Biography of the singer HER
Gabriella Wilson, better known as HER, is a popular American hip-hop artist. She also plays the guitar, bass guitar, drums and piano. Her personality in the early years of her career remained a mystery to fans, which did not prevent the artist from becoming a real star.
In the photo: HER
Childhood and first steps in music
Gabi, as she was affectionately known in the family, was born on June 27, 1997 in Vallejo, the largest city in Solano County, California. The girl grew up in the family of Kenny and Agnes Wilson. Her African American father was the founder of a local blues band called the Urban Bushmen, and her Filipina mother is a housewife. Parents supported the girl in all her endeavors, but Kenny did not even imagine that in ten years he would be known as the “father of the singing sensation.”
Little Gaby with her parents
Music has always sounded in their house: rhythm and blues, rock and roll, reggae. In such a creative atmosphere, the five-year-old Gaby became interested in singing and music, learned to play the bass guitar, and by the age of 8 she released her first collection of poems. At the age of 9, she landed her first film role on Nickelodeon’s School Girls. At the age of 10, she played the piano cover of an Alicia Keys song on a popular TV show, where she was introduced to the public as a “musical prodigy”.
The talented girl was taken under the wing of Will Smith’s production company Overbrook Entertainment. Gabriella got her first opportunity to perform on stage in front of a large audience in 2006, playing the piano at the Apollo Theater in New York.
At the age of 12, she got into the top 5 finalists of the Radio Disney project, performing at the ASCAP Awards.
The first popularity came to the girl, she had fans, but, in spite of everything, this did not please the aspiring singer. She left the stage for two years. At the age of 14, Gabriella signed with Sony Entertainment and released her first single “Something to Prove” under her real name. Jeff Robinson became her new producer. But things did not go further than this, and the girl again went into the shadows. To return in a couple of years with a radically new image-hoax.
Gabriella and Alicia Keys
HER
In 2016, Gabriella released her first mini-album HER Vol. 1″ under the pseudonym HER is an acronym for “Having Everything Revealed”. Which roughly translates from English as “lay out all the ins and outs”, and this is ironic, because for quite a long time the singer tried to hide her real name and background.
The release was not accompanied by a high-profile advertising campaign, which did not prevent him from getting into the US national charts. The promotion of Gabriella’s first album was assisted by Alisha Keys, Keilani and Asher, who happily advised their fans to pay attention to the work of the young singer.
HER in youth
The album resonated even with world-class stars – it was positively evaluated by Beyoncé and Usher. Rihanna provided the greatest support to the girl by posting on her personal Instagram page an excerpt from the song “Focus”, which was included in HER Vol. one”. The delight of the release was expressed by sisters Kylie and Kendall Jenner. On the streaming service Spotify, users listened to the album 20 million times and 65 million times in total on all other platforms. NPR radio later played “HER Vol. 1” in the top five R&B albums, and Forbes and Rolling Stones mentioned the girl in the lists of promising artists.
And no one knew anything about this mysterious singer. She hid her face behind massive sunglasses and intriguingly avoided questions about her identity. Gabriella wanted people to be interested primarily in her music, emotions, and not what is usually interested in the yellow press:
I felt that I should start the era of “anti-stars”. So that all this was about music and not about “What was she wearing?”, “Who is she dating?”.
In 2017, Gabriella released her second mini-album titled HER Vol. 2″. The single “Say it Again” became especially successful, which allowed the album to break out into the leaders of listening and take 7th place on the Hot R&B chart. A few months later, fans heard the sequel, HER Vol. 2, The B Sides. In October of the same year, the singer’s first full-length album, HER, was released. It included the best hits of previous releases and 6 new songs, including the song “Best Part”, which the girl performed in a duet with Daniel Caesar.
One of the highlights of Gabi’s career was her performance at the BET Experience in Los Angeles in 2017. During the show, she shared the stage with popular artists such as Snoop Dogg, Wiz Khalifa, Kid Kudi and Khalid, promoting her work to a wider audience. The success of the album and several successful concerts allowed the girl to win the Grammy Award, which became a triumphant moment in the singer’s career.
HER at the Grammy Awards
Wilson’s further work developed according to a scheme familiar to all fans. In 2018, the artist released the mini-album “I Used to Know Her: The Prelude”, and then supplemented it with a sequel called “I Used to Know Her: Part 2”. The symbiosis of these two works led to the creation of the second full-length collection “I Used to Know Her”. Shortly after the presentation, Gabi performed at the Global Citizen Festival and Rock in Rio. In 2019, the artist was nominated for a Grammy five times. The victory went to her in the categories “Best R’n’B Performance” (for “Best Part”) and “Best R’n’B Album”. The following year, the number of nominations remained the same, but the Grammy 2024 did not bring her a single victory.
HER’s personal life
Gabriella is actively involved in social networks, but she is still in no hurry to disclose the details of her personal life, uzanvyse.ru notes. It is only known that in her youth she experienced several unsuccessful novels, which were reflected in the work of the singer.
Gabriella prefers not to disclose the details of her personal life
In August 2024, the tabloids reported on the romance of the singer and Skip Marley, the grandson of the famous Bob Marley. They did spend a lot of time together, but was it a creative connection or something more?
HER and Skip Marley
Gabriella is not going to change the principle of “personal remains personal”, and Skip answered questions about Gaby only within the framework of creativity:
When we first met, we felt a natural attraction that both, like, understand each other. I had a track that I couldn’t finish. And one guy said to me: “Don’t you understand who would fit here perfectly?”. I asked, “How about HER?” And he said, “That would be just perfect.”
The result of their work was the track “Slow Down”.
Gabriella Wilson now
In 2024, Gaby delighted fans with the songs “Damage” and “Hold Us Together” and two new videos. After the tragedy of George Floyd, HER released the single “I Can’t Breathe”, which became a response to a wave of police killings of unarmed black civilians and one of the anthems of the subsequent protests against police brutality and systemic racism.
Thanks to this composition, in 2024 Gabi won the Grammy in the nomination “Best Song of the Year”.
Just by the title, you can understand that this song is about something very painful and very revealing … It was quite easy to come up with the lyrics, because it is taken from life, from what is happening around us right now. I wrote this song to leave my mark on history.
And she got another statuette for the song “Better Than I Imagine” (in the nomination “Best R’n’B Song”). Robert Glasper and Michel Ndegeosello worked on the single with the girl. The success of the song was another proof of the talent of the performer, who continues to create, releasing new hits.
Gabriella at the 2024 Grammy Awards
Interesting Facts
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Black sunglasses are still an integral element of the singer’s image. The girl prefers Nordstrom Rack, Ray-Bans and Gucci brands.
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Gabriella’s songs are often heard in movies. In the second season of Dear White People, her single “Still Down” was played, and on the soundtracks for the films “Uncle Drew” and “Superfly”, viewers were able to enjoy the compositions “I Can Feel It” and “This Way”.
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In 2024, her song “Fight For You” for Judas and the Black Messiah won an Oscar for Best Song.