Lewis has become a multi-platinum selling artist and three time Grammy Award nominee. She was proclaimed 'Top New Artist' by Billboard magazine in 2008. Her two albums Spirit and Echo, released in 2007 and 2009 respectively, have collectively sold in excess of 10 million copies worldwide and topped the charts in numerous countries. Lewis's debut tour, The Labyrinth, took place in 2010. As of December 2012, Lewis has sold 28 million records worldwide. Her third album Glassheart was released 12 October 2012. It was preceded by the single "Collide", which became her seventh top-five hit in the UK. With the release of Hurt: The EP and "Trouble", Lewis has had nine top-ten hits in the UK.
Lewis' debut single A Moment Like This became the fastest selling UK single after being downloaded over 50,000 times within thirty minutes of its release. Her second single, Bleeding Love, reached number one positions in over thirty singles charts around the world. In November 2008 she set a record in the UK for the fastest selling download-only release with her cover version of the Snow Patrol song Run which sold 69,244 copies in two days. Lewis's debut tour, The Labyrinth, started in 2010.
Lewis was born in the London Borough of Islington, to Aural Josiah "Joe" Lewis of Afro-Guyanese descent, and Maria Lewis of Welsh, Italian and Irish descent. Her parents enrolled her at the Sylvia Young Theatre School, and from there she attended the Italia Conti Academy and the BRIT School, where she learned to play instruments such as the guitar and piano, in the hope of becoming a singer-songwriter. Lewis wrote her first full-length song at the age of 12. She initially trained in opera, but went on to singing jazz and blues, eventually leading to popular music, citing Minnie Riperton, Eva Cassidy and Stevie Wonder as her main influences. After leaving the BRIT School at 17, she took a number of jobs to fund studio time, recording a demo album called Twilight. The album, almost exclusively comprising her own compositions, was recorded under Spiral Music, a production company based in Fulham. "I tried to secure a record deal by doing things my own way. I worked very hard but I never managed to land a contract", said Lewis. Other demos were recorded under licence from UEG Entertainment, later included on an album called Best Kept Secret. However, none of Lewis's demos were released and she considered taking a hiatus from her music career to attend university until her boyfriend persuaded her to enter The X Factor which subsequently severed her connections with UEG.
Songfacts says that Collide, the first single from Leona Lewis's third album finds her taking a more dance pop route than on her previous material. She said, "I'm excited for people to see a different side to my music. I'm a fan of so many different genres and styles. For me this song has all the great ingredients of a summer anthem." The song got its first play on Scott Mills' Radio One show on July 15, 2011 and will be released on September 4, 2011.
Lewis' third studio album, Glassheart, is due for release in 2012.
Stop the Clocks
Leona Lewis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I wanna cry until I laugh and laugh until I cry...
Don't wanna let a single moment of you pass me by;
If only I could freeze the frame, you know that I would stay right here for good...
I, I wanna stop the clocks tonight,
I, I wanna tear the hands right off;
I, I hope the sun forgets to rise;
I, I won't ever leave your side...
I, I wanna stop the clocks tonight, and stay right here for good...
I'd rather spend my life motionless with you than dancing with another... ooh, oh...
I wanna cry until I laugh and laugh until I cry...
Don't wanna let a single moment of you pass me by;
If only I could freeze the frame, you know that I would stay right here for good...
I, I wanna stop the clocks tonight,
I, I wanna tear the hands right off;
I, I wanna stop the world from turning, and stay right here for good...
I, I hope the sun forgets to rise;
I, I won't ever leave your side...
I, I wanna stop the clocks tonight, and stay right here for good...
For good...
Stay...
I, I wanna stop the clocks tonight,
I, I wanna tear the hands right off;
I, I wanna stop the world from turning, and stay right here for good...
I, I hope the sun forgets to rise;
I, I won't ever leave your side...
I, I wanna stop the clocks tonight, and stay right here for good...
I, I wanna stop the clocks tonight,
I, I wanna tear the hands right off;
I, I wanna stop the world from turning...
The lyrics to Leona Lewis's song "Stop the Clocks" speak to a desire to freeze time and stay in a moment of love forever. The line "Sitting on the car, staring at the stars, leaning on your shoulder" conjures up an image of two people enjoying each other's company while taking in the beauty of the night sky. The singer expresses a desire to hold onto this moment forever and not let any time with her partner slip away.
The chorus of the song repeats the desire to stop time with lines like "I wanna tear the hands right off" and "I wanna stop the world from turning." The singer wants to hold onto this perfect moment forever, and even goes as far as to say that she hopes the sun forgets to rise so that she can stay in this moment with her partner. The verses of the song continue to express the singer's love and desire to be with her partner, even if it means sacrificing other experiences.
Overall, the lyrics to "Stop the Clocks" capture a timeless feeling of wanting to hold onto love and cherish a moment forever. The singer's desire to freeze time with her partner is relatable and speaks to the power of love to make us feel like nothing else matters in the world.
Line by Line Meaning
Sitting on the car, staring at the stars, leaning on your shoulder...
I am sitting on the car, looking at the stars, and leaning on your shoulder.
I wanna cry until I laugh and laugh until I cry...
I want to experience the full range of emotions with you.
Don't wanna let a single moment of you pass me by;
I don't want to miss any moment I spend with you.
If only I could freeze the frame, you know that I would stay right here for good...
If only I could stop time, I would stay here with you forever.
I, I wanna stop the clocks tonight,
I want to stop time for us tonight.
I, I wanna tear the hands right off;
I want to destroy the clocks so we can stay together.
I, I wanna stop the world from turning, and stay right here for good...
I want to stop the world so we can always be together.
I, I hope the sun forgets to rise;
I hope the sun doesn't rise so we can stay together longer.
I, I won't ever leave your side...
I will never leave you.
I'd rather spend my life motionless with you than dancing with another... ooh, oh...
I would rather spend my life standing still with you than dancing with anyone else.
Contributed by Dylan N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.