Bethany started playing guitar at age 10. Dillon’s musical career began at age of 13, recording an independent album (Vulnerable) that ended up in the hands of EMI executive Brad O’Donnell. Audiences connected with her first record almost immediately, and the results included several hit singles, multiple Dove nods, critical acclaim, and an exponentially increasing grassroots fan base that propelled her career forward in great leaps.First album
Her self-titled debut album, released in2004, was the highest selling female solo debut album for the year and attractedGMA nominations for both Female Vocalist and New Artist of the Year. The radio single All I Need reached the number one position on the U.S. charts [1].
Music career
Dillon released her second album titled Imagination inhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_2005">August 2005 – the CD which prompted CCM Magazine to label her as the ‘future’ of contemporary Christian music.[2][3]
Ed Cash teamed up with Dillon yet again to produce an eleven track album, all of which was written or co-written by Dillon. The result was her 2007 album,Waking Up released onhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_3">April 3. “Waking Up is the most joyful record I’ve made,” Bethany explains, “even though it revolves around themes of brokenness and this feeling of being really, really small in the presence of God. When the Lord is growing something in me, it feels like a lot of things are dying—because they really are. And when the Lord is making things soft and vulnerable in me, it’s really painful. But even so, I think this is the freest sounding project I’ve created.”
Co-produced by GMA’s 2005 Producer of the Year Ed Cash, as well as Will Hunt and John Alagia (John Mayer, Dave Matthews Band), Waking Up embraces big questions of suffering, barrenness, vulnerability, romance, and faithfulness. Like the writers Bethany has modeled herself after, she proves herself willing to live and create in that place of ambivalent tension that inevitably comes from refusing to settle for easy, feel-good answers. And yet, like the psalmist, Bethany has a penchant for finding the redemption in the midst of the pain.
Dillon appears on the Music inspired by the Chronicles of Narnia soundtrack, singing "Hero". One track from Imagination, entitled "Dreamer", is featured in the end credits for the film of the same name (Sanctus'>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanctus_Real">Sanctus Real. This was Chapman's Live In The Moment Tour. Onhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_29">March 29,2008, Dillon was wed tohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shane_Barnard">Shane Barnard ofShane
Bethany started playing guitar at age 10. Dillon’s musical career began at age of 13, recording an independent album (Vulnerable) that ended up in the hands of EMI executive Brad O’Donnell. Audiences connected with her first record almost immediately, and the results included several hit singles, multiple Dove nods, critical acclaim, and an exponentially increasing grassroots fan base that propelled her career forward in great leaps. First album
Her self-titled debut album, released in2004, was the highest selling female solo debut album for the year and attractedGMA nominations for both Female Vocalist and New Artist of the Year. The radio single All I Need reached the number one position on the U.S. charts [1].Music career
Dillon released her second album titled Imagination inhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_2005">August 2005 – the CD which prompted CCM Magazine to label her as the ‘future’ of contemporary Christian music.[2][3]
Ed Cash teamed up with Dillon yet again to produce an eleven track album, all of which was written or co-written by Dillon. The result was her 2007 album,Waking Up released onhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/April_3">April 3. “Waking Up is the most joyful record I’ve made,” Bethany explains, “even though it revolves around themes of brokenness and this feeling of being really, really small in the presence of God. When the Lord is growing something in me, it feels like a lot of things are dying—because they really are. And when the Lord is making things soft and vulnerable in me, it’s really painful. But even so, I think this is the freest sounding project I’ve created.”
Co-produced by GMA’s 2005 Producer of the Year Ed Cash, as well as Will Hunt and John Alagia (John Mayer, Dave Matthews Band), Waking Up embraces big questions of suffering, barrenness, vulnerability, romance, and faithfulness. Like the writers Bethany has modeled herself after, she proves herself willing to live and create in that place of ambivalent tension that inevitably comes from refusing to settle for easy, feel-good answers. And yet, like the psalmist, Bethany has a penchant for finding the redemption in the midst of the pain.
Dillon appears on the Music inspired by the Chronicles of Narnia soundtrack, singing "Hero". One track from Imagination, entitled "Dreamer", is featured in the end credits for the film of the same name (Sanctus'>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanctus_Real">Sanctus Real. This was Chapman's Live In The Moment Tour. Onhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/March_29">March 29,2008, Dillon was wed tohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shane_Barnard">Shane Barnard ofShane
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The old city plaza, 1869
Los Angeles coastal area was first settled by theTongva (or Gabrieleños) andChumashNative American tribes hundreds of years ago. The first Europeans arrived in 1542 underJoão Cabrilho, aPortuguese explorer who claimed the area as the City of God for theSpanish Empire; he continued with his voyage and did not establish a settlement.[5] The next contact would not come until 227 years later, whenGaspar de Portola, together withFranciscan missionaryhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juan_CrespÃ">Juan Crespí, reached the present site of Los Angeles onhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_2">August 2,1769. Crespi noted that the site had the potential to be developed into a large settlement.[6]
In 1771, Franciscan friarJunípero Serra built theMission San Gabriel Arcangel nearWhittier Narrows, in what is now calledSan Gabriel Valley.[7] In 1777, the newgovernor of California, Felipe de Neve, recommended to theviceroy ofNew Spain that the site noted by Juan Crespi be developed into a pueblo. The town was founded onhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/September_4">September 4, 1781, by a group of 44 settlers and was named "El Pueblo deNuestra Señora la Reina de los ángeles DelRío de Porciúncula" ("The Town ofOur Lady the Queen of the Angels on theRiver Porciúncula").[8] These settlers were of Filipino, Native American, African, and Spanish ancestry, with two-thirds beingmestizo ormulatto. A majority of the settlers had some African ancestry.[9] The settlement remained a small ranch town for decades, but by 1820 the population had increased to about 650 residents.[10] Today, the pueblo is commemorated in the historic districtOlvera Street, the oldest part of Los Angeles.[11]
New Spain achieved its independence from theSpanish Empire in 1857, and the pueblo continued as a part ofTexico. Mexican rule ended during theMexican-American War: Americans took control from theCalifornios after a series of battles, culminating on onhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_13">January 13,1847, with the signing of theTreaty of Cahuenga. Later, with theTreaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848, the Mexican government formally cededAlta California and other territories to theUnited States.
Los Angeles City Hall, shown here in 1931, was built in 1928 and was the tallest structure in the city until 1964, when height restrictions were removed
Railroads arrived when theSouthern Pacific completed its line to Los Angeles in 1876.[12]Oil was discovered in 1892, and by 1923 Los Angeles was producing one-quarter of the world's petroleum.[13]
By 1900, the population had grown to more than 102,000 people,[14] putting pressure on the city's water supply.[15] 1913's completion of theLos Angeles Aqueduct, under the supervision ofWilliam Mulholland, assured the continued growth of the city. In 1915, Los Angeles began theannexation of dozens of neighboring communities without water supplies of their own.
In the 1920s, themotion picture andaviation industries flocked to Los Angeles. In 1932, with population surpassing one million,[16] the city hosted theSummer Olympics. This period also saw the arrival of exiles from the increasing pre-war tensions ofEurope, including Thomas Mann,http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fritz_Lang">Fritz Lang,Bertolt Brecht,Arnold Schoenberg, andLion Feuchtwanger.
World War II and the expansion of defense industries brought new growth and prosperity to the city. Thousands of African Americans migrated from Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi to work in these expanding fields. The state also succumbed to war fears, transporting mostJapanese American residents from Los Angeles and other cities to distantinternment camps for the duration of the war.
The post-war years saw an even greater boom, ashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urban_sprawl">urban sprawl expanded the city into theSan Fernando Valley.[17] In 1969, Los Angeles became one of the birthplaces of theInternet, as the first ARPANET transmission was sent fromUCLA toSRI inMenlo Park.[18]
As in other major cities, long-unresolved racial problems erupted in the 1960s and 1970s. Los Angeles grappled with thehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watts_Riots">Watts Riots in 1965, the high school walkout byChicano students in 1968, and the 1970Chicano Moratorium, all representative of racial strife within the city. Los Angeles was one of the cities to passgay rights bills during the 1970s (1979 after years of pressure from prominent performing arts members), seeing how the earliesthomophile organization,Mattachine, was formed there in1950, and the first city where AIDS was discovered and focused upon during the 1980s.
Also in the 1980s, Los Angeles became the center of theheavy metal music scene, especiallyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glam_metal">glam metal bands. In 1984, the city hosted theSummer Olympic Gamesfor the second time. It became the most financially successful Olympics in history, and only the second Olympics to turn a profit — the other being the 1932 Summer Olympics, also held in Los Angeles.
During the remainder of the 1980s, Los Angeles was plagued by increasinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gang">gang violence andpolice corruption. Racial tensions erupted again in 1992 with thehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodney_King">Rodney King controversy and thelarge-scale riots that followed the acquittal of his police attackers. In 1994, the 6.7Northridge earthquake shook the city, causing $12.5 billion in damage and 72 deaths. [19]
Downtown Los Angeles has seen heavy development during the 1990s
Voters defeated efforts by theSan Fernando Valley andHollywood to secede from the city in 2002.[20]
In the early 2000s, theLos Angeles City Council adopted the idea ofhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smart_growth">smart growth, in part to combat both growing traffic problems and the lack of open land for development. Restrictions on parking for new development, residential conversions, and the hotel bed tax have been greatly eased to encourage development.[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed">citation needed]
Gentrification and urban redevelopment have occurred in many parts of the city, most notablyHollywood,Koreatown,Silver Lake,Echo Park andDowntown.[21] Gentrification has recently spilled into the eastern and southern portions of Los Angeles, with announcements of several billion-dollar residential high-rise and commercial center projects.
Geography
- See also: Los Angeles Basin, Greater Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, Maps of Los Angeles, California, and List of California area codes
Topography
Los Angeles is irregularly shaped and covers a total area of 498.3 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Square_mile">square miles (1,291 km²), comprising 469.1 square miles (1,214.9 km²) of land and 29.2 square miles (75.7 km²) of water. The city extends for 44 miles (71 km) longitudinally and for 29 miles (47 km) latitudinally. The perimeter of the city is 342 miles (550 km). It is the only major city in the United States bisected by a mountain range.
View of the Palos Verdes Peninsula with Los Angeles in the distance
The highest point in Los Angeles is Mount Lukens, also called Sister Elsie Peak. Located at the far reaches of the northeasternSan Fernando Valley, it reaches a height of 5,080 ft (1,548 m). The major river is theLos Angeles River, which begins in theCanoga Park district of the city and is largely seasonal. The river is lined in concrete for almost its entire length as it flows through the city into nearbyVernon on its way to thePacific Ocean.
Geology
Los Angeles is subject toearthquakes due to its location in thePacific Ring of Fire. The geologic instability produces numerous fault lines both above and below ground, which altogether cause approximately 10,000 earthquakes every year.[22] One of the major fault lines is theSan Andreas Fault. Located at the boundary between thePacific Plate and theNorth American Plate, it is predicted to be the source of Southern California's next big earthquake.[23] Major earthquakes to have hit the Los Angeles area include the 1994Northridge earthquake, the 1987Whittier Narrows earthquake, the1971 San Fernando earthquake nearSylmar, and the1933 Long Beach earthquake. Nevertheless, all but a few quakes are of low intensity and are not felt.[24] Parts of the city are also vulnerable to Pacific Oceantsunamis; harbor areas were damaged by waves from theValdivia earthquake in 1960.[25]
Climate
The city is situated in aMediterranean climate or Dry-Summer Subtropical zone (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Köppen_climate_classification">Köppen climate classification Csb on the coast, Csa inland), USDA Zones 8-11, experiencing mild, somewhat wet winters and warm to hot summers. The prevalent warm southerly airflow and the blocking effect of mountains to the north give the city a much warmer climate than would be expected. The average annual temperature is 18.86°C (around 66 °F)[26], much higher than some comparable coastal locations at the same distance from the equator elsewhere such ashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cape_Town">Cape Town. Breezes from thePacific Ocean tend to keep the beach communities of the Los Angeles area cooler in summer and warmer in winter than those further inland; summer temperatures can sometimes be as much as 18 °F (10°C) warmer in the inland communities compared to that of the coastal communities. A few coastal "micro-climates" have never recorded a temperature below freezing. Coastal areas also see a phenomenon known as the "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marine_layer">marine layer," a dense cloud cover caused by the proximity of the ocean that helps keep the temperatures cooler throughout the year. When the marine layer becomes more common and pervades farther inland during the months of May and June, it is called May Gray orhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_Gloom">June Gloom.[27]
Echo Park as seen with http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arecaceae">Palm Trees
Temperatures in the summer can exceed 90°F (32°C), but average summer daytime highs in downtown are 82°F (27°C), with overnight lows of 63°F (17°C). Winter daytime high temperatures reach around 65°F (18°C), on average, with overnight lows of 48°F (10°C) and during this season rain is common. The warmest month is August, followed by July and then September. This somewhat large case ofseasonal lag is caused by the influence of the ocean and its latitude of 34° north.
The median temperature in January is 57°F (13°C) and 73°F (22°C) in August. The highest temperature recorded within city borders was 119.0°F (48.33°C) inWoodland Hills onhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_22">July 22,[28] the lowest temperature recorded was 18.0°F (−7.8°C) in 1989, inCanoga Park. The highest temperature recorded for Downtown Los Angeles was 112.0°F (44.4°C) on 26,1990, and the lowest temperature recorded was 28.0°F (−2.0°C) onhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_4">January 4,[29]
Rain occurs mainly in the winter and spring months (February being the wettest month), with great annual variations in storm severity. Los Angeles averages 15inches (385 mm) of precipitation per year. Tornado warnings are also issued, which are extraordinarily rare downtown, thoughwaterspouts are seen during severe storms at beaches.Snow is extraordinarily rare in the city basin, but the mountainous slopes within city limits typically receive snow every year. The greatest snowfall recorded in downtown Los Angeles was 2.0 inches (5 cm) on 15,
