SEVEN
After multiple gold records sold, 65 weeks in the album charts, several Top 10 hits on the radio, over 600 concerts and more than 500,000 concert-goers, it's time to look back to where Seven’s career began.
When his six years older brother founded a band at the age of 17 and realized that they needed a singer, Seven was the perfect and obvious choice! Already then, he would be found humming and singing around the band room! Son of a tenor and a pianist, writing lyrics and composing music was an in-born natural habit for Seven. During high school he was also part of the ensemble “Natural Acapella”. After several appearances on Swiss National TV, they were soon booked out for three whole years! Simultaneously, the band progressed further and by 18 years old, Seven had grown into a genuinely talented singer/songwriter.
His first album “Dedicated to” exceeded all expectations and an exciting and turbulent year followed during which he went on a successful club tour throughout Switzerland with DJ Flink. In Autumn 2002, SEVEN presented “Dedicated to...” for the first time to the audience in Zürich’s renowned club Xtra as supporting act of Bilal. A tour followed which included his memorable performance as supporting act for Destiny’s Child. During this period, he also started to work on his second album. On May 24, 2004, the album “Seven Soul” was released, reflecting a more mature sound from Seven. The first album single release, “Synthetic Soul”, climbed to number 29 on the single charts and the album reached number 35. A considerable achievement for an artist who wasn’t yet fully established in Switzerland. This was soon to change in the course of the year with his SevenSoul Tour during which he proved his live performance skills once and for all. He gained more and more radio airplay with songs such as “Synthetic Soul”, “Friends”, “Make u Happy” and “This Time” and became increasingly popular with the media. In recognition of his incredible talent, Seven received the “Award for Best Newcomer” which was presented to him on November 16, 2004 at the AVO SESSION Basel by the SUISA Foundation. He was praised by the Jury which consisted of various personalities from the Swiss music scene as the new discovery for Swiss Funk, Soul and R&B and as a true entertainer with significant talent for songwriting and performing. On the same night SEVEN performed in front of a sold out venue as supporting act of Lionel Richie. The following December, he appeared again together with various Swiss stars at the Bluewin Music Session in Zurich.
Motivated to no end, Seven set about deepening his passion for music even more. The result being his third album “Lovejam”, released in March 2005. A high quality, sensuous and appealing diary of love, “Lovejam” entered the Swiss top ten album charts from 0 to 9. After spending a successful year on his “Lovejam Tour”, 2005 ended with a sensational UK DEBUT concert at the infamous CARGO Club in London. His performance made such a huge impact that as a result he was asked to play at the opening night of Robert Redford’s Sundance Film Festival in UTAH in January, 2006. In 2005 & 2006, Seven was also invited to perform at the international Media and Entertainment Rose d’Or Festival at the prestigious UNICEF Gala, attended by many prominent guests from all over the world.
Seven realized how his performance was attracting interest within an international environment. In turn, his confidence grew, encouraging him to embark on a new adventure to produce his next album overseas. Seven spent most of 2006 devoting his time to composing and writing new songs and recorded at some of the top studios in the USA. His fourth and much-awaited studio album "Home“ was finally released on February 24th, 2007. “Home” entered the Swiss Charts straight in at Nr. 5 and went GOLD by the end of the year! “Home” marked an important milestone in Seven’s international career. His perseverance and hard work during is US visit paid off. His talents not only convinced legendary and contemporary musicians but also the cream of soul producers to collaborate on this new album. “Home” won an impressive line-up of featured artists, namely former Prince band members - the great Sheila E , Mike Scott, Eric Leeds as well as vocal features by the exquisite soul queens Conya Doss and Tamar Davis. Producers include Commissioner Gordon, (Grammy Award winner, Lauryn Hill Album “Miseducation of Lauryn Hill“); Keith Crouch & Rashaan Patterson (award winners for productions with Brandy and Toni Braxton); James Poyser and Ivan “Orthodox“ Barias & Carvin “Ransum“ Haggins (who have worked with the crème de la crème of soul artists like D’Angelo, Erykah Badu, Mariah Carey, Jill Scott, Angie Stone, Musiq and Leela James); the „master of groove“, Myron and last but not least, the legendary Larry Gold on strings.
Boasting a string of sold out album-release concerts, the Summer 2007 further seduced new and old SEVEN fans as he took the main stage at major open airs festivals around Switzerland, including an unforgettable performance at the legendary Montreux Jazz Festival. Shortly after, the track "On and On" was voted record of the week by BBC Three Counties listeners! Further highlights included two special concerts in Berlin at the Swiss Embassy and later at the MTV Housewarming Party. As part of his official Autumn Clubtour 2007, Seven and Band were invited to open the “Best of British Urban Night” as Special Guests at the historical Birmingham Town Hall. Also during this period, the 3rd radio album single "Golden Stairs" became an instant hit in Switzerland and on 16 November 2007 a special edition of the album “Home” was released in Japan.
Not surprisingly, 2008 took off to an exciting start for Seven. He was nominated in the categories "Best Urban Album National" and "Best Video Clip National" for the Swiss Music Awards. In March, the bonanza production “SEVEN - THE SHOW IV” was a highlight on the Swiss social calendar, with Tamar Davis, Conya Doss and former PRINCE sax player, Eric Leeds as special guests. Seven then began working on his new album, this time produced on home-ground. On February 27th, 2009 his masterpiece "Like A Rocket" was released and entered the Swiss charts straight in at Nr. 2. Within the first week of release the album went Gold. Featured artists include the British soul star Beverley Knight, Omar, the U.S. rapper Talib Kweli and AMG. The first single, "Lisa" made became a huge hit and the "Go Slow" remix with world famous DJ Premier became a club favourite.
The attitude and style reflected in the album "Like a Rocket" was well apparent during the whole release tour at top venues and festivals as well as during his Autumn Clubtour. SEVEN proved he had matured as a person and as a musician and entertainer, establishing himself as one of the best live acts in Switzerland. By now, his outstanding talents not only were popular with his fans and the media nationwide. He also began to make his mark as a trendsetter and this charisma won him recognition and sponsoring partnerships to represent top brands.
In 2010, hIs convincing stage presence continued to open doors, including an invitation to perform at the famous ice-skating event “Art on Ice” in Zurich Hallenstadium, where he sang live in front of 10’000 people each show, accompanied by World Champion ice-skater performances. A truly amazing experience especially as it was later followed by the contrast of his first small theater tour program in March, “Acoustic Stories”. Thanks to his enormous creativity, versatility and love for the stage, Seven discovered a new passion of bringing his music on a more intimate level to his audience with an “unplugged” story of his musical journey so far. After appearing on 17 stages of well-known small theaters around Switzerland, Seven knew that this path of expressing his music was to be further pursued. In April 2010, Seven received the prestigious Swiss “Prix Walo” Award as Best Artist in the category Soul and Pop Music. Seven was unable to personally pick up his Award as this special day was to take on even more importance, it was the birth of his son!
Career-wise, Seven also began an exciting new era by moving from his independent label to the international label, Sony Music Entertainment Switzerland. This amazing opportunity opened doors to other territories, with first steps being Germany and Austria. Shortly after this breakthrough transfer, Seven brought out his new highly-acclaimed “unplugged” album with new versions of all his hits over the past 10 years. The album, beautifully produced, boasts pure soul music with the clear-cut, raw and honest voice of Seven, accompanied by the convincing instrumental sounds of the double bass, cello, piano and acoustic guitar. The album release tour proved to be an amazing experience towards the end of 2010. The stage set in an old traditional steel factory, creating a contrasting but stylish ambience as sharp as the live performances themselves, with dress code – Black Tie.
2011 started off with Seven, along with other Swiss personalities, participating in the nationwide Hunger Campaign for Unicef Switzerland. For over the past fives years, Seven has been an active and respected supporter for key Unicef events.
In March, Seven opened the Swiss Tennis Zürich Open, welcoming tennis stars such as Pete Sampras, Stefan Edberg, Goran Ivanisevic, Mark Philippoussis, Henri Leconte, John McEnroe, Tim Henman, Thomas Muster and Michael Stich.
Due to popular demand, Spring marked the beginning of a national “unplugged” tour, again following the intimate settings and dress code as in December 2010. Further highlights included a video with hundreds of fans interacting with Seven and filming during his live performance of the track “Yes” during an open air concert outside the KKL Concert Hall situated at the Lake of Lucerne. The outcome was incredible!
On 22nd July, 2011, the time was finally ripe for an album release in Germany. With a fine selection of his most personal songs from his existing albums in Switzerland, 12 tracks were partially rearranged and newly mastered. The crowning result being the new album “Focused”. Shortly after, Seven & Band convinced new fans on the Radio Antenna MV stage at the famous maritime festival Hanse Sail in Rostock. It was the first “live” concert in Germany launching “Focused”. Subsequently, Seven was offered a slot to tour with Annie B. Sweet at the end of September. He and his band won over the German public in five main cities, namely Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Konstanz & Munich. The tour was a great success and the next set of concerts are already being planned!
Just a few days before going on his German tour, a dream came true for Seven when he shared the impressive stage of the famous Concert Hall KKL in Lucerne, Switzerland with the 70-piece 21st Century Orchestra. Both concerts were sold out immediately. The superbly conducted performances wove all musical sections together, producing an aural tapestry of the finest for over two hours. Reaching high standards of dramatic and emotional conviction assisted by excellent light and sound engineering, Seven, his band and the orchestra were rewarded by standing ovations and cheers of encores.
After such a bonanza over the past months, things certainly do not come to a halt for Seven. On the contrary! He will spend October in the USA, already preparing for his brand new album due to come out next year and to take the opportunity to meet up with key figures in the music industry.