ELIOT SUMNER

Born in northern Italy on July 30, 1990, Eliot Pauline Sumner received a first-rate musical education from her father, Sting. She grew up in a small village in Wiltshire, England, and kept herself largely removed from the glamour and glitz of her father’s career. By her mid-teens, however, "Coco" Sumner had taken a cue from her dad by composing reggae-flavored songs of her own, many of which were posted to her MySpace page. Several labels took interest in the material, and she subsequently signed a multi-album deal with Island Records.

While working on her debut album, the 18-year-old Sumner assembled a small band that included session keyboardist Emlyn Maillard and multi-instrumentalist Al Shux (who produced Jay-Z's chart-topping "Empire State of Mind" in 2009). Sporting a fashionable sound that sampled equally from pop, ska, and electro-punk, I Blame Coco began releasing songs in early 2010, including a duet with the Swedish pop vocalist Robyn. I Blame Coco's debut album, The Constant, appeared later that year. After spending a couple of years working on new songs, in 2014 Sumner announced that she would henceforth release music under her birth name. The Information EP arrived that August. A pair of songs from that debut EP eventually made their way to her first proper solo full-length, also titled Information, which was released in January 2016.

[Andrew Leahey]