What is India Arie's Net Worth?
India Arie is an American singer-songwriter and record producer who has a net worth of $4 million. India Arie is a renowned Grammy Award-winning artist adored by fans and praised by critics. As of this writing, she has won four Grammy Awards out of 23 nominations, sold 5 million albums in the US, and millions more worldwide. India released her debut album, "Acoustic Soul," in 2001. The album eventually went platinum and spawned hit singles like "Video," "Brown Skin," and "Ready For Love." One year later followed the release of her sophomore album, "Voyage to India." Next, she released the album "Testimony," which, even though it was meant to be a double release, was split into two separate pieces, Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship (2006) and Testimony: Vol. 2, Love & Politics (2009). Then, after a lengthy hiatus, Arie saw the release of her fifth studio album, "SongVersation," in the summer of 2013. India Arie has also collaborated with many major figures in music, including Stevie Wonder, Elton John, John Mellencamp, Bruce Springsteen, Ashley Judd, and John Legend.
Early Life
Arie was born on October 3, 1975, in Denver, Colorado, to parents Joyce and Ralph Simpson. She was obviously very musically talented from a young age, and her parents encouraged her to develop her skills as she got older. Her mother was a former singer who was signed to Motown and used to sing as an opener for Stevie Wonder and Al Green. She grew up with her older brother, J'On, and younger sister, Mary.
Arie's parents got divorced, and her mother moved the family to Atlanta, Georgia, when she was 13. It was there that Arie's talents were more fully developed as she began playing and practicing a variety of instruments in earnest. She eventually enrolled at Savannah College of Art and Design. There, she became more interested in playing the guitar and in singing and songwriting.
Career
Arie co-founded the Atlanta-based independent music collective Groovement EarthShare. The collective released a compilation of music in 1998. Arie sang one song on the compilation, which helped her develop a small fan base and led to her getting booked on a second stage at the 1998 Lilith Fair. In 1999, a Universal/Motown music scout signed her the following year.
In March of 2001, Arie released her debut album, "Acoustic Soul." The album was both a critical and commercial success, debuting at number 10 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart. It also debuted in the third spot on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Despite the fact that the album did not receive a ton of concentrated radio airplay, Arie had developed a devoted fan base. The album was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, selling over two million copies in the United States and over three million worldwide. It was also certified gold in England and platinum in Canada. The album featured the singles "Video" and "Brown Skin." Arie and "Acoustic Soul" were nominated for seven different Grammy Awards in 2002, though she ultimately did not win any. However, she did close the ceremony with a performance of her song "Video."
Following the success of her debut album, Arie released "Voyage to India, her second album, in September 2002. It debuted at number six on the Billboard 2000 and also topped the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. The Recording Industry Association of America certified the album platinum. At the 2003 Grammy Awards, it won Best R&B Album, and the single "Little Things" won Best Urban/Alternative Performance. Additionally, the song "Get It Together" was featured on many film soundtracks, including "Brown Sugar" in 2002 and "Shark Tale" in 2004.
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In 2005, Arie was featured on Stevie Wonder's album, "A Time to Love." The two performed a duet together, written by Arie, called "A Time to Love." The track was nominated for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals at the 2006 Grammy Awards. In 2006, she released her third album, "Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship." The album went on to be certified gold in the United States. She collaborated with Akon on the song "I Am Not My Hair," which became the album's most successful track.
She released her next album in 2009, called "Testimony: Vol. 2, Love & Politics." It debuted in the third spot on the Billboard 200 and the second spot on the R&B chart. The album featured a number of collaborations with artists like Sezen Aksu, Keb Mo, Gramps Morgan, and Musiq Soulchild. It was also her first self-produced album following her label. The same year, she also portrayed singer Nina Simone in a stage reading at the Roundabout Theatre Company of the Broadway musical, "Soul Doctor." The play detailed the life of Shlomo Carlebach and was written by Daniel Wise.
In 2010, Arie was one of over 70 artists to sing on "We Are the World: 25 for Haiti," a charity single in aid of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. She also contributed vocals to the song "Imagine" for the 2010 Herbie Hancock album, "The Imagine Project." She was also featured as a guest vocalist on Carlos Santana's version of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" on his album, "Guitar Heaven."
Arie released her fifth album, "Songversation," in June of 2013. It featured the singles "6th Avenue" and "Cocoa Butter." In 2015, she released a collaborative album with Joe Sample called "Christmas with Friends." In July 2016, she premiered the single "Breathe," which was inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement.
"Breathe" was later featured in the EP "Songversation: Medicine," in June of 2017. The following year, she premiered her new single, "That Magic." The song was the lead single from her sixth studio album, "Worthy," which she released in February of 2019.
Personal Life
Arie has never been married and has no children. However, in an interview she gave in 2020, she did reveal that she was close to getting married twice in her life. She has not been romantically connected to anyone, however, and generally keeps her personal life out of the spotlight.
Real Estate
In 2003, India paid $340,000 for a home in Stone Mountain, Georgia. This 1.4-acre property is still her primary residence today.
