Birgit Dieckmann, known professionally as Billie Ray Martin, is a German singer and songwriter, known for her single "Your Loving Arms", which reached the top 10 of both the UK Singles Chart (#6) and the Irish Singles Chart (#8) in 1995, and reached number one on the US Dance Club Chart. She was also one of the vocalists on the S'Express UK top 10 hit single "Hey Music Lover" (1989), and had UK top 40 hits as lead vocalist of Electribe 101 with "Tell Me When the Fever Ended" (1989) and "Talking with Myself" (1990), and as a solo singer with "Running Around Town" (1995) and "Imitation of Life" (1996). Early life Born in Hamburg, West Germany, she grew up near Reeperbahn, St. Pauli, in the city's red-light district. She lived with her working-class grandparents, who exposed her to Elvis Presley and German schlager music. Career Career beginnings In the early 1980s, Billie Ray Martin moved to Berlin. It was the time of electronic bands like Cabaret Voltaire, Throbbing Gristle and the early Human League, shaping Martin's conceptions of music. Simultaneously, she encountered the soul music of Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, Aretha Franklin and the Motown revival. In Berlin, she formed an eleven piece soul and sixties inspired band called Billie and the Deep. Their live shows became very popular in Berlin in 1985–86. After these experiences, Billie Ray Martin moved to London, where she placed an ad in Melody Maker reading "soul rebel seeks musical genius". The ad led to a meeting with four men from Birmingham who had been looking for a voice to add to their music, resulting in the formation of Electribe 101. The band returned to Birmingham, where they recorded their first song, entitled "Talking with Myself", releasing it as a 12" single on their own Hipnotic label. It was noticed by manager Tom Watkins (who managed Pet Shop Boys, Bros and East 17). Electribe 101 signed with Watkins, and his label Phonogram Records. Meanwhile, Billie Ray Martin had met DJ Mark Moore who invited her to the studio to work with his band S'Express. Martin contributed to three songs on their debut album Original Soundtrack: "Pimps, Pushers and Prostitutes", "L'Age du Gateau" and "Hey Music Lover" (retitled 'Music Lover' in the US). The latter became the third S'Express single, and a top 10 UK hit (reaching #6), giving Martin her first Top of