Born and raised in Berkeley Vale, New South Wales prior to moving to Sydney at 15, Imbruglia left school at 16 to focus on her acting career. Following a few high-profile television commercials, she landed a role in the infamous Australian soap opera “Neighbours”, however left the show after two seasons. Imbruglia subsequently moved to London, England and recorded a four-track demo which resulted in the singer signing a four-year deal with BMG publishing.
Ahead of releasing her debut album, Imbruglia issued the single “Torn”, the result of which could not have been anticipated. The Ednaswap cover topped the Billboard Airplay chart for 14 weeks, broke the record for most UK airplay in history, and sold over a million copies. Imbruglia was subsequently catapulted to international notoriety, which she rode the wave of by releasing her debut full-length “Left of the Middle” in December 1997. Selling over 350,000 units in three weeks, the record was another hit, and ended up selling more than similar acts Alanis Morissette, Fiona Apple, and Meredith Brooks combined. Subsequent singles included the No. 2 “Big Mistake”, No. 19 “Wish I Was There”, and No. 5 “Smoke”, after which the singer embarked on an extensive world wide tour.
Following a short hiatus battling with writer’s block, Imbruglia returned in 2001 to release her sophomore album “White Lilies Island”. Led by the single “That Day”, the record was a stylistic advance on her debut however was unable to repeat its success. Having recorded a third album by November 2003, Imbruglia’s label refused to release the rock-influenced record, and the singer departed the label in early 2004. The Australian-born singer subsequently signed with Brightside Recordings, who ultimately issued her third full-length “Counting Down the Days” in April 2005. The record’s first single “Shiver” charted at No. 8 on the UK Singles Chart representing her longest-running hit since “Torn”. Following the release Imbruglia embarked on a modest European tour, which for the most part was sold out.
In 2009 the singer began collaborating with Coldplay’s Chris Martin, the fruit of which was the singles “My God” and “Apologise”. A later single, “Want”, co-written my Martin, turned out to be the lead single from her independently-released fourth album “Come to Life”. Released in October 2009 excluding the UK, the album charted at No. 67 on the Australian Albums Chart and No. 25 on the Russian.
She’s not the only former star of Neighbours to have launched a musical career - perhaps there was something in the water on set - but Natalie Imbruglia remains a prominent celebrity figure in both her native Australia and the UK, despite the fact that it’d be fairly easy to dismiss her foray into pop as offering up little more than a one-hit wonder. Back in 1997, the single ‘Torn’ from her debut album, Left of the Middle, was a success all over the world, receiving significant airplay in the U.S., landing at number two on the UK charts and managing the same position in her homeland, too. Contrary to popular belief, the track was actually a cover of U.S. band Ednaswap, but quickly became Imbruglia’s signature song. She’s failed to match its success with anything she’s released since, though, despite the fact that she’s continued to record; a top ten placing for her 2005 single ‘Shiver’ suggested a potential comeback, but that ultimately fizzled out, with her fourth album, 2009’s Come to Life, scrapped in the UK alongside a slew of planned tour dates. Currently, she’s looking to return next year with a fifth studio album; British dates might well follow, but unlike in her native Australia, she’ll have to start back from the intimate venues again if she’s genuinely set for a turnaround in fortunes.