Alison Clarkson
| Betty Boo | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Alison Moira Clarkson |
| Born |
6 March 1970 Kensington, London, England |
| Genres | Dance-pop, hip-hop |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, musician |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1989–present |
| Labels |
Music of Life Rhythm King Sire Instant Karma |
| Associated acts |
She Rockers Beatmasters WigWam Jack Rokka Girl Thing |
Alison Moira Clarkson (born 6 March 1970 in Kensington, London) better known as Betty Boo, is an English singer, songwriter and pop rap artist. She first came to mainstream prominence in the late 1980s and early 1990s following a collaboration with The Beatmasters and her subsequent solo career, which spawned a number of chart-placing singles, most notably in 1990 with "Doin' the Do".
Clarkson studied sound engineering at the Holloway School of Audio Engineering before having a string of hits between 1989 and 1992. Originally nicknamed "Betty Boop" for her similarity to the cartoon character, she changed it to avoid trademark disputes. Of mixed Dusun and Scottish ancestry, she had an unusual, striking Emma Peel-like look, dressed in mildly provocative and revealing outfits and proved to be an influential pop music figure whose "sassy, powerful music and image launched a thousand wannabe's [sic]". Writing for The Guardian in August 1990, Lucy O'Brien noted the difference between the "quietly spoken" Clarkson and her "lovable toughie" pop star alter-ego, describing the latter as "a cartoon combination of Betty Boop, Barbarella and Buck Rogers".
Whilst still at school, Boo began her musical career by signing to the British record label Music of Life with the hip-hop group the She Rockers, whose success led her to New York and work with Public Enemy, who encouraged her to pursue a solo career. Commenting on her time spent supporting Public Enemy on tour in the US, as well as working with Professor Griff in the recording studio on the song "Give It A Rest", Boo revealed that things did not go as expected; "They were producing our single and I thought it would sound like their stuff, but it didn't at all. And some of the crowds were hostile to us. They didn't throw anything, no, but they wanted to see Public Enemy and they just weren't interested in us."
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