Richard Ashcroft

The English singer-songwriter Richard Paul Ashcroft was born in 1971 in Billinge. In school he met his future bandmates of the The Verve, where Richard played the guitar and sang in the period from its creation in 1990 and till the break-up in 1999. Being a teenager, Ashcroft was really interested in football and even wanted to become the professional player, however later he decided to devote himself completely to the music.

Thus, Richard Ashcroft’s professional musical career started in early nineties, when the group The Verve was formed. Pretty soon the rockers managed to gain popularity due to their creativity and riotous character, but The Verve members had some disagreements within the band, and in 1995 the group was disbanded. Two years later they reunited, but not for long: in 1999 they split up again. Almost ten years later, in 2007 The Verve gathered and performed at several festivals, but in 2009 they announced about the disbandment once again. It is worth mentioning that Richard showed his worth in the solo career, which started right after The Verve’s second split up in 1999, and in 2010 Ashcroft organized his new band RPA & The United Nations of Sound.

Ashcroft’s debut solo album Alone With Everybody was released in 2000 and it debuted at number one of the UK chart. The musical experts acclaimed that record and the listeners enjoyed it as well: Alone With Everybody was certified Platinum. Richard’s second studio work titled Human Conditions was released in 2002 and it proved to be successful as well and it got the Gold status. Ashcroft’s third album Keys To The World, issued in 2006, pleased the music lovers with the interesting sound: many arrangements were recorded by London Metropolitan Orchestra. As the result, Ashcroft and the musicians with whom he collaborated managed to create the incredible atmosphere of Keys To The World.

After The Verve’s third break-up Richard Ashcroft formed the new band RPA & The United Nations of Sound. They attracted attention in no time by releasing the first single Are You Ready? Soon after that the rockers went on the tour to Europe and performed in Paris, Berlin, London and many other cities. The band’s debut album United Nations Of Sound appeared in 2010 and it represents Richard’s new ideas. Ashcroft has the reputation of an extremely talented singer and songwriter, and United Nations Of Sound proves that perfectly.