Tori Kelly Bio
Victoria Loren “Tori” Kelly (born December 14, 1992) is an American singer-songwriter and actress whose career began on YouTube and later expanded into recordings, film voice work, and live touring. She first drew national attention after reaching Hollywood Week on the ninth season of American Idol in 2010, and went on to sign with Capitol Records in 2013. Across her career, Kelly has released studio albums, holiday records, and gospel projects, and she has voiced the character Meena in the Sing film franchise. Her accolades include three Grammy Awards, two Billboard Music Awards, one BET Award, and one GMA Dove Award.
Kelly has built a versatile catalog that ranges from pop and R&B to gospel and seasonal music, and she has collaborated with artists such as Ed Sheeran, Lecrae, Kirk Franklin, and Jacob Collier. Outside of recording, she has competed on The Masked Singer, published a book, and continued to tour internationally.
Early Life and Background
Victoria Loren Kelly was born on December 14, 1992, in Wildomar, California, to Laura, who is of Irish and German descent, and Allwyn, who is of Jamaican and Puerto Rican ancestry. She has a younger brother named Noah. Kelly grew up in a household where her parents played music across many genres, an environment she has credited with shaping her broad musical taste.
As a child, Kelly appeared on Star Search, where she competed against vocalist Tiffany Evans in the junior singer division, and she later won America's Most Talented Kids in 2004 after performing Christina Aguilera's “Keep on Singin' My Song,” beating out musician Hunter Hayes. At the age of twelve, she accepted a record deal with Geffen Records, though the contract was later ended by mutual agreement due to creative differences.
Kelly is a Christian, and faith plays a part in her songwriting, although she has noted that she does not consider herself part of the Christian music genre. She began posting videos to YouTube in 2007 at the age of fourteen, uploading a cover of John Wesley Work Jr.'s “Go Tell It on the Mountain” before gaining wider attention for an acoustic cover, with fellow YouTuber Angie Girl, of Frank Ocean's “Thinkin Bout You.”
Path to Music
After failing to reach the Top 24 on American Idol, Kelly shifted her approach to her craft by learning to play the guitar, composing original songs, and recording them at home. She posted her performances on YouTube, where her channel quickly grew to more than one million subscribers as listeners responded to her songwriting and vocal style.
In 2012, she self-released her first EP, Handmade Songs, on her own Toraay Records label, writing, producing, and engineering the project in her bedroom. The EP reached the Top 10 Pop Albums list on iTunes and climbed to number nine on the US Heatseekers Albums chart. She followed with a single, “Fill a Heart,” written for the Child Hunger Ends Here campaign, and a small tour that included stops at the Troubadour and the Roxy in Los Angeles, the Gramercy Theater in New York, and Bush Hall in London.
Tori Kelly Career
Early Career (2010–2014)
Kelly auditioned for Season 9 of American Idol in Denver, Colorado, in 2010, advancing to Hollywood Week before being eliminated. In 2012, she released the EP Handmade Songs and, in 2013, signed with Capitol Records through manager Scooter Braun, who introduced her to the label's leadership. Her major-label debut, the EP Foreword, arrived on October 22, 2013, and debuted at number sixteen on the US Billboard 200.
During this period, Kelly performed as the sole supporting act for Ed Sheeran at Madison Square Garden on November 1, 2013, and later supported Sam Smith on the In the Lonely Hour UK tour in October 2014. She contributed the song “Silent” to The Giver: Music Collection and was featured on Professor Green's UK hit “Lullaby,” which became her first top-ten single in the United Kingdom.
Breakthrough (2015–2018)
Working with producers including Toby Gad, Max Martin, and Ed Sheeran, Kelly released her debut studio album, Unbreakable Smile, on June 23, 2015. The album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 and produced the singles “Nobody Love,” “Should've Been Us,” and “Hollow,” each of which became her first three entries on the Billboard Hot 100. She performed at the 2015 Billboard Music Awards and the MTV Video Music Awards, and received a Best New Artist nomination at the 58th Grammy Awards.
In 2016, Kelly made her cinematic debut voicing Meena the elephant in the animated film Sing. She then released her gospel album, Hiding Place, on September 14, 2018, which won Best Gospel Album and Best Gospel Performance/Song for “Never Alone” at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards, marking her first Grammy wins. During this period, she also became a brand ambassador for Justin Timberlake's clothing line, William Rast, and recorded a duet of “Baby Baby” with Amy Grant.
Continued Success (2019–2024)
Kelly released her third studio album, Inspired by True Events, on August 9, 2019, and later that year announced a worldwide tour. In 2020, she issued the EP Solitude and the holiday album A Tori Kelly Christmas, produced by Babyface, while also competing as “Seahorse” on season 4 of The Masked Singer and reaching the semi-finals.
In 2021, she reprised her voice role as Meena in Sing 2 and published her first book, The Curly Girl Blues. In March 2023, she signed with Epic Records, released the EP Tori that summer, and followed with her fifth studio album, Tori, on April 5, 2024, with a deluxe edition released on October 11, 2024. Earlier in 2023, she was hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center after collapsing at a restaurant in Los Angeles, where blood clots were found in her legs and around her lungs, and she was discharged on July 31, 2023.
Notable Works and Milestones
Kelly's signature recordings include Unbreakable Smile (2015), Hiding Place (2018), Inspired by True Events (2019), A Tori Kelly Christmas (2020), and Tori (2024). Her voice work as Meena in the Sing franchise brought her visibility beyond the music charts, and her 2018 gospel album marked a defining artistic moment that earned her first Grammy Awards.
Tori Kelly Award Nominations
Tori Kelly has received nominations across major music industry ceremonies throughout her career. Her early recognition includes a Best New Artist nomination at the 58th Grammy Awards in 2015, and she has continued to receive nominations for her recordings in the gospel, pop, and R&B categories at subsequent Grammy ceremonies. She has also earned nominations at the Billboard Music Awards and the BET Awards, reflecting her broad reach across mainstream and gospel audiences.
Tori Kelly Awards Won
Kelly has won three Grammy Awards, two Billboard Music Awards, one BET Award, and one GMA Dove Award. Her Grammy wins came at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards for Best Gospel Album (Hiding Place) and Best Gospel Performance/Song (“Never Alone”), with an additional Grammy win extending her total to three across her career.
Tori Kelly Family
Kelly was raised by her parents, Laura and Allwyn Kelly, in Wildomar, California, alongside a younger brother named Noah. Her parents exposed her to a wide range of musical genres while she was growing up, an influence that shaped her early artistic development.
Personal Life
Kelly married professional basketball player André Murillo in 2018, and the couple announced in July 2025 that they were expecting their first child. She gave birth to a baby boy named Zayden Michael Murillo on November 11, 2025. In July 2023, Kelly was hospitalized at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles after collapsing at a restaurant due to blood clots in her legs and around her lungs; she was discharged several days later.