Talk:Seal (musician)

This article has been viewed enough times in a single week to appear in the Top 25 Report. The week in which this happened:

August 6 to 12, 2017 (19th)

This article must adhere to the biographies of living persons (BLP) policy, even if it is not a biography, because it contains material about living persons. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately from the article and its talk page, especially if potentially libellous. If such material is repeatedly inserted, or if you have other concerns, please report the issue to this noticeboard.

If you are a subject of this article, or acting on behalf of one, and you need help, please see this help page.

Biography: Musicians

	Biography portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Biography, a collaborative effort to create, develop and organize Wikipedia's articles about people. All interested editors are invited to join the project and contribute to the discussion. For instructions on how to use this banner, please refer to the documentation.BiographyWikipedia:WikiProject BiographyTemplate:WikiProject Biographybiography
	This article is supported by WikiProject Musicians (assessed as Low-importance).

R&B and Soul Music Mid‑importance

	R&B and Soul Music portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject R&B and Soul Music, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of R&B and Soul Music articles on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.R&B and Soul MusicWikipedia:WikiProject R&B and Soul MusicTemplate:WikiProject R&B and Soul MusicR&B and Soul Music
Mid	This article has been rated as Mid-importance on the project's importance scale.

London Low‑importance

	London portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject London, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of London on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.LondonWikipedia:WikiProject LondonTemplate:WikiProject LondonLondon-related
Low	This article has been rated as Low-importance on the project's importance scale.

Photo

Is it just me or does the photo caption sound -alot- like a commercial for apple. "Here is seal holding an I-Pod and sitting beside an I-Book". What exactly is the subject of the photo here, seal or the apple products?

Interview

Does anyone know what magazine he gave the interview to?

I remember an interview with Seal on Gloria Hunniford's programme once. She said something like "What are those funny marks on your face?" I think see thought it was some kind of African ritualistic scarring. Mintguy 01:29 21 May 2003 (UTC)

Early Work (S-Express)

Should Seal's contribution to the vocals on the S-Express song Superfly Guy in 1988 deserve a mention? This was pre his big breakthrough with Admaski and does I feel deserve brief mention. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.79.222.87 (talk) 10:12, 16 November 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Scars

"Can someone tell us how he got the scar"

I am no expert, but it seems like lupus is not the disease he suffered from. it seems like he might be dead by now, or at least not very healthy if that were the case. Lupus is a chronic disease...can somebody help us out here...? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.186.99.184 (talk) 27 February 2008

The scars on his face were caused by a disease, lupus.

Is there any explanation for this? It's a question that's been there for a few edits, and seems to break the tables, and asks a question (I presume they mean "scar") that's already answered. --Golbez 03:04, 27 Mar 2004 (UTC)

-- When people say 'lupus' they are usually referring to Lupus erythematosus. His scarring isn't consistent with Lupus erythematosus however, it seems more likely that he had Lupus vulgaris. Can't find a source for this, however. Alan Davies 00:13, 26 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

-- He had discoid lupus as a child. I just added this information, but it was immediately edited out, like within seconds, saying I need to add a source. Like give a chance! Sah10406 18:10, 27 October 2007 (UTC)[reply]

-- Nightline/ABC news just did an interview on November 24th, 2007 with Seal and stated he has discoid lupus. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.108.154.67 (talk) 24 November 2007

I just combined a similar sentence about discoid lupus, with this Nightline reference. It's weak, though (like a book reference, just text) and preferably would hyperlink to something more concrete. Alas, this article is filled with problematic, unreferenced statements.... — VoxLuna ☾ ^orbit_land 20:20, 26 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I removed yet another lupus comment. Upon looking at the reference, found it was a fansite/blog type document. I clicked "name" and got 3 possible names, all of which had only two names, like Samuel David, or some such thing. There MUST be a verifiable solid reference, particularly when discussing a live person, and why they look the way they do! This is an encyclopedia, please remember that gossip, speculation and our desire to make this a complete article aren't good enough. I did leave in a sentence to show that many explanations are being given, but as yet there's no confirmed reason. From what I do know of lupus, it's hard to believe that he'd have only one massive breakout, and then no other dermatalogical episode ever again from a disease that is incurable. Either way, Fansites aren't reputable. --leahtwosaints (talk) 07:46, 20 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Please sign your posts by typing four tildes (~~~~)! Also, use horizontal lines (----) sparingly, if you have to. Qwerty (talk) 06:48, 1 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Relationchips

Ok, why can't Seal be listed as formerly Married to Heidi Klum again? I've tried to fix it, even copying template. It won't show up. Explanation?

Songwriter?

I'm slightly pissed off by this artcle. One of the things I've always admired about Seal is the fact that he is an accomplished songwriter who composes (almost) all his own material. Yet the only mention of his songwriting in the article is him having co-written "My Vision". I've changed the intro from "soul vocalist" to "soul vocalist and songwriter", but I think his composing skills do deserve more of a mention. Crisso 14:17, 16 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Hair Loss

A childhood battle with discoid lupus left him with distinctive facial scarring and hair loss

I don't think this can be true, since when his first album was released he was commonly seen with funki dreds (i.e., short dreadlocks) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.80.50.111 (talk) 2 March 2007

I must admit his face looks far less scarred (no scarring?) as well though that can be due to aging.

Wait-- I take that back. http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xKgBKa9mGLY/U52MUfeuNVI/AAAAAAAAFmw/pY7XA-qx_KQ/s1600/adamski seal.jpg

FrJosephSuaiden (talk) 07:14, 7 September 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Rubber Bands

"and as a recovering Lupus survivor he now spends his time collecting rubber bands"

I'm thinking that this is someone's idea of a joke? Hey, it made me laugh, but someone should probably fix it. Unless, of course, he does collect rubber bands. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.171.3.221 (talk) 30 March 2007

It's a joke. Sign your messages, please! Qwerty (talk) 06:53, 1 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Do you consider "Qwerty" as a sign(ature)? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.83.101.176 (talk) 00:10, 14 February 2009 (UTC)[reply]

What's with his nine names

Maybe someone should put something about that in 64.221.248.17 18:35, 31 May 2007 (UTC)[reply]

nine names because it's seal the big star ( l'unique)of kiss from a rose, just like you said, love dvine. seal est incomparable. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 195.194.68.22 (talk) 21 June 2007

Disambiguation

Shouldn't this article be under Seal (singer), as that is what he is known for? Even in the opening paragraph, it states that he is a singer/songwriter, not a musician. SKS2K6 (talk) 07:57, 10 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Singers can be called musicians. The voice is a musical instrument. 76.111.80.228 (talk) 02:49, 12 February 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Presentation

Shouldn't the personal life part of the article moved before his works? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.135.205.32 (talk) 16:06, 1 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Absolutely. First, the comment about the photo has not gone unnoticed. There Must be a better photo of Seal! Anyone?? I'm attempting to make some changes if folks will help with seriously hunting up references instead of speculating. :) --leahtwosaints (talk) 11:57, 10 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Banned user's edits

I understand that a banned user isn't supposed to make any edits, although I haven't looked into this and don't know which banned editor this happens to be...but why are we adding unsourced information back into BLPs? There is without question material being restored that doesn't belong without sourcing. --Onorem ♠Dil 20:22, 6 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

There is also plenty being removed which is without doubt, for example mentions of his most famous songs. --BrucePodger (talk) 20:29, 6 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

but it's ALL unsourced - the whole thing relies on quotes that have no sources at all - unsourced quotes should be removed on sight- regardless of what they say. you are actively breaching our BLP policies by readding unsourced quotes when it has been pointed out to you that they are unsourced. Don't just blank revert, READ the section and re-add that which does not rely on unsourced quotes - thus bringing in line with our BLP policies. --87.112.86.10 (talk) 20:33, 6 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

I've brought the issue to WP:ANI. Some good material being lost isn't a valid reason to reintroduce unsourced contentious material into a BLP. If I had time to go through piece by piece myself right now, I would...but I don't. --Onorem ♠Dil 20:35, 6 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

But it's not even lost - the material is still there in the history for someone to check and re-add with sources. What we see here is the lazyness that infests lots of BLPs - "too much trouble to read and source, so we'll just leave it!". I'd do it but since I'm banned, I'd only be reverted. --87.112.86.10 (talk) 20:38, 6 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Forget questions of banned or not banned, the crucial point here is that it is contested material in a WP:BLP. The onus is always on those who seek to include disputed content, to justify its inclusion. In this case the disputed text is not linked to any source. I have no opinion about the text itself, but it should not go back in without discussion and sources. Nobody's evil here, but that is how it should be. Guy (Help!) 20:51, 6 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

It's also a copyvio from here, originally added in this edit. One Night In Hackney₃₀₃ 20:52, 6 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Please clarify pronunciation of name

"Seal (pronounced see-ell)" - Sorry, can't understand from this what is correct pronunciation. Please clarify. -- 201.53.7.16 (talk) 15:43, 11 October 2008 (UTC)[reply]

E! True Hollywood Story

the E! True Hollywood Story episode about heidi klum says that seal was 'born into poverty in nigeria', but the article states he was born in the uk. badmachine (talk) 18:57, 2 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Ramy Antoun

The Buckethead task force is currently working on an article about Seal's percussionist Ramy Antoun. Any input from your side is highly appreciated! --Avant-garde a clue-hexa Chord ² 19:05, 31 January 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Placo of birth

This topic is in need of attention from an expert on the subject.

The section or sections that need attention may be noted in a message below.

This article is dreadful. One of the worst I have read on wikipedia. I don't know enough about Seal to improve it but even his place of birth isn't confirmed. Boils (talk) 12:04, 26 April 2009 (UTC)[reply]

There's a lot of changes regarding his birth name, the place of birth and other things about his childhood. An expert should verify all the given info. --Avant-garde a clue-hexa Chord ² 12:12, 26 April 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Agreed; I'm not at all convinced that his real birth-name is "Seal Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel", I suspect it is actually "Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel" and that "Seal" is his adopted moniker; see for example Who's Who 2007 - however, there are plenty of 'reliable sources' that include 'Seal' as first name at birth; but who copied from whom? The official bio doesn't say. This is a tough one... we could do with a book, or something, if there is one (I can't find a good bio online). NY Times agrees with my theory. Unfortunately, his own bio page doesn't seem to have the names at all. I personally suspect that, a few years ago, someone wrote it in the format to mean Seal (Henry Olusegun...) and simply didn't bother with the brackets.

This is further complicated by it being stated as "Sealhenry" on ABC and I suspect that is just a typo, which was copied to askmen.

At the very least, if we cannot be sure, we need to footnote and explain this discrepancy in RS.

And that's just the very first sentence; the problems go on, from there. Not easy. But, WP:TIGER, WP:TIND.

See what others make of the sources, but my own !vote would be something like;

Henry Olusegun Olumide Adeola Samuel, known by the stagename Seal (born 19 February 1963 in Paddington, London, England), is an English soul... - with footnotes if neccesary. Chzz ► 03:06, 19 September 2010 (UTC) Off-topic aside: Yar![reply]

Major Edits

This article really does need some major edits, I'm deleting what seems to be graffiti for now but this needs looking at. 5colourmap

Deleted:

Early Life-

"; a mere stones throw from the suicide spot of one of his childhood heroes heroes: Mark Speight" -- this seems unlikely as mark speight was two years older than seal

"It was made worse when the make-up artist put poison in his make up for the Batman shoot.Seal never took the case further as they settled out of court." -- poison? not likely, also i think that is in the plot of batman, not real life 5colourmap jun2010

Bitten by a shark

Quite a clever piece of graffiti there. Citation is a BBC article about an actual seal being bitten by a shark.

"In 2008, the BBC reported that he had been bitten by a shark off the coast of Norfolk.[25]"

Article: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/norfolk/7169415.stm

I've removed it.

--134.117.251.3 (talk) 20:17, 5 October 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Mentioning the following article

Heidi and Seal have had a lot of racist remarks made against them over the internet, most seem to derive from a sense of jealousy of the success of black and white couple. I was going to mention this article, are there any objections? http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/showbiz/s72/project-runway/news/a313584/heidi-klum-seal-and-i-value-our-marriage.html?rss ₭₦→ ^[talk?] 17:40, 18 April 2011 (UTC) — ₭₦→ ^{talk • contribs} 17:49, 18 April 2011 (UTC) [reply]

¿Militry Career?

There was a story floating out there (pre-internet days, FWIW) that Seal had at one time been in the militry. ¿Any truth to this? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.175.21.87 (talk) 06:36, 6 March 2012 (UTC)[reply]

This Article is Propagating Inaccuracies

Various sources report that Seal was actually born in Nigeria

(1) http://www.thebiographychannel.co.uk/biographies/seal.html (2) http://forum.cybereagles.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=187356 (3) http://forum.cybereagles.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=22295

Can we have some more accurate biographical information with respect to this person.

— Preceding unsigned comment added by Xamalek (talk • contribs) 08:23, 17 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Your "sources" (forums and bio channel) are not sources, they are also false. The Guardian and The Boston Globe are sources. His birth was also registered in London. Carlos Rojas77 (talk) 14:51, 17 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

The fact that they are not sources does not make them false and does not invalidate the issue that this article may be incorrect in certain aspects. His father also may not be Brazilian (where is the evidence that he is Brazilian? There is none I have seen), as it may have been that Seal's family origin may in fact be the 'Brazilian Quarter' of Lagos, Nigeria (which seems much more plausible). The Biography article and the forum posts do seem consistent with one another, but cannot be cited. This Wikipedia article for instance omits the time he lived in Nigeria ... It is important that Wikipedia articles not follow "a narrative", but capture accurate biographical information. The timeline (from PBS, the singer's own words) is in 1962, his mother moves to England from Nigeria, so more likely he was the child of African immigrants. Most articles (like this one: http://delafont.com/music_acts/seal.htm) again seem incomplete. From other articles, his Father was buried in Nigeria (why not England or Brazil). These are the aspects that make me doubt the published narrative. It is not uncommon for artists and musicians to have conflicting biographies; for instance no one is certain where the musician Slim Gaillard was born. So I think there is work to be done here.Xamalek (talk) 04:36, 18 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

The fact they are not sources means they are not valid. Anyone can write anything about someone, forums especially. Unless it is verified in published sources whats written carries zero validity.Carlos Rojas77 (talk) 11:13, 18 February 2015 (UTC)[reply]

in the following video, after 40 seconds, Seal says that it is his grandfather who was Brazilian. So his father is probably Nigerian, too!? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8me-ulACqgE --CapoeiraES (talk) 18:23, 13 October 2017 (UTC)[reply]

SEAL name ORIGIN

Nobody's interested why he has such a strange nickname? -- TVippy 15:19, 11 May 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I'm sure there are explanations given by the subject. They just need a proper citation. Karst (talk) 09:29, 12 May 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I couldn't find it. Would be interested to read on it. -- TVippy 15:40, 16 May 2016 (UTC)[reply]

I was wondering the same thing. What is the origin of the nickname. Really needs explanation. Venqax (talk) 16:13, 26 September 2018 (UTC)[reply]

External links modified

Hello fellow Wikipedians,

I have just modified 5 external links on Seal (musician). Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:

When you have finished reviewing my changes, you may follow the instructions on the template below to fix any issues with the URLs.

This message was posted before February 2018. After February 2018, "External links modified" talk page sections are no longer generated or monitored by InternetArchiveBot. No special action is required regarding these talk page notices, other than regular verification using the archive tool instructions below. Editors have permission to delete these "External links modified" talk page sections if they want to de-clutter talk pages, but see the RfC before doing mass systematic removals. This message is updated dynamically through the template {{source check}} (last update: 5 June 2024).

If you have discovered URLs which were erroneously considered dead by the bot, you can report them with this tool.
If you found an error with any archives or the URLs themselves, you can fix them with this tool.

Cheers.—InternetArchiveBot (Report bug) 15:31, 4 June 2017 (UTC)[reply]

External links modified

Hello fellow Wikipedians,

I have just modified one external link on Seal (musician). Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:

Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20111126215556/http://www.innamoramento.net/mylene-farmer/confidences-interviews/10/Seal/ to http://www.innamoramento.net/mylene-farmer/confidences-interviews/10/Seal/

When you have finished reviewing my changes, you may follow the instructions on the template below to fix any issues with the URLs.

This message was posted before February 2018. After February 2018, "External links modified" talk page sections are no longer generated or monitored by InternetArchiveBot. No special action is required regarding these talk page notices, other than regular verification using the archive tool instructions below. Editors have permission to delete these "External links modified" talk page sections if they want to de-clutter talk pages, but see the RfC before doing mass systematic removals. This message is updated dynamically through the template {{source check}} (last update: 5 June 2024).

If you have discovered URLs which were erroneously considered dead by the bot, you can report them with this tool.
If you found an error with any archives or the URLs themselves, you can fix them with this tool.

Cheers.—InternetArchiveBot (Report bug) 21:50, 26 July 2017 (UTC)[reply]

External links modified

Hello fellow Wikipedians,

I have just modified 2 external links on Seal (musician). Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:

When you have finished reviewing my changes, you may follow the instructions on the template below to fix any issues with the URLs.

This message was posted before February 2018. After February 2018, "External links modified" talk page sections are no longer generated or monitored by InternetArchiveBot. No special action is required regarding these talk page notices, other than regular verification using the archive tool instructions below. Editors have permission to delete these "External links modified" talk page sections if they want to de-clutter talk pages, but see the RfC before doing mass systematic removals. This message is updated dynamically through the template {{source check}} (last update: 5 June 2024).

If you have discovered URLs which were erroneously considered dead by the bot, you can report them with this tool.
If you found an error with any archives or the URLs themselves, you can fix them with this tool.

Cheers.—InternetArchiveBot (Report bug) 23:00, 2 December 2017 (UTC)[reply]

Sealhenry

This edit request has been answered. Set the |answered= or |ans= parameter to no to reactivate your request.

Please change the first name from Henry to Sealhenry (one word) per sources:

"Seal". Biography. A&E Television Networks, LLC.
Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Seal | Biography & History". AllMusic. RhythmOne, LLC.
Finn, Robin. "AT LUNCH WITH: Seal; From a Crucible Of Early Pain Comes the Gold Of Stardom". New York Times. The New York Times Company.
Plus: any other reliable source on the subject

2606:A000:1126:4CA:0:98F2:CFF6:1782 (talk) 21:13, 18 September 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Not done: The page's protection level has changed since this request was placed. You should now be able to edit the page yourself. If you still seem to be unable to, please reopen the request with further details. Sakura Cartelet^Talk 22:35, 18 September 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Okay. There are now edits "pending review". 2606:A000:1126:4CA:0:98F2:CFF6:1782 (talk) 23:59, 18 September 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Sealhenry pt.2

My edits were reverted (see above) -- why? The sources are reliable. Would the New York Times interview somebody, get their name wrong and fail to correct it? Certainly the name of the subject is an important piece of information for this article.

Comments encouraged for consensus. —107.15.157.44 (talk) 06:08, 19 September 2018 (UTC) ←[aka: 2606:A000:...][reply]

Maybe he changed his name to Sealhenry? --Dweller (talk) Become old fashioned! 11:51, 21 September 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Possible early acting role???

In the sketch show SCTV Network, on the June 5, 1982 episode, Chariots of Eggs, there was a sketch called Mrs. Falbo's Tiny Town: Prison (see youtube link below). There was an inmate in the sketch named Mohammed. He is a dead ringer for Seal. I can't verify that it is/isn't him, but I wonder if anyone has any insight on this. Although Seal's notable facial scarring is primarily absent, the actor doesn't really have smooth facial skin, and that could have been addressed by the heavy makeup and prosthetics that the show frequently used. Also, it doesn't match what's known about his early career. This was shot in Canada and he grew up and worked early on in England and would have been 19 at the time of this show. This actor does look older. However, the face and shaved head appear identical, and the ears are very similar. The character only has a single one-word line, "Manslaughter" so it's tough to tell by voice, but it does sound similar to Seal's speaking voice.

Mrs. Falbo's Tiny Town: Prison

Fgoron2000 (talk) 15:52, 28 September 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Name question

freebmd.org.uk has a record for an Olusegun A.A. Samuel born in the first quarter of 1963 in Paddington to a Mrs. Ogundeji. Could it be that Olusegun is his proper name and he was given the name Henry by his adoptive parents? Heepman1997 (talk) 06:54, 18 March 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Father

Where do we keep repeating that his father was Afro-Brazilian from? An in-depth New York Times from 1996 mentions his "Nigerian parents" and that Seal traveled to Nigeria at the age of 15 to scatter his father's ashes there. Regardless of what anyone said - including Seal - the only documentation we have is that his father was from Nigeria. Criticalthinker (talk) 23:26, 24 February 2024 (UTC)[reply]