Taio Cruz is a British music producer, songwriter, singer and entrepreneur who rose to worldwide popularity with breakout singles Break Your Heart and Dynamite from his second studio album. Other successful collaborations include Higher with Kylie Minogue, Hangover with Flo Rida, Little Bad Girl with David Guetta and Dirty Picturewith Kesha. Fans frequently complain about Taio’s departure from the pop-R&B genre towards electronic music and often recall his debut solo studio album on social media, praising it as his finest work. He has a huge social media following with more than 1 million followers on YouTube and more than 2 million followers on Twitter.

Born name

Adetayo Ayowale Onile-Ere

nickname

Taio, Jacob Milan Taio Cruz, T. Onile-Ere

Alter

He was born on April 23, 1980.

However, Taio’s official website states that his year of birth is 1985.

Sun sign

Trails

Place of birth

London, England, United Kingdom

Residence

• South West London, England, United Kingdom
• He frequently travels to Los Angeles, USA and owns a home in Beverly Hills, California, USA.

nationality

training

He studied at Bilton Grange Preparatory School in the village of Dunchurch near Rugby, Warwickshire before moving to Battle Abbey in Sussex, followed by Christ’s Hospital boarding school in West Sussex, England.

Taio studied entertainment law in college before entering the music business.

occupation

Singer, Songwriter, Music Producer, Graphic Designer, Fashion Designer, Entrepreneur

family

• Father – Honey Onile-Ere (Corporate Attorney, Legal & Corporate Advisor, Import/Export Entrepreneur)
• Mother – Vera Cruz (Former Hairdressing Business Owner)
• Siblings – Nathan Cruz (Older Brother)

Manager

Taio is represented by –

• Lateral management
• 360 Media Touring
• Smuggling entertainment and events
• Web Sheriff, London, UK

Genre

R&B, Hip Hop, Pop, Tanz

instruments

Lead & Backing Vocals, Piano, Guitar, Bass, Trombone, Drums

labels

• Rokstarr
• Island Records
• Republic Records
• Mercury Records
• Tourean
• Warner Brothers Records
• Universal Music Group

To build

Average

Height

179 cm (5 ft 10.5 in)

weight

84 kg or 185 lbs

girlfriend/spouse

The singer keeps his dating life private and frequently describes himself as a stay-at-home woman. He has had a public relationship with only one woman while the media speculated on the possibility of a brief relationship with Cheryl.

1. Roxanne Horner aka Roxy (2009–2011, 2013) – Taio started dating British model Roxy since she was in her late teens. They were first seen together publicly in 2009 and split in 2011. The paparazzi began speculating about a possible reconciliation when the couple went on a dinner date in 2013. The model also dated TOWIE star Joey Essex in 2013 and Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio in 2016.
2. Cheryl Ann Tweedy (2011) – Taio was featured in one of the songs from singer Cheryl’s album in 2009 and the two artists collaborated again in 2011. During the second collaboration, Cheryl had recently divorced her husband, Ashley Cole, ending their four-year marriage. Heat magazine reported on a possible rebound relationship between Cheryl and Taio. However, the artist told MTV the rumors weren’t true, although he would have liked it if Cheryl had actually been his girlfriend. Taio gifted Cheryl a black and gold RXTR “R1” watch from his company and clicked a picture to promote the brand on his official Twitter account, which was responsible for sparking dating rumors.

race/ethnicity

Multiracial (Black and Latino)

He has Nigerian ancestry on his father’s side and Brazilian ancestors on his mother’s side.

hair colour

Schwarz

eye color

dark brown

sexual orientation

Just

distinguishing features

• Soft countertenor voice
• Usually given a close-cropped hairstyle
• Likes to wear flashy sunglasses, watches and belts (calls himself the “Accessories King”)
• Likes to wear black clothes

brand promotion

• He frequently promotes his business activities under the following brand names Taio Cruz London , Tourean Consulting, Kewe Social Media Application, Quattro Volte Vodka.
• Alongside his ventures, the artist has confirmed previous partnerships with brands such as Universal Music Group , Guinness , Audi , Nivea , MINI , Harmon/Kardon , BMW , Coca Cola , Vevo , Formula 1 , Johnnie Walker , and Samsung .

Known for

• His debut album is called Departure (2008) which achieved certified ‘Gold’ status in the UK. All songs were written, arranged and produced by Taio himself.
• Collaborated with many musicians for his second album Rockstarr (2009) with Kesha, Luciana, Kylie Minogue and rappers Ludacris and Tinchy Stryder
• His singles Dynamite and Break Your Heart That topped the US Billboard charts and brought Taio worldwide popularity

First album

He released his debut album entitled Departure on March 17, 2008.

First TV show

He made his first TV show appearance as a guest discussant on British daytime talk show called The Wright Stuff in 2008.

Taio Cruz favorite things

• Accessory – Black Hermes belt with a silver “H” on the buckle
• Artwork – Leonardo da Vinci’s “Vitruvian Man”
• Building – Apple Store in New York
• Book – How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
• Action Movie – Independence Day (1996)
• Promi-Crush – Megan Fox
• Komiker – Jimmy Carr
• Bands – Take that, Coldplay

Taio Cruz Facts

1. Before Taio pursued his profession as a musician, he wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a lawyer.
2. As a child, he describes himself as shy and a shy introvert. Because his father was often away on business, he spent most of his childhood in the company of women, including his mother and her sisters. Overwhelmed by her presence, he usually spent time alone in his room.
3. He started writing songs and learned to use digital production software at the age of 12.
4. Taio landed his first publishing deal with DefJam Recordings in his late teens. A record label talent scout heard Taio’s demo tape playing in the background when he called his girlfriend, who also happened to be Taio’s girlfriend and was listening to his music.
5. With the help of Def Jam’s representative, Taio flew to Atlanta, Georgia, USA to begin his songwriting career with Tricky Stewart, owner of RedZone Entertainment.
6. He received his first recognition in 2005 when he won the BRIT award for co-writing Will Young’s single Your Game released in 2004.
7. Taio narrowly missed recording global hit single Umbrella The song was first rejected by Britney Spears, after which Taio recorded a demo version. However, his boss, Tricky Stewart, performed it for Jay-Z, who immediately booked this song for Rihanna.
8. In 2009, Taio began selling sunglasses under the Rokstarr brand and later rebranded the label as RXTR Watches and enclose a clothesline. In 2015 he retired from this business to focus on other businesses.
9. The singer has written songs for celebrated musicians such as Nitin Sawhney, Tinchy Stryder, McFly, Nightcrawler, David Guetta, Jennifer Lopez, Cheryl, Cody Simpson, Keshia Chanté, Nick Jonas and Olly Murs.
10. Carry On was Taio’s second single and to this day he regrets wearing the brightly colored clothes his stylist chose for the music video because they misrepresented his actual personality.
11. The songwriter-singer loves shopping and frequents the Auto Fridges department store in London.
12. He cried while watching the end of The Pursuit of Happyness (2006) with Will Smith.
13. Taio performed at the Closing Ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
14. His social media app Kewe (pronounced kiwi) combines the offerings of Instagram, Snapchat, Spotify and SoundCloud for easier content creation and monetization.
15. Despite a career in the entertainment industry,Taio dislikes filming himself and doesn’t like being in the spotlight. He has a natural inclination to work behind the scenes on a creative or entrepreneurial project.
16. Few know that Taio is also a proficient graphic designer and editor.
17. To learn more about the artist, visit his official website @ taiocruz.com.
18. Follow him on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and Kewe.