Alexis Petridis

{{Short description|British music journalist (born 1971)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2020}}

{{Infobox person

| name = Alexis Petridis

| alt = Alexis Petridis speaking in 2015

| caption = Petridis in 2015

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1971|9|13|df=yes}}

| birth_place = Sunderland, England

| death_date =

| death_place =

| other_names =

| education = University of Cambridge

| occupation = {{flatlist|

• Journalist
• critic

}}

| employer = The Guardian

| notable_works =

| spouse =

}}

Alexis Petridis (born 13 September 1971){{cite web|url=http://www.dellam.com/07751588-ALEXIS%20PETRIDIS%20LIMITED.html|title=Dellam Corporate Information Limited, England|access-date=29 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140628223454/http://www.dellam.com/07751588-ALEXIS%20PETRIDIS%20LIMITED.html/|archive-date=28 June 2014|url-status=dead}} is a British journalist. He is the head rock and pop music critic for The Guardian, and a regular contributor for GQ.{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/profile/alexispetridis |title=Alexis Petridis Profile |work=The Guardian|access-date=17 September 2011 |location=London |date=26 September 2007}} In addition to his music journalism for the paper, he has written a weekly column in the fashion section of The Guardian{{'s}} Weekend section, as well as contributing to its Lost in Showbiz column.

Petridis was born to a family of Greek descent in Sunderland in the north of England, but grew up in Silsden, near Keighley in Yorkshire.{{cite web |last1=Petridis |first1=Alexis |author1-link=Alexis Petridis |title=We're gonna make you a star |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2005/jul/08/popandrock |website=The Guardian |access-date=19 June 2022 |language=en |date=7 July 2005}}{{Citation |title=Who's the BRITS for these days? Alexis Petridis on what teenagers think about music | date=2 March 2022 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsKuIjlMBrs |access-date=2023-09-08 |language=en}} The family later moved to Buckinghamshire.{{citation needed|date=March 2022}} After studying at Dr Challoner's Grammar School in Amersham, he began his writing career at the University of Cambridge by contributing to the student newspaper Varsity. He was the final editor of the now defunct music magazine Select. He was also the ghostwriter of Elton John's 2019 autobiography Me.{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/oct/16/me-elton-john-autobiography-review|title=Me by Elton John review – hilariously self-lacerating|last=Freeman|first=Hadley|date=16 October 2019|work=The Guardian|access-date=17 October 2019|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}

Petridis has won the "Record Reviews Writer of the Year" category at the Record of the Day awards eight times, every year from 2005 to 2012, as well as winning "Artist and Music Features: Writer of the Year" in 2006 and "Best Music Writer" (as voted by students) in 2012.{{cite web|url=http://www.recordoftheday.com/awards/index.php |title=Awards 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111111021939/http://www.recordoftheday.com/awards/index.php |archive-date=11 November 2011 }}{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2007/nov/21/pressandpublishing.television |title=Guardian has best music coverage for second year |first=Lee |last=Glendinning |date=21 November 2007 |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |access-date=17 September 2011}}{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/gnm-press-office/guardia-wins-at-record-of-the-day-awards-november-2012 |title=Record of the Day Awards, November 2012 |date=29 November 2012 |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |access-date=29 November 2012}} In 2017, he was awarded a Fellowship by Leeds College of Music.{{cite web|url=https://www.lcm.ac.uk/about-us/news/leeds-college-of-music-awards-three-fellowships-to-key-industry-figures/|title=Leeds College of Music awards three Fellowships to key industry figures|website=Leeds College of Music|first=Kath|last=Hartley|date=28 July 2017|access-date=19 January 2020}}