Natasha Hamilton

Natasha Hamilton grew up in the Kensington area of Liverpool, and started singing and performing from the age of 12 in the Starlight Show Group. Hamilton says she was inspired by Marvin Gaye, Barry White and Quincy Jones. After Heidi Range left the early Atomic Kitten, Hamilton was offered the opportunity to replace her.

Hamilton dated Fran Cosgrave, a club owner and former bodyguard of Westlife. Natasha announced in April 2002 that she was pregnant, but she had no intention of leaving the group and wanted the scheduled 2002 tour to continue. She was featured in the video "The Tide Is High" with her last duty being the 2002 Party in the Park before finally going on maternity leave. On August 24, 2002 she gave birth to a boy, Josh Cosgrave. The pair split shortly after.

Hamilton was awarded Rear of the Year in 2003, the same year as the release of Atomic Kitten's third studio album, Ladies Night

Hamilton decided to take her baby with her on the 2003 tour with Atomic Kitten. However, on January 23, 2004, she decided to take a break from Atomic Kitten to spend more time with her son. Since then they have released several singles. On December 31, 2004, Hamilton gave birth to her second son, Harry Hatcher, whose father is dancer Gavin Hatcher. In July 2005, Hamilton and Hatcher split up, and she briefly returned to live with Cosgrave. By February 2006, they had split for a second time.

Hamilton made a return to music after appearing on the BBC1 television show, Just the Two of Us, which paired celebrities with recording artists to compete in a duet singing showdown. Eight couples competed before a panel of judges and the voting public. Hamilton was paired with Mark Moraghan, famous for his portrayal of Doctor Owen Davies in Holby City, and the pair came second. They performed classic songs like "Over the Rainbow" and "Do You Love Me". This was one of the first times that Natasha didn't perform pop songs and showed that she could perform Rock and roll and soul as well. The overall setting complete with petticoats gave the performance a 1960s feeling.

In addition to this, Hamilton is preparing to release her debut solo album in, her first material released since she was part of Atomic Kitten. The album will be in Motown-style and has been co-written with Christopher and Anthony Griffiths, Ciaron Bell, among others.

Since June 29, 2006, Hamilton has embarked on a road safety campaign with Brum and Minister Stephen Ladyman in order to make the streets safer for children under six years old. When Natasha was just three years old, she survived being hit by a car and is therefore passionate about making the roads safer for children.

On September 27, 2006, Hamilton announced her engagement to Riad Erraji. The couple married on November 24, 2007 at Crewe Hall Hotel with both of her Atomic Kitten members Jenny Frost and Liz McClarnon present. Hamilton has since said that Kerry Katona has not been invited stating that the two of them have drifted too far apart. In January 2008 Natasha found out she was expecting her third child but 6 weeks into the pregnancy she unfortunately miscarried.

Im March 2008 she was one of the many celebrities to be given the title of Yummy Mummy by the UK media. This was used by UK baby charity Tommy’s in a campaign called ‘Give Babies a Helping Hand’.

More recently, Natasha, under the name "Tash" has recorded a track with Mischa Daniels called 'Round and Round (Take Me Higher),' whose riff salutes to Crystal Waters 'Gypsy Woman.' The track has been included on the Ministry of Sound Compilation "Housexy: The Afterparty."

Courtesy Wikipedia