Kelli Young

Kelli Young (born 7 April 1981) is an English pop singer. She was a member and lead singer of British pop group Liberty X from 2001 until they split in 2007 and again in 2012 when they reformed for a one off reunion for an ITV2 series and performance at the Hammersmith Apollo.

Early life

She went to Derby High School, Littleover, until she was 16, when she moved to London. She is married to songwriter Iain James and they have twin boys born in July 2012. Her parents are Jamaican.

History

Career

While the five winning contestants of Popstars formed Hear'Say, the five runner-up contestants formed the group Liberty. The name Liberty was chosen to reflect the freedom the members experienced following their participation in Popstars. Amidst pejorative media commentary (including the term "Flopstars"), the act proceeded to sign a multi-million-pound record contract with Richard Branson's independent record label, V2 Records. Shortly after forming, Liberty received a legal challenge in the UK High Court from a funk R&B band, also called "Liberty", who achieved success in the 1990s, including being awarded Capital Radio Band of the Year, playing Wembley Arena, European tours and the release of albums in the UK, the US and Europe The original Liberty claimed that the newly formed Liberty was taking advantage of the goodwill that had been created by the former's success (known in English law as the "tort of passing off"). The final judgment was in favour of the funk R&B band and the ex-Popstars then asked readers of UK tabloid newspaper, The Sun to suggest a new name. The winning name was "X Liberty", but the group used the entry as the basis for the official title, "Liberty X".