Bio assignment:
· Articles: Eminem, ryan howard
· Articles of choice: Look for headings and thesis and questions asked
o Taylor Swift, Michael Jordan, Chris Brown, Rihanna, Lebron James, Nickie Minaz, Pabla Datwe, Pele, Adam Levine, Tom Brady, Usiah Bolt
· Interview blue student
· Write bio
· Share bio with student
· Turn in for completion
Choose a family member to interview. Ask them some of the questions below (and some of your own). Takes notes so that you can write up a biography from the answers. The purpose of this interview is for you to talk with and learn things about this person that you didn't know.
NAME:
PERIOD:
Student Biography Interview Questions
1. What is your name?2. Where were you born? How many houses have you lived in? How would you describe your home? Peaceful? Noisy? Full of love? Hectic?
3. What is your ethnic heritage? Do you speak another language? Do you have relatives in other countries?
4. How many siblings do you have? Names/ages?
a. Do you get along with them? Why or why not?
b. How have they affected or influenced you?
5. Have you had any pets? Name them and describe them.
6. What were your favorite indoor activities as a younger child?
7. What were your favorite outdoor activities?
8. What are your favorite activities now? Are you more of an indoor or outdoor person?
9. Describe one parent
a. What is his or her job?
b. What does he or she do for fun?
c. How are you like and unlike him or her?
d. How has he or she influenced you?
10. What was your favorite subject in elementary school and why?
11. What is your favorite subject now and why?
12. What are some favorites? ( color, food, ice cream, book, movie, song, sport, etc)
13. Do you admire a famous person? What makes him or her admirable?
14. What is something that you are really proud of and why? This could be a quality or achievement.
15. What are some goals you have? They can be academic or personal?
Taylor Swift
Quick Facts
NAME: Taylor Swift
OCCUPATION:Singer
BIRTH DATE:December 13, 1989 (Age: 22)
EDUCATION: Hendersonville High School
PLACE OF BIRTH: Wyomissing, Pennsylvania
ZODIAC SIGN:Sagittarius
Best Known For
Taylor Swift is an American country pop singer. Her albums have gone multi-platinum. She was nominated for the Best New Artists award at the 50th Grammy Awards.
Synopsis
Taylor Swift is an American country pop singer-songwriter. In 2006, she released her self-titled debut album, which was subsequently certified multi-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. She was nominated for the Best New Artist award at 50th Grammy Awards. In November 2008, she released her second album, Fearless, which won Album of the Year at the 52nd Grammy Awards.
Country Crooner
Singer, songwriter, musician. Born Taylor Alison Swift on December 13, 1989, in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania. Swift spent her early years on her family's Christmas tree farm. Her grandmother had been a professional opera singer, and Swift soon followed in her footsteps. By the age of 10, Swift was singing at a variety of local events, including fairs and contests. She sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" at a Philadelphia 76ers game at the age of 11, and began writing her own songs and learning guitar at 12 years old.
To pursue her music career, Swift often visited Nashville, Tennessee, the country music capital. There she co-wrote songs, and tried to land a recording contract. Noting her dedication, Swift and her family moved to nearby Hendersonville, Tennessee, in an attempt to further Swift's career.
A stellar performance at The Bluebird Café in Nashville helped Swift get a contract with Scott Borchetta's Big Machine Records. She released her first single, "Tim McGraw," in 2006, and the song became a Top 10 hit on the country charts. It also appeared on her self-titled debut album in October of that same year, selling more than 2.5 million copies. More popular singles soon followed, including "Our Song," a No. 1 country music hit. "Teardrops on My Guitar," "Picture to Burn," and "Should've Said No" were also successful tracks.
In addition to commercial success, Swift received a lot of critical praise for her debut effort. She won the Horizon Award from the Country Music Association (CMA) and the Academy of Country Music Award for Top New Female Vocalist in 2007. Swift next released Sounds of the Season: The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection in 2007. Her renditions of "Silent Night" and "Santa Baby" were modest hits on the country charts.
Pop Stardom
In 2008, Swift was nominated for a Grammy Award in the Best New Artist category, and won the Academy of Country Music's "Female Vocalist of the Year" Award, the American Music Awards "Favorite Female Country Artist" award, and the American Music Association's "Horizon" award. Around this same time, Swift released her next album, Fearless (2008), which hit the top of both the country and pop charts and stayed there for 11 weeks. By the end of the year, Swift had become the highest-selling country artist of 2008.
In 2009, Swift netted several awards for her work on Fearless, including "Video of the Year" and "Female Video of the Year" for "Love Story" at the CMT Music Awards. On September 13, 2009, Swift also won the MTV Video Music Award for "Best Female Video," making her the first country music star to win an MTV Video Music Award. The win stirred controversy when rapper Kanye West leaped to the stage during Swift's speech, took the microphone, and declared that R&B singer Beyoncé should have won Swift's award. The stunned Swift was unable to make her acceptance speech, and West was removed from the show. When Beyoncé accepted her award for "Best Video of the Year" later in the show, she called Swift to the stage to finish her speech. West later apologized to Swift privately, and made a public apology on The Jay Leno Show.
If possible, the attention has made Swift an even hotter commodity. Her concert tickets now sell out in less than two minutes, and she is currently ranked as the 69th most powerful celebrity by Forbes magazine, with more than $18 million in earnings this year alone. She recently made her second appearance on comedy show Saturday Night Live, this time as both the host and musical guest. She has also been tapped for four CMA nominations in 2009—"Female Vocalist", "Music Video of the Year", "Best Album" and "Entertainer of the Year"— as well as six American Music Award nominations.
During much of 2008, reports circulated that Swift was dating Joe Jonas from the popular musical group The Jonas Brothers. Neither Swift nor Jonas has ever acknowledged the relationship. "He's an amazing guy, and anyone would be lucky to be dating him," Swift said at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards. Whatever their relationship, it seemed to turn sour by the time Fearless was released. The song, "Forever & Always," is reportedly about Jonas. Swift was romantically linked to actor Taylor Lautner, one of the stars of the successful Twilight saga. The pair reportedly met while filming Swift's big screen debut Valentine's Day, which hit theaters in February 2010.
Nicki Minaj
Quick Facts
NAME: Nicki Minaj
OCCUPATION:Rapper
BIRTH DATE:December 08, 1982 (Age: 30)
EDUCATION: La Guardia High School of Music and Art
PLACE OF BIRTH: Saint James, Trinidad and Tobago
Originally: Onika Tanya Maraj
ZODIAC SIGN:Sagittarius
Best Known For
Hip-hop artist Nicki Minaj was featured in seven songs on Billboard's Hot 100 at the same time, even before the release of her debut album in 2010.
Synopsis
Born in 1982, Nicki Minaj grew up with an abusive, drug-addicted father. After attending La Guardia High School for the Arts, she was introduced to rapper Lil Wayne, who launched her career. Her 2010 debut album, Pink Friday, and her single, "Your Love," topped the Billboard charts. A frequent "cameo" singer, Minaj's voice was featured in seven songs on Billboard's Hot 100 in 2010. In 2012, Minaj was announced as one of the new judges of the popular singing show American Idol (season 12).
Early Life
Hip-hop artist and singer Nicki Minaj was born Onika Tanya Maraj on December 8, 1982, in Saint James, Trinidad and Tobago, and moved with her family to Queens, New York, when she was 5 years old. Minaj's father was a severe drug addict with a long history of violence. At one point, he set fire to the family's home in a failed attempt to kill Minaj's mother. Those early struggles, Minaj has said, helped fuel her drive to rise above the life her parents knew. "I've always had this female-empowerment thing in the back of my mind," she told Details magazine, "because I wanted my mother to be stronger, and she couldn't be. I thought, 'If I'm successful, I can change her life.'"
To reach that point, however, the young Minaj developed personas for herself that would allow her to be a "new person." An early incarnation was someone she called "Cookie," then came "Harajuku Barbie," before finally settling on Nicki Minaj. "Fantasy was my reality," she has said. Minaj clearly had a knack for performance. At the age of 12, she authored her first rap, then went on to delve into acting at La Guardia High School of Music and Art, the school that inspired the movie Fame.
Rapper and Singer
Determined to make it in the music business, Minaj took on backup singing roles for local New York City rappers. Soon, she began writing her own material. She was eventually discovered by Dirty Money CEO Fendi, who came across Minaj's MySpace page, loved what he heard, and immediately signed her to his label.
That connection led Minaj to Lil Wayne, who collaborated with her on a series of mix tapes, the first of which, Playtime is Over, was released in April 2007. The recording, and subsequent mixed tapes, showcased Minaj's female swagger and out-front style.
By early 2010, considerable anticipation had built up around Minaj's much discussed, much covered debut album, which was scheduled for release that fall. In April of that year, she released her first single, "Massive Attack." Two months later she won Best Hip-Hop Female at the annual BET Awards. She dedicated the award to Lil Wayne.
In 2012, Minaj was announced as one of the newest cast members of American Idol; the singer will begin appearing on the popular television show in 2013 (season 12), as part of the show's judging panel.
Michael Jordan
Quick Facts
NAME:Michael Jeffrey Jordan
OCCUPATION:Basketball Player
BIRTH DATE:February 17, 1963 (Age: 49)
EDUCATION: Emsley A. Laney High School, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
PLACE OF BIRTH: Brooklyn, New York
AKA: Michael Jordan
Nickname: "Air Jordan"
Nickname: "Black Cat"
Nickname: "MJ"
Nickname: "His Airness"
ZODIAC SIGN:Aquarius
Best Known For
Michael Jordan is a former American basketball player who led the Bulls to six national championships and earned the NBA Most Valuable Player Award five times.
Synopsis
American basketball star Michael Jordan was born on February 17, 1963, in Brooklyn, New York. Jordan left college after his junior year to join the NBA. Drafted by the Chicago Bulls, he helped the team make it to the playoffs. For his efforts there, Jordan received the NBA Rookie of the Year Award. With five regular-season MVPs and three All-Star MVPs, Jordan became the most decorated player in the NBA.
Early Life
Professional basketball player, Olympic athlete, businessperson, actor. Born on February 17, 1963, in Brooklyn, New York. Considered one of the best basketball players ever, Michael Jordan dominated the sport from the mid-1980s to the late 1990s. He led the Chicago Bulls to six national championships, and earned the National Basketball Association's Most Valuable Player Award five times.
Growing up in Wilmington, North Carolina, Jordan developed a competitive edge at an early age. He wanted to win every game he played. As his father James later noted, "What he does have is a competition problem. He was born with that ... the person he tries to outdo most of the time is himself."
Jordan enrolled at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1981 and soon became an important member of the school's basketball team. His team won the NCAA Division I championships in 1982 with Jordan scoring the final basket needed to defeat Georgetown University. He was also singled out as the NCAA College Player of the Year in 1983 and in 1984.
During the summer of 1984, Jordan made his first appearance at the Olympic Games as a member of the U.S. Olympic basketball team. The team won the gold at the games that year, which were held in Los Angeles. Jordan later helped the American team bring home the gold medal at the 1992 Olympic Games, held in Barcelona, Spain.
NBA Superstar
Jordan left college after his junior year to join the NBA. Drafted by the Chicago Bulls, he soon proved himself on the court. He helped the team make it to the playoffs and scored an average of 28.2 points per game that season. For his efforts, Jordan received the NBA Rookie of the Year Award and was selected for the All-Star Game.
In 1985, he finished his bachelor's degree in geography and continued to play basketball professionally. While his second season was marred by injury, Jordan was breaking new ground on the court during the 1986-1987 season. He became the first player since Wilt Chamberlin to score more than 3,000 points in a single season. The following season, Jordan received his first Most Valuable Player Award from NBA—an honor he would earn four more times in 1991, 1992, 1996, and 1998.