sang ‘Skyfall’ and writes songs that reflect her own life?
Here are 30 facts which you probably never knew about the singer.
Yes, her real name is Adele! The average radio listener doesn’t know, however, that her full name is Adele Laurie Blue Adkins.
She is 36 years old and was born on May 5, 1988, to Penny Adkins and Marks Evans, although she was raised solely by her mother from the age of two.
In 2011, Adele underwent throat surgery which her doctor blamed on her smoking habit. In 2015, she quit smoking and admitted that she believed it would have killed her eventually.
Her fans come in all shapes, sizes, and occupations – she received fan mail from former Prime Minister of the UK, Gordon Brown. He wrote to her during Britain’s economic recession to praise her for keeping people’s spirits up.
People were first amazed by her voice when she sang ‘Rise’ by Gabrielle at school.
Adele’s album, titled ’21’, spent a whopping twenty-three weeks at the top of the album charts in the US.
The singer doesn’t need peace and quiet to compose some of her best works; in fact, she stated that her creativity is at its highest when she’s had a few too many drinks.
As a child, Adele’s favorite music was from the Spice Girls. She has also said that Etta James and Dusty Springfield have been influential.
She certainly seems to be a fan of the classic singers and has a Dachshund named Louis Armstrong.
As a true Brit, Adele loves a good cup of tea and drinks it with two sugars.
She’s always had friends in high places, and at college, Jessie J and Leona Lewis were in her class.
Many artists have been found on YouTube, but Adele’s success stemmed from MySpace, the social media platform which her friend used to post Adele’s song project from school.
As of 2016, Adele held a total of 10 Grammy Awards and 3 Guinness World Records.
Adele said that her goal in life is ‘never to be skinny’. She believes that music should be made for ears, and not for eyes.
Despite experiencing worldwide fame and audiences of thousands, she still suffers from stage fright and has said in the past that she sometimes has panic attacks and throws up backstage.
She was named Billboard’s ‘Artist of the Year’ for two years running – 2011 and 2012.
Adele stopped reading books at the age of six and concentrated on singing. ‘Matilda’ by Roald Dahl was the last book she remembers reading!
In 2015, she branded herself ‘a feminist’, and said that she believes in equality for everybody, regardless of gender, race or sexuality.
Along with Beyonce, Adele holds the record for the most categories won in a single night at the Grammys. She took home a total of six awards in 2012.
In 2011, she began dating Simon Konecki, and in October 2012, Adele gave birth to their son, Angelo.
In total, she has five tattoos. Two of them are on her left wrist, her hands each have one and there is also a tattoo behind her left ear.
Adele came in sixth on Forbes’ list of highest-paid celebrities under the age of 30 in 2012.
She used to live in a mansion consisting of ten bedrooms but sold it due to the fact that only nine of them would be used.
Adele and her husband Simon sued the paparazzi after they snapped pictures of their son Angelo during a family outing. They won the case in 2012 and were awarded damages.
She supports the Labour Party, but in 2011, she supported lower taxes for higher earners, contrary to the views of the political party.
Her 2008 American tour was canceled because Adele wanted to spend time with an ex-boyfriend. She later regretted it and called herself ‘ungrateful’.
Adele is a supporter of MusiCares, a charity set up by the Grammys which helps musicians in need. She has sung at many charity events since 2007, and also supports SANDS.
She suffers from homesickness when she is away from London and doesn’t like flying.
When Adele appeared on Saturday Night Live in 2008, she was on the same show as Sarah Palin. Not only did the show get 17 million viewers and top ratings for the last 14 years, but Adele said afterward that Palin helped to make her career.
In case you’ve ever wondered why her album names are mostly just numbers, they represent her age when the albums were made. She wrote the material for ’19’ when she was 19 years old, and so on.
