Annemie Coenen
Annemie Anne Francine Coenen (born 14 July 1978 in Herk-de-Stad) is a singer, producer and Belgian composer best known for her role in the group AnnaGrace (formerly known as Ian Van Dahl). She has an older sister, Tiny.
In her youth she sang in school musical comedies and choral in Antwerp. Her singing skills were first put to the test when she joined a dance band at the age of 17. At this early stage of her life she hoped to become a fashion designer, and aimed to enter a prestigious fashion school at Antwerp. To this end, she worked a variety of odd jobs around Antwerp with the hopes of raising enough funds to pay for this education. One of her friends, bothered by the amount of work Coenen was doing, invited her to Ibiza and while there exposed her to the multifaceted styles found within the dance scene.
When she did return to Belgium, Coenen recorded a demo which she said was mainly "just for fun." However, the demo came to the attention of Stefan Wuyts, representing the A&R label, who was looking for a vocalist for a song called Castles in the Sky which was meant to be part of a new Belgian project called Ian Van Dahl. Since her joining the group in 2001, it has sold four million CDs and singles worldwide. She was the main vocalist in the albums Ace and Lost and Found.
In early July 2007, it was announced that Ian Van Dahl's third album was completed, but instead will be released as Coenen's solo debut album produced by Peter Luts.
Since June 2008, Coenen and Luts are members of the new dance project Annagrace.