Biography

1984-03: Early life and career beginnings

Jessica Louise Origliasso was born in Queensland, Australia, the daughter of Joseph and Colleen Origliasso. She is older than her twin sister, Lisa, by one minute. Their older brother, Julian Origliasso, is a music manager who manages their duo the Veronicas. They were raised in Albany Creek, Queensland, and attended both Ferny Grove State High School, and Wavell State High School.

The Origliasso sisters began their career at the age of five, performing at awards shows and sporting events as the Origliasso Twins, changing their name to "Lisa & Jessica" in their teen years, under which they released three albums. At age sixteen, Lisa and Jessica ventured into acting, being cast in a small role in the children's television series Cybergirl, as villains Emerald and Sapphire Buxton, respectively. In 2003, they formed another band with two of their friends called Teal and released a single called "Baby It's Over".

2004-09: The Veronicas

Lisa and Jessica impressed music executive Hayden Bell with their demo tracks, and were signed to Excalibur Productions Australia as songwriters in 2004. After being signed to Sydney based independent record label Engine Room Recordings, they received funding to travel the world to write and record demos with other songwriters. During this trip, they co-wrote songs that would be released by other artists, including: "What's Going On?" by Casey Donovan, "All About Us" by t.A.T.u. and "Faded" by Kate DeAraugo (also covered by Cascada). By the end of 2004 they travelled to America and signed with Sire Records, a subsidiary of Warner Music for a deal worth $2 million. Taking their name from a line in the film Heathers (1988), they called themselves the Veronicas. However the name was also connected to the Archie Comics character Veronica Lodge, leading to the owners suing them for trademark infringement, but resulted in a settlement which included the sisters appearing in the comics.

The following year, they released their debut album The Secret Life of... (2005), which spawned their first major hit "4ever" peaking at number two on the ARIA Singles Chart and certified platinum, denoting 70,000 copies shipped in Australia. The album sold almost half a million copies worldwide and earned them an ARIA Award for Best Pop Release. In 2007 they released their second album Hook Me Up and its eponymous single scored them their first number one hit on the ARIA Charts and was certified platinum. The following single, "Untouched" became their global breakthrough song, reaching the top twenty of the Billboard Hot 100 charts, and the top twenty in seven other countries, including number one in Ireland. It went on to be certified platinum in the United States, with over one million digital downloads. They embarked on the Revenge Is Sweeter tour, their first to go global, which began in February 2009 and ended December. After concluding the tour, Lisa and Jessica decided to take time off from the group. Having promoted their second album since 2007, they were "ready to move on" wanting to "discover whether they could create separately as well as individually."

2010-present: Album delays and The Veronicas

Jessica re-united with Lisa after their break in 2010 to begin working on the Veronicas third studio album. Their record label, Warner Music, went through major restructuring during this time which caused delays in releasing new music. Wanting to keep fans updated with the progress of their new work, they performed a set at The Viper Room in 2011. Months after this performance, in 2012, the Veronicas finally revealed that they would release a new song called "Lolita" for their new album, which was known as Life on Mars at the time. The single reached number twenty three on the ARIA Singles Chart and was certified gold. Life on Mars was to be released by the end of 2012, however, Warner Music pushed the date back to early 2013, and eventually the record was shelved altogether. Because of this, Lisa and Jessica hired a lawyer in a bid to get out of their contractual obligations with the label and were successful, so by 2013 the Veronicas became an independent act.

In April 2014 the Veronicas were signed to Sony Music and began putting the finishing touches on their third album, which was renamed The Veronicas. The first single from the album, "You Ruin Me", debuted atop the ARIA Singles Chart, becoming their first number-one hit in the country since "Hook Me Up" in 2007. It stayed at the apex of the chart for three consecutive weeks and was certified double platinum.

Philanthropy

In 2006, Jessica and Lisa Origliasso joined Steve Irwin's Wildlife Warriors Worldwide, a charity that deals with the protection of animals and their natural environments.

In January 2009, it was announced that Origliasso would pose nude for PETA after she was seen on the New York City Subway wearing a faux fur jacket with an anti-fur message on the back.

Jessica and Lisa also joined a "Wear it with Pride" campaign to reform same-sex laws in Australia for the 85 legislative changes made in 2010 to overturn discrimination against same-sex couples and their families. The campaign involved them wearing numbered T-shirts representing each legislative change.

In 2010, Jessica and Lisa were honoured as Wildlife Warriors of the year for their efforts in publicizing animal protection and conservation on a worldwide scale.

[ Source: Wikipedia ]