Career
Kristine Weitz was crowned Miss Washington in 1981 and won a non-finalist talent award at the 1982 Miss America pageant earning her a college scholarship. She was also the preliminary swimsuit winner.
She spent several years performing in Las Vegas lounges before being "discovered." "Kristine W and the Sting," her band in the late '80s and into the '90s, performed at the Silver Slipper Casino, at The Mint Las Vegas, the Las Vegas Hilton and Studio 54 at the MGM Grand. She was signed to RCA Records in the U.S. and she began work on an album which would be a collaboration with Rollo Armstrong and Rob D. Her second single, "One More Try", was issued two years later, in 1996 with remixes by Junior Vasquez, Rollo, Sister Bliss, David Morales, and Stonebridge. This single not only hit #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart, it also crossed over to pop radio, reaching #78 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. When her album, Land Of The Living was released, Kristine W held a free concert at the Virgin Megastore in New York City.
The second single was the title track from the album, and featured remixes by Junior Vasquez, Rollo, Sister Bliss, Dekkard, Lisa Marie Experience, and Deep Dish. This single also reached #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. In 1997, instead of releasing a third single from the album, Champion issued new remixes of "Feel What You Want" by Vasquez, Dekkard, Maddlads, and Rollo. An additional unreleased remix was produced by Jonathan Peters which was one of the most popular tracks at his Friday night DJ residency. Junior Vasquez was also asked to produce remixes her songs "Don't Wanna Think" and "Sweet Mercy Me", which weren't released commercially but instead distributed to select DJs, making them regional club hits in the New York metro area, particularly at Vasquez' weekly parties.
Her follow up album Stronger would not be released until 2000. Despite the fact that four years had passed since her last album, the first single from the album, the title track, reached #1 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart on the strength of remixes by Johnny Vicious, Junior Vasquez and Rollo. The single featured an additional remix of her song "Clubland" by Thunderpuss. The second single, "Lovin' You" also reached #1 on the Club Play chart, with remixes by Hex Hector, Junior Vasquez, and Johnny Vicious.
According to the biography posted on her official website, Kristine W spent two years battling leukemia before going back into the studio to record her third album. Prior to the album's release, a remix produced by Hani of the song "Letting Go" (the original version of which appeared on the album) was given to select DJs making it another of Kristine W's unreleased remix hits. The album, Fly Again was released in October 2003 by Tommy Boy Records Silver Label, and the lead single, prouduced and remixed by The Scumfrog and featuring mixes by Vasquez and Ralphi Rosario, gave her yet another #1 Club Play single. The second single, "Save My Soul" was remixed by a virtual who's-who of popular remixers, including Junior Vasquez, Mike Cruz, Gabriel & Dresden, Orange Factory, and Cypher. It too reached #1 on the Club Play chart, and marked Kristine W's return to radio, reaching #25 on the Billboard Hot Dance Airplay chart.
The third single, "The Wonder Of It All", was remixed by DJ Offer Nissim, DJ Escape, Gomi, Ivan Pavlin, and Mr Mig. The #1 success of "The Wonder Of It All" gave Kristine the all-time record for the longest string of consecutive #1 Billboard Hot Dance Club Play hits in the history of the chart. It reached #21 on the Billboard Hot Dance Airplay chart.
The fourth single, "I'll Be Your Light" interrupted Kristine's streak of consecutive #1's, peaking at only #2 on the Club Play chart. However, it is an achievement as few artists have had all of their singles become Top 20 or better. With Tony Moran being the exception, the single was not remixed by as many big-name remixers as Kristine W's past singles. Still, the song was another radio crossover hit for her, reaching #17 on the Billboard Hot Dance Airplay chart, making it her highest charting single on that chart to date, and her first foray into that chart's Top 20. The CD single was released as an enhanced CD with DJ mixing software to enabling fans to create their own remixes.
Read more about this topic: Kristine W
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