Kaci Battaglia

Kaci Lyn Battaglia ( ; born October 3, 1987, in Clearwater, Florida), also known as Kaci Lyn and mononymously as Kaci, is an American singer and songwriter. Kaci first gained fame in 2001 with her hit single "Paradise", which reached number 11 on the UK singles chart when she was 13 years old. She also charted in the UK with "Tu Amor" and "I Think I Love You", the latter hitting number 10 in February 2002. Her song "I'm Not Anybody's Girl" saw modest British sales in 2003. She released another club single in 2009: "Crazy Possessive" which topped the US dance chart. Her song "Body Shots", featuring Ludacris, also hit number 1 on the US dance chart, in October 2010.

Early life Kaci was born in Clearwater, Florida, and raised in nearby Seminole. She began singing at the age of three, and as a young girl she performed on her father's karaoke equipment at clubs in the Tampa Bay area. She was encouraged by her piano-playing grandfather, the former Tampa Tribune publisher Jack Butcher. She sang at the Yankee Stadium in New York in front of an audience reported at 80,000 people.

Kaci was in a summer theatre program at Ruth Eckerd Hall. At age nine, she appeared in her first commercial for Walt Disney World, and later had a role in the Disney Christmas video Magical Time in a Magical Place.

From a young age, Kaci knew she wanted to be a singer. She performed at children's summer concerts in City Hall Park. Created by Gregg Russell, the film takes place at a children’s summer camp and incorporates music and moral themes.

In December 1999, Kaci's performance of "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" appeared on a local public access television Christmas special produced by Steven "Stefio" Fiorenza. The program had been recorded earlier that year, when she was 11.

Music career In 1999, Kaci attracted the attention of songwriter and producer Joel Diamond. Kaci recalled performing a LeAnn Rimes song and Shania Twain's "Don't Be Stupid (You Know I Love You)" at Diamond's office. Diamond funded a demo recording of "Paradise", a song first made famous by Phoebe Cates in 1982. Diamond began shopping Kaci's demo to various record labels, attracting music executive Mike Curb. She signed with Curb Records in 2000 at age 12, beginning her professional recording career as Kaci Lyn. and February 26, 2001, in the United Kingdom where it reached number 11 on the singles chart. In Ireland, the single peaked at number 10 and spent thirteen weeks on the charts. The music video was among the most requested on the Disney Channel and Nickelodeon. Kaci's Latin-flavored second single "Tu Amor", also produced and mixed by Turbitt, was released in the UK in July 2001, peaking at number 24 on the UK Singles Chart. It reached the Top Ten on the pop chart in Japan, where Kaci performed during the same period. A follow-up single, "I'm Not Anybody's Girl", was released in 2003 and reached number 55 on the UK Singles Chart. It also reached number 7 on the UK HMV Top 10 singles chart, according to contemporary newspaper listings. The song also appeared on the motion picture soundtrack for View from the Top. The album Paradise was released in the United States under the title I'm Not Anybody's Girl, while it retained the title Paradise in other territories, including Europe and Japan.

Japanese releases In 2003, Kaci teamed up with the Japanese photographer Seiichi Nomura to release a photo book titled Kaci: I'm a Singer, published in Japan by Upfront Books / Wani Books on March 28, 2003. Photographs from Nomura were also used in the artwork for a Japanese reissue of Kaci's album Paradise. The reissue added a Dance Man remix of "Paradise", titled "Paradise (mirrorballismix)". It also included a DVD containing Nomura's photographs cycling through a video for "I'm Not Anybody's Girl", along with the music videos for "Paradise", "Tu Amor" and "I Think I Love You".

Soundtrack work In 2004 Kaci recorded "Txt Me", written by Leon Cave, which won the BBC Radio 2 "Search for a Songwriter" competition; the song was later issued as a promotional single on Curb Records. Kaci also co-wrote the song "Wrong" with Tiffany Arbuckle Lee and Matt Bronleewe. The song was recorded by Kimberley Locke for her 2004 album One Love.

In 2005, Kaci's recording of "I Will Learn to Love Again", written by Diane Warren, was featured on the soundtrack to the film The Perfect Man.

In 2011, Kaci co-wrote the song "Bless Myself" with Antonina Armato and Tim James. The song was recorded by Lucy Hale for the soundtrack of the film A Cinderella Story: Once Upon a Song.

Club singles In 2007, Kaci updated her image with a more worldly, feminine style. She released "Can't Help Myself" through Curb Records. Her later singles "Crazy Possessive" (2009) and "Body Shots" (2010), featuring Ludacris, were included on her album Bring It On and both reached number one on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. Bring It On was released digitally on 21 September 2010, with physical editions following in 2011.

In 2024, Curb Records released a digital compilation titled Best of, featuring recordings from Kaci's time with the label.

Personal life Kaci was raised a Christian. Her mother also enrolled her in karate classes as a child, to learn self-defense. In 2002, Kaci wrote that she was working toward her black belt, also taking private instruction from kickboxer Jim Graden, after which she worked as a trainer.

Discography Studio albums + List of studio albums, with selected chart positions and details Title Album details Peak chart positions UK A Thousand Stars Released: 1998 Label: Unknown Format: CD — Paradise Released: June 12, 2001 Label: Curb Records Format: CD, 2×CD, CD+DVD, cassette, digital download, streaming 47 Bring It On Released: September 21, 2010 Label: Curb Records Format: CD, digital download, streaming — "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Singles Single Year Peak chart positions Album US Dance IRL UK SCO "Paradise" 2001 43 10 11 11 Paradise "Tu Amor" — — 24 21 "I Think I Love You" 2002 — 16 10 8 "I'm Not Anybody's Girl" 2003 — — 55 50 "TXT Me" 2004 — — — — "I Will Learn to Love Again" 2005 — — — — The Perfect Man (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) "Can't Help Myself" 2007 30 — — — "Crazy Possessive" 2009 1 — — —Bring It On "Body Shots" (featuring Ludacris) 2010 1 — — — "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that country.