Robbie Williams

Robbie Williams • GB

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Robert Peter "Robbie" Williams (born 13 February 1974) is an English singer-songwriter, vocal coach and occasional actor. He is a member of the pop group Take That. Williams rose to fame in the band's first run in the early- to mid-1990s. After many disagreements with the management and certain group members, Williams left the group in 1995 to launch his solo career. On 15 July 2010, it was announced he had rejoined Take That and that the group intended to release a new album in November 2010 which became the second fastest-selling album of all-time in UK chart history and the fastest-selling record of the century. Williams has sold over 70 million records worldwide, which ranks him among the best-selling music artists worldwide. He is the best-selling British solo artist in the United Kingdom and the best-selling non-Latino artist in Latin America. Six of his albums are among the top 100 biggest-selling albums in the United Kingdom. He has also been honored with seventeen BRIT Awards-more than any other artist-and seven ECHO Awards. In 2004, he was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame after being voted the "Greatest Artist of the 1990s." Williams was born to Peter and Janet Williams in Stoke-on-Trent on 13 February 1974. His parents ran a pub called the Red Lion in the town of Burslem before his father became the licensee at the Port Vale F.C. Social Club - this led to Williams' lifelong affinity for the team. Williams attended Mill Hill Primary School in Stoke-on-Trent then St Margaret Ward Roman Catholic School in Tunstall, and also attended dance school UKDDF in Tunstall. He participated in several school plays, and his biggest role was that of the Artful Dodger in a production of Oliver! It has been claimed that Williams has sold more albums in the UK than any other British solo artist in history and has won more BRIT Awards than any other artist to date. His album sales stands at over 57 million worldwide. Williams was entered in The Guinness Book of World Records when after he announced his World Tour for 2006, 1.6 million tickets were sold in one single day. He has been presented with many awards, including seventeen BRIT and seven ECHO awards. In 2004, he was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame, after being voted as the Greatest artist of the 1990s. Williams appears in the list of the all-time Top 100 biggest-selling albums in the United Kingdom six times. In October 2009 it was announced that he would receive the Outstanding Contribution To British Music award at the 2010 BRIT Awards. In September 2010 Williams switched on the Blackpool illuminations, stating that it was one of the greatest honours he'd ever achieved.