Melissa Faith Storwick (born November 13, 1998), known professionally as Faangs (formerly Charlie), is a Canadian singer-songwriter and actress. She was the winner of The Next Star season 4, and starred as Piper Gray in YTV's Some Assembly Required.

Faangs
Birth nameMelissa Faith Storwick
Also known as
  • Faangs
  • Charlie
Born (1998-11-13) November 13, 1998 (age 26)
OriginCalgary, Alberta, Canada
GenresPop
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • actress
Instrument(s)Vocals, piano
Years active2011–present
Labels

Storwick now records music under the name Faangs and has written songs for Ashnikko and Rico Nasty.

Early life

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Storwick stated in an interview for The Next Star that she is inspired by all types of music. Growing up in Calgary, Storwick was obsessed with watching performers on TV, always ready to entertain strangers on trips to the grocery store with her mom.[1] She was encouraged to take up hobbies to keep her mind active outside of school and was put into lessons to learn the trumpet and violin, eventually focussing on the piano above all, dropping the tuition and teaching herself by ear.[1] She started to sing as she was playing, mum and dad constantly reaffirming her practice as leisure time. Eventually she was allowed to take up musical theatre in school, the challenge of combining singing, acting and dancing speaking to her burgeoning desire to entertain.[1] Her musical heroes were Whitney Houston, The Beatles, Billie Joe Armstrong,[2] Christina Aguilera and Freddie Mercury. Storwick grew up in Calgary, Alberta with her family.[1] She has two sisters, Annie and Amanda Storwick and one brother, Jack Storwick. Charlie used to attend the Calgary Waldorf School.[3] She now lives in Los Angeles, California as FAANGS.[1]

Career

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2011: The Next Star

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In May 2011, after hearing about the auditions from her classmates,[4] she chose to audition for The Next Star because she wanted to "take it to the next level", which scared her parents. Out of thousands of young hopefuls,[5] Storwick made it to the Top 16.[4] She later made it to the Top 6, along with contestants Parker Schmidt, Milly Benzu, Shania Fillmore, April Llave, and JD Meeboer.[6]

Throughout the season, Storwick performed a total of 12 songs. (One being her audition, and two being music videos) The first song she performed was "Stuttering" by Fefe Dobson. After meeting her music producer, Zubin Thakkar, they both created her song titled "Good as Gone". Along with the rest of the top six, she performed a preview of her song. She later performed a battle song with contestant Parker; herself with "Sweet Escape" and Parker with "Grenade". Then for the group battle, she performed "Whip My Hair"; with April and Parker v.s. "I Love Rock and Roll" performed by Shania, JD and, Milly. Further on in the series, she performed "My Guy" for the Motown segment of the season.[7] Storwick also performed a Motown song with contestants Shania and April titled "Baby Love". At the finale after she won, she performed Jessie J's "Price Tag".[citation needed]

Towards the end of the season, Storwick also created a music video for "Good As Gone",[8] and created a group music video, "Turn It Up Up Up" with her and the other top 6 members. The video for "Good as Gone" ranked at number 21 on the MuchMusic #Trending rates of 2011 countdown.[9] At the finale, it was announced that she won season 4 of The Next Star.[10]

In 2012, Storwick signed with Warner Music Canada and released the single "Glitter in the Sky".[3] The music video made its first appearance on Monday, July 16 on YTV at 10:30 AST. Her other song titled "Paper Heart" was also released on July 16.[11]

Storwick is also the first ever contestant on The Next Star to get one million views on YouTube.[3]

2014–17: Some Assembly Required and Bazaar

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Right after she finished The Next Star, she wanted to expand her career into acting.[4] It was announced in 2013 that Storwick would be playing the role of Piper Gray in the YTV show, Some Assembly Required.[12] The show premiered January 6, 2014,[4] and ended on June 6, 2016.

In 2015, she released her formal debut single "Ghosts".[13] The song debuted and peaked at number 87 on the Canadian Hot 100.[14] The song also hit the Top 30 on the Top 40 radio,[15] Hot AC and AC radio charts.[16][17] "Ghosts" was released through Vancouver's Westsonic Music, and amassed over 1.2 million streams on Spotify.[18] The song was inspired by a real life experience. She stated, "I was playing my keyboard and then I heard a loud noise. I got a little startled, and I was thinking what happens after that and then I let my imagination run wild."[19] She released her second single titled, "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" under the label in September 2016.[20] In 2016, she was named as one of the 25 acts on Macy's iHeartRadio Rising Star contest.[21] On October 10, 2017, she released her debut album, Bazaar.[22]

She was invited to a writing workshop organised by Canadian collection society SOCAN, and it was there that she met British producer BHAV who invited her back to the UK for further sessions after her 18th birthday.[1] Storwick travelled to Berlin for writing sessions with German quartet Hitimpulse, living in their studio for four months, working on songs. Storwick then ended up signing with Sony in Germany under the supervision of the European president Daniel Lieberberg.[1]

2018–present: Faangs

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Storwick moved to Los Angeles and began writing songs for other artists and on her new persona Faangs, a name inspired by the vicious city she now called home.[1] She released her debut single under the name Faangs titled "Huh" on October 23, 2020, which was followed up by four more singles until the release of her debut album Teeth Out on November 12, 2021.[1] She co-wrote the song, "Barbie Dreams, for the 2023 film, Barbie.[23]

Filmography

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Year Title Role Notes
2011 The Next Star Herself Top 6; winner
2011 MuchMusic Herself Interview
2012 YTV Herself Interview; The Zone
2014–2016 Some Assembly Required Piper Gray Lead Role

Discography

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Albums

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List of albums with selected details
Title Details
Bazaar
  • Released: October 10, 2017[24]
  • Label: Westsonic Music Inc.
  • Formats: Digital download
Teeth Out
  • Released: November 12, 2021[25]
  • Label: Columbia Local
  • Formats: Digital download

Extended plays

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List of EPs with selected details
Title Details
I Died in LA
  • Released: September 9, 2022[26]
  • Label: Teeth Out
  • Formats: Digital download

Singles

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Charlie

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List of singles as Charlie, with selected chart positions
Title Year Peak chart positions Album
CAN
[14]
CAN
AC

[17]
CAN
CHR

[15]
CAN
HAC

[16]
"Good as Gone"[27] 2011 The Next Star: Season 4
"Turn It Up Up"[28]
(with April Llave, JD Meeboer, Milly Benzu, Parker Schmidt, Shania Fillmore)
"Glitter in the Sky"[29] 2012 Non-album singles
"Paper Heart"[11]
(featuring Nate Hall)
"Ghosts"[30] 2015 87 28 24 30 Bazaar
"Kiss Kiss Bang Bang"[20] 2016
"—" denotes releases that did not chart.

Faangs

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As lead artist

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List of singles as Faangs, showing year released and album name
Title Year Album
"Ceiling" 2018 Non-album singles
"Love Fast Die Young"
"Huh"[31] 2020 Teeth Out
"Rich Kid$"[32] 2021
"Relapse"[33]
"I Don't Care"[34]
"I'm a Little"[35] 2021
"I'd Hate Me Too"[36] 2022 Non-album single
"Voicemail"[37] I Died in LA
"Kate Moss"[38]
"Beep! Beep!"[39] 2023 TBA
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List of singles as featured artist, with selected chart positions, certifications, showing year released and album name
Title Year Peak chart positions Certifications Album
GER
[40]
"That's You"[41]
(Brandon Taylor featuring Faangs)
2019 Bankview
"Shy"[42]
(Karate Kactus featuring Faangs)
Non-album singles
"Don't Talk to Me"[43]
(N.F.I. featuring Faangs and Riton)
2020
"Sicko"[44]
(Felix Jaehn featuring Gashi and Faangs)
42
"Disconnected"[47]
(Politik featuring Faangs)
2023
"—" denotes releases that did not chart.

Songwriting credits

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Title Year Artist(s) Album Written with
"It's Alright" 2018 Mother Mother Dance and Cry Ryan Guldemond
"Sick Thoughts" 2019 Lewis Blissett Non-album single James "Yami" Bell, Finn Keane, Lewis Blissett
"We Got This" Delhi 2 Dublin We Got This Gavin Brown, Kevin Maher, Sanjay Seran, Tariq Hussain, Tarun Nayar
"Halloweenie II: Pumpkin Spice" Ashnikko Non-album single Ashton Casey, Oscar Scheller
"Say It Ain't So" 2020 Bishara & Leia Non-album single James "Yami" Bell, Timothy Caifeldt, Samuel Kvist, Markus Sepehrmanesh
"Tragic"
(featuring Amber Van Day)
The Him Non-album single Steven Berghuijs, Jeroen Kerstens, Jonas Kalisch, Jeremy Chacon, Henrik Meinke, Alexsej Vlasenko, Amanda Cygnaeus
"Cry"[1]
(featuring Grimes)
Ashnikko Demidevil Ashton Casey, Ebenezer Fabiyi, Claire Boucher
"Own It" Rico Nasty Nightmare Vacation Maria-Cecilia Simone Kelly, Vincent van den Ende, Camden Bench, Amit Nagra
"Outta My Control"
(featuring ØZI)
2022 Koda Kumi Heart Bhavik Pattani
"Pregame" Niki DeMar Non-album single Nicola DeMartino, Robert Grimaldi, Trevor Muzzy
"Lights Out"[48] 2023 Bludnymph Non-album single Henry Walter, Kya Hansen
"Barbie Dreams"
(featuring Kaliii)
Fifty Fifty Barbie the Album James Harris, Janet Jackson, JBACH, Kaliya Ashley Ross, Marc Raymond Ernest Sibley, Mike Caren, Nathan Cunningham, Nicholaus Joseph Williams, Randall Hammers, Terry Lewis, Tramaine Winfrey

Music videos

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Year Title Artist Notes
2011 "Good as Gone" Charlie #21 on MuchMusic Countdown
2011 "Turn It Up Up Up" The Next Star top 6 Aired on CMT as #69 in top 100
2012 "Glitter in the Sky" Charlie
2015 "Ghosts" Charlie
2016 "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" Charlie
2018 "Ceiling" Faangs
2019 "Shy" Karate Kactus featuring Faangs
2020 "Sicko" Felix Jaehn featuring Gashi and Faangs
2020 "Huh" Faangs
2021 "Rich Kid$" Faangs
2021 "Relapse" Faangs
2021 "I Don't Care" Faangs
2021 "Don't Blame Me" Faangs
2021 "Diamond Bitch" Faangs
2022 "I'm a Little" Faangs

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Jen Long (November 12, 2020). "On the Rise: Faangs". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  2. ^ "YTV's Charlie Storwick talks about transition from music to TV". Tribute.ca. March 9, 2015. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c Heidi Staseson (January 6, 2014). "Calgary teen and Next Star champ Charlie Storwick starring in new YTV sitcom". Calgary Herald. Archived from the original on January 11, 2014. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  4. ^ a b c d Mark Leiren-Young (January 1, 2014). "Next Star winner Charlie Storwick steps up to act". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  5. ^ "Exclusive The Next Star Winner Charlie Talks About Reality Show Competitions and Her Next Single". MuchMusic. November 18, 2011. Archived from the original on December 5, 2012. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
  6. ^ "The Next Star – Homepage". YTV. Archived from the original on September 23, 2011. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  7. ^ "The Next Star on YTV.com". YTV. Archived from the original on September 2, 2011. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  8. ^ The Next Star - Charlie "Good as Gone". Archived from the original on 2021-12-11 – via YouTube.
  9. ^ "Charlie – Good as Gone on MuchMusic". MuchMusic. Archived from the original on October 25, 2011. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  10. ^ Diane Wild (September 25, 2011). "YTV Crowns The Next Star Winner". TV-Eh. Retrieved July 19, 2023.
  11. ^ a b "Paper Heart - Single by Charlie Storwick". iTunes. Archived from the original on August 21, 2014. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  12. ^ Diane Wild (2013-08-29). "Some Assembly Required in production". TV, eh?.
  13. ^ "Interview with Charlie Storwick On Her Hot New Single 'Ghosts'". The Extra Mile. August 3, 2015. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  14. ^ a b "Billboard Canadian Hot 100: Week of October 31, 2015". Billboard. October 31, 2015. Retrieved September 26, 2021.
  15. ^ a b "Canada CHR/Top 40: Week of October 31, 2015". Billboard. October 31, 2015. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  16. ^ a b "Canada Hot AC: Week of November 21, 2015". Billboard. November 21, 2015. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
  17. ^ a b "Canada AC: Week of November 14, 2015". Billboard. November 14, 2015. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
  18. ^ "Ghosts - song and lyrics by Charlie on Spotify". Spotify. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
  19. ^ Kelly Vickery. "Chatting With Charlie About 'Ghosts'". Faze. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  20. ^ a b "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang - Single by Charlie". Apple Music. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  21. ^ John R. Kennedy (October 2, 2016). "Pop Singer Charlie Takes Her Best Shot With 'Kiss Kiss Bang Bang'". iHeartRadio. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  22. ^ "Bazaar - Album by Charlie". Spotify. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  23. ^ "Barbie Dreams (feat. Kaliii) [From Barbie The Album] / Fifty Fifty – Tidal". Tidal. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
  24. ^ "Bazaar - Album by Charlie". Apple Music. Archived from the original on May 20, 2021. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  25. ^ "Teeth Out - Album by Faangs". Apple Music. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  26. ^ "I Died in LA - EP by Faangs". Spotify. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  27. ^ "Good as Gone - Single". iTunes. Archived from the original on November 21, 2011. Retrieved December 26, 2023.
  28. ^ "Turn It Up - Single". iTunes. Archived from the original on January 23, 2012. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  29. ^ "Glitter in the Sky - Single by Charlie Storwick". iTunes. Archived from the original on August 21, 2014. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  30. ^ "Ghosts - Single by Charlie". Apple Music. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  31. ^ "Huh - Single by Faangs". Spotify. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  32. ^ "Rich Kid$ - Single by Faangs". Spotify. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  33. ^ "Relapse - Single by Faangs". Spotify. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  34. ^ "I Don't Care - Single by Faangs". Spotify. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  35. ^ "I'm a Little - Single by Faangs". Spotify. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  36. ^ "I'd Hate Me Too - Single by Faangs". Spotify. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  37. ^ "Voicemail - Single by Faangs". Spotify. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  38. ^ "Kate Moss - Single by Faangs". Spotify. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  39. ^ "Beep! Beep! - Single by Faangs". Spotify. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  40. ^ "Discographie Felix Jaehn". German Charts Portal. GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  41. ^ "That's You - Single by Brandon Taylor". Apple Music. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  42. ^ "Shy (feat. Faangs) - Single by Karate Kactus". Apple Music. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  43. ^ "Don't Talk to Me (feat. Faangs and Riton) - Single by N.F.I". Spotify. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  44. ^ "SICKO (feat. GASHI & FAANGS) - Single by Felix Jaehn on Apple Music". Apple Music. 13 March 2020. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  45. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank". Musikindustrie.de. Archived from the original on April 13, 2022. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  46. ^ "Gold & Platinum". IFPI Austria. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
  47. ^ "Disconnected (feat. FAANGS) - Single by Politik". Apple Music. 13 March 2020. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  48. ^ "bludnymph Releases New Song 'Lights Out'". PM Studio. January 7, 2023. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
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