An emotive, gospel- and R&B-influenced singer/songwriter, Tori Kelly initially attracted fans online before gaining wider fame with her 2012 independent breakthrough Handmade Songs by Tori Kelly. Buoyed by the hit single “Should’ve Been Us,” Kelly’s major-label follow-up, 2015’s Unbreakable Smile, fared even better, landing at number two on the Billboard 200. Since then, she has further embraced her Christian faith, as heard on 2018’s Hiding Place, which won the Grammy Award for Best Gospel Album.

Victoria Loren Kelly was born in Wildomar, California on December 14, 1992 into a musical household — her father sang and played bass, her mother was proficient on keyboards and saxophone — and Kelly grew up listening to gospel and was influenced by pop and R&B acts such as Jeff Buckley, Lauryn Hill, and Jill Scott. Kelly developed ambitions to be a professional musician at an early age, and when she was ten, she appeared on the TV talent competition Star Search. In 2004, she was a contestant on America’s Most Talented Kids, winning in her first appearance and moving on to the championship tournament. Her appearance on America’s Most Talented Kids led to a deal with Geffen Records, but she and the label parted ways before she could release any material.