Uniting Nations
| Company type | Music group |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 2004 in Liverpool, England |
| Founder | Paul Keenan, Daz Sampson |
| Defunct | 2008 (hiatus) |
| Fate | Reestablished in 2019 |
| Headquarters | Liverpool , England, United Kingdom |
Key people | Paul Keenan, Daz Sampson, Craig Powell (former), Nona (since 2019) |
| Products | Music albums and singles |
| Website | myspace |
Uniting Nations is a British dance music group that originated in Liverpool in 2004 and gained chart recognition throughout Europe. The founding duo consisted of songwriters and producers Paul Keenan and Daz Sampson. After their initial 2005 success with the single "Out of Touch", Craig Powell joined the lineup as the lead vocalist. Several songs from their sole album, One World (2005, Gut Records), featured vocals by session singer Jinian Wilde.
The group achieved UK chart placements with "Out of Touch" and "You and Me". Their third charting track, "Ai No Corrida", a reinterpretation of the 1980 original by Chaz Jankel and popularized by Quincy Jones, included British vocalist Laura More. Craig Powell exited the project in March 2006 post-album launch; however, the band continued to release material until 2008.
In April 2019, Daz Sampson revived Uniting Nations alongside British singer Nona. They unveiled "This Love", a rendition of Survivor’s 1986 track "Is This Love", on 14 February 2020 through JF Productions. Plans for a new album were also underway.
Career
The debut single from Uniting Nations, "Out of Touch", a cover version of Hall & Oates’ hit, marked their most significant achievement. Featuring actor Paul Spicer in the music video, the track remained on the UK Singles Chart for 21 weeks, peaking at number 7. It also secured top ten rankings in Ireland, Norway, Finland, and the Netherlands, while appearing on charts in Australia, Austria, Germany, Sweden, and Switzerland.
Their subsequent release, "You and Me", co-written by the group members and showcasing frontman Craig Powell in its video, reached number 15 in the UK and climbed to number 3 in Finland. It also charted across Denmark, Ireland, and Sweden. Powell performed live with Uniting Nations on programs such as Top of the Pops.
Released in November 2005 alongside their album, the third single "Ai No Corrida", featuring Laura More on lead vocals with backing vocals from Steve M. Smith and Yolanda Quartey, achieved a peak position of number 18 on the UK charts.
The debut album One World, launched on 14 November 2005, comprised twelve tracks including guest vocals from Donovan Blackwood on "She's Special." The record contained an extended mix of "Out of Touch," several a cappella tracks intended for remixing purposes, and various samples. In 2005, Uniting Nations earned the title "Best Dance Act" from readers of Smash Hits and viewers of T4 during their final Pollwinners Party.
Craig Powell departed from the band in March 2006 to embark on a solo career that featured television appearances and a single released in 2010 before he shifted focus to professional mixed martial arts and established a gym.
Following Powell’s exit, Uniting Nations continued releasing music including "Music in Me" and the promotional track "High Energy" in 2006. In 2007, they issued a fourth official single—a cover of Gloria Gaynor's "Do It Yourself." The group went on hiatus around 2010 to concentrate on songwriting and production work for other well-known artists.
Revival
The project was reactivated in April 2019 by Daz Sampson together with British vocalist Nona. They released "This Love," a cover version of Survivor's classic from 1986 titled "Is This Love," which was made available on 14 February 2020 through JF Productions. Additionally, efforts were underway to produce a new album for the act.
Albums
- One World (2005)
Singles
| Title | Year | Highest chart positions | Album | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | AUS | DEN | FIN | GER | IRE | NLD | NOR | SWE | SWI | |||||
| "Out of Touch" | 2004 | 7 | 41 | — | 9 | 27 | 5 | 32 | 8 | 26 | 74 | One World | ||
| "You and Me" | 2005 | 15 | 59 | — | 14 | — | 26 | 62 | — | — | — | |||
| "Ai No Corrida" (featuring Laura More) |
18 | — | 16 | 3 | — | 37 | — | — | 43 | — | ||||
| "Music in Me" | 2006 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "High Energy" (promo) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album singles | |||
| "Do It Yourself (Go Out and Get It)" |
2007 | 64 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Pressure Us" (featuring Lucia Horn) |
2008 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "This Love" | 2020 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "—" indicates tracks that either did not chart or were not released in the specified region. | ||||||||||||||
In popular culture
- The Jon Dixon remix of Uniting Nations' "Ai no Corrida" was showcased by British-Japanese media artist Danny Choo in his viral video Tokyo Dance Trooper in Shibuya filmed in Shibuya, Tokyo during 2007.