Ari Up

Ariane Daniele Forster (17 January 1962 – 20 October 2010), known by her stage name Ari Up, was a German vocalist best known as a member of the English punk rock band the Slits. Biography Ari Up was born in Munich, West Germany. Both her parents were involved in the music industry; her father, Frank Forster, was a German schlager singer who had some success in the 1950s and 1960s, and her mother Nora Forster was a friend of Jimi Hendrix and dated Chris Spedding for three years. Ari's maternal grandfather was the German newspaper proprietor Franz Karl Maier, owner of Der Tagesspiegel. Her godfathers were Austrian singer/composer Udo Jürgens and Jon Anderson, the singer of the group Yes. Nora Forster married the Sex Pistols' lead singer, John Lydon, in 1979. Their home was a punk domain where Nora would take in poor musicians. The constant presence of punk music led to Ari experimenting with it herself, learning to play the guitar from the Clash's Joe Strummer. In 1976, at the age of 14, Up formed the Slits with drummer Palmolive. Guitarist Viv Albertine joined the group and was impressed by the young singer. "English was her second language", Albertine said in an interview, "it was not easy for her and she had to fight to be taken seriously." She succeeded: "Ari was the most dynamic woman I have ever known", said Albertine. "The way she carried herself was a revolution."