Enya was born on Wednesday, 17 May 1961. Her birth name is Eithne Ní Bhráonain (sometimes seen as the Anglicized "Enya Brennan") is Ireland's best-selling solo artist. But Enya is really three people: Enya herself; Nicky Ryan, who produces her records; and Roma Ryan, who writes the lyrics, often in Welsh, Irish, Latin, Spanish, etc. Enya is a phonetic approximation of how Eithne is pronounced in Irish Gaelic.

Eithne was born in Gweedore, County Donegal, in Ireland in 1961 to a musical family. Her grandparents were in a band that traveled and played throughout Ireland, her father was the leader of the Slieve Foy Band before opening a pub, and her mother played in a dance band and later taught music at the Gweedore Comprehensive School. Eithne has four brothers and four sisters, several of whom formed the band An Clann As Dobhair in 1968 (they renamed the band Clannad in the 1970s).

In 1980, Eithne joined Clannad, the band composed of her siblings Máire, Pól, and Ciarán and twin uncles Noel and Padraig Duggan. Eithne played the keyboard and provided backing vocals on their albums Cran Ull (1980) and Fuaim (1982). In 1982 (shortly before Clannad became famous for "Theme From Harry's Game"), producer and manager Nicky Ryan left Clannad and Eithne joined him to start her own solo career.

Career

In 1980, Eithne joined the group Clannad (the members included siblings Máire Brennan, Pól Brennan, and Ciarán Brennan). She left the group to start her own solo career shortly before Clannad became famous for "Theme From Harry's Game" in 1982. Enya achieved a breakthrough in her singing career in 1988 with the hit song "Orinoco Flow" (sometimes referred to as "Sail Away").

She became known worldwide after the September 11, 2001 attacks because her song "Only Time" (from the album A Day Without Rain) was used in radio and TV reports around the globe.

A number of her songs are sung entirely in Irish Gaelic or Latin, with others containing the hithero-mentioned mixed with English or English by itself. Enya has performed songs relating to J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, including 1991's "Lothlórien" and 2001's "May It Be" (sung in English and Quenya) and "Aníron" (in Sindarin) -- the last two appearing on the soundtrack of Peter Jackson's movie The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. Despite winning Grammys for "Best New Age Album", Enya does not personally classify her music as belonging to the genre.

Albums

Enya (1987)
Watermark (1988)
Shepherd Moons (1991, won 1992 Grammy for "Best New Age Album")
The Celts (1992) (remastered rerelease of the 1987 album Enya)
The Memory of Trees (1995, won 1996 Grammy for "Best New Age Album")
Paint The Sky With Stars (1997) (mainly contains remixed and remastered versions of earlier songs)
A Day Without Rain (2000, won 2001 Grammy for "Best New Age Album")