Chrissy Amphlett | en

Christine Joy Amphlett (born 25 October 1954 in Geelong, Victoria, Australia) was the lead singer of Australian rock band Divinyls. She is also known as Chrissy Amphlett.

Amphlett had played in various bands since 1968 and met Mark McEntee at a concert at the Sydney Opera House in 1980, and the pair formed Divinyls shortly after. After several years of live gigs in Sydney, they recorded several songs to be used on the soundtrack of the film Monkey Grip.

Divinyls consisted of an ever-changing lineup around the core of Amphlett and McEntee, whose relationship was volatile throughout their career. Nonetheless, the band released six albums between 1982 and 1996, peaking in 1990 with the success of the single "I Touch Myself" which reached Number 1 in Australia, 10 in the UK and 4 in the US. Divinyls did not release another album for nearly six years, splitting up around the time of Underworld's release in Australia.

Amphlett has also worked as an actress. Her first foray into theatre was the 1976 X-rated musical "Let my People Come", in which she played Linda Lips. She made her film debut in the 1982 film Monkey Grip, in which she had a supporting role as the temperamental lead singer of a rock band loosely based on Divinyls.

In 1988, Amphlett starred alongside Russell Crowe in the first Australian production of Will Russell's stage musical Blood Brothers.

Amphlett was originally cast to play Judy Garland opposite Todd McKenney in the original touring production of The Boy from Oz, about the life of Peter Allen. However, Amphlett was replaced in the role by Isabel Keating when the show made its Broadway debut in 2003, but she resumed the role in the Australian tour.

Amphlett is a cousin of Australian singer Little Pattie (Patricia Amphlett). Since 1999, Amphlett has been married to American drummer Charley Drayton who played drums on the Divinyls' eponymous album and currently resides in New York City.

In an interview on the Nine Network program A Current Affair on 7 December 2007, Amphlett revealed she was battling multiple sclerosis. She also announced that Divinyls are no longer together and that she has a new band in New York. Amphlett performed Divinyls songs and others with a thirty piece orchestra for the "Australian Rock Symphony" through January 2010.

She revealed on the 20th October 2010 that she had breast cancer. She successfully received treatment and on the 24th of January 2011, she announced that she was free of cancer.

She released a single called "Summer Song" under the band name "The Tulips" in 2011 and her music career ended that year.

She died in 2013 of breast cancer and multiple sclerosis. She was 58.

For unknown reasons, in the later stages of her life, she requested that her birthdate be listed as 1959.10.25. Despite this, her correct birth date of 1954.10.25 is included here. .