Amanda Meta Marshall (born August 29, 1972) is a Canadian pop-rock singer. She has released three studio albums; the first was certified Diamond in Canada, with the latter two certified 3× Platinum and Platinum respectively. She is best known for her 1996 single, "Birmingham", which reached number 3 in Canada and was her only song to reach the US charts. Early life Marshall was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She grew up an only child, in her own words, "the product of an interracial marriage": her mother is from Trinidad, her father is Canadian. In several of her songs, Marshall has reflected on her racial identity "as a woman who looks white but is actually black". Marshall studied music extensively during her childhood, including at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. While performing on the Queen Street West bar scene in her teens, she met guitarist Jeff Healey, who was struck by her powerful voice and took her on tour for a long time. Career Debut album and critical success Marshall signed a recording contract with Metalblade Records in 1991, but both parties agreed that they were not a good fit and went their separate ways. In 1994, Marshall signed to Epic Records, and contributed to the Neil Young tribute album Borrowed Tunes: A Tribute to Neil Young the same year. Her debut album Amanda Marshall was released the following year in 1995. The album was a major success in Canada, generating a great deal of airplay and spawning six Top 40 hits—"Let It Rain", "Beautiful Goodbye", "Dark Horse", "Fall From Grace", "Sitting on Top of the World", and "Birmingham", her most successful hit in Canada and the only song to reach the US charts. In 1996, Marshall's song "This Could Take All Night" was included in the original soundtrack of Tin Cup. In 1997, Marshall's song "I'll Be Okay" was included in the original soundtrack of My Best Friend's Wedding. 1999–2000: Tuesday's Child and further success In 1999, she released a successful follow-up album, Tuesday's Child. It followed in the same vein as her debut, with a mix of soulful pop songs and ballads, characterizing her powerful voice. Her song "Ride" from that album was featured in The Replacements and on its soundtrack. In autumn 1999, she supported Whitney Houston on the European leg of her My Love Is Your Love World Tour. Another single from that album,