 Dance-pop singer Jessica Simpson was born and raised in
Dallas, TX, beginning her performing career as a member of her church choir; at
12, she also auditioned unsuccessfully for The Mickey Mouse Club. While
attending church camp the following summer, Jessica Simpson was discovered by
the head of a tiny CCM label, and spent the next three years recording her debut
album. The label, however, folded before the record could be released, although
a small pressing was eventually funded by her grandmother. Nevertheless, the
teen became a hit on the Christian Youth Conference circuit, also sharing bills
with Kirk Franklin, God's Property, and Ce Ce Winans.
Seeking to expand her popularity in the secular market,
Jessica Simpson later signed to Sony and toured in support of boy-band
sensations 98°. Her 1999 major-label debut Sweet Kisses launched the smash "I
Wanna Love You Forever." A second studio effort, Irresistible, appeared in
spring 2001. Despite the MTV coverage of the album's title track, Jessica
Simpson's sophomore effort didn't fare as well as her first album. The following
year, Jessica Simpson married her longtime boyfriend, 98° crooner Nick Lachey.
She also went on to appear in several episodes of That 70s Show, but it took
Jessica Simpson until summer 2003 to become a bona fide celebrity. She and
Lachey's MTV-produced reality show, Newlyweds, captured countless moments of the
couple's first year of marriage. Jessica Simpson's third album, the much more
mature In This Skin appeared in July. First single "Sweetest Sin" was a moderate
chart hit, but thanks to the success of Newlyweds, Jessica Simpson's teetering
career got a second chance. A second single, "With You," was a favorite among
the MTV crowd and by spring 2004, In This Skin was rereleased. It included
reworked versions of Berlin's "Take My Breath Away" and Robbie Williams'
"Angels" as well as additional footage from the first season of Newlyweds. ~
Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide
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