Morissette, Alanis (1974– )

Canadian singer-songwriter. Her confessional alternative style was developed over several albums and she achieved international success with her third album, Jagged Little Pill (1995). Her biggest chart success has been the single ‘Ironic’ (1996), which won a Grammy Award for Song of the Year.

Born in Ottawa, Canada, Morissette was a child star and appeared in the children's television programme You Can't Do That On Television. She released a single in 1984 called ‘Fate Stay With Me’. Her first album, Alanis, was released in 1991, and a second album, Now is the Time in 1992. Both were pop-dance albums aimed at the teenage market, and received little recognition outside of Canada. The success of her third album, which showed a change in style and direction, led to her being nominated for six Grammy awards in 1996. Other albums include Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie (1998), Under Rug Swept (2002), and So-Called Chaos (2004).