BIGSONG:
Grammy nominee Natalie Grant was a member of contemporary Christian collective the Truth before moving to Nashville in pursuit of a solo career. Introducing her warm voice and soulful lead, she released her pop-friendly self-titled debut in 1999. Grant’s first appearance on the Billboard 200 was with 2005’s Awaken, her fourth album. Her first Grammy nomination came courtesy of 2011’s “Alive” from Music Inspired by The Story, and she had two more firsts — first time in the Top 20 and first Christian number one — with her eighth studio album, 2013’s Hurricane. Grant hit a career-high number 13 on the Billboard 200 with her tenth full-length, 2020’s No Stranger. Born in Seattle, Natalie Diane Grant attended Northwest College in Kirkland, Washington, with plans to become a teacher. She soon changed direction, deciding to pursue music as a full-time endeavor rather than merely a church activity, and auditioned for Alabama-based traveling music collective the Truth. Relocating to Nashville, she signed with Benson Records in 1997 as a solo artist.StrongerHer first album, Natalie Grant, saw release in 1999. By the following year, Grant had left the label and struck up a relationship with Pamplin Music, which released her 2001 sophomore album, Stronger. When that label folded, she began a long-running partnership with Curb Records. Deeper Life followed on the label in 2003. Grant wrote many of the album’s tracks, including “Live for Today,” which was nominated for a Dove Award. “No Sign of It” also received some mainstream attention after finding its way onto the movie soundtrack for View from the Top, starring Gwyneth Paltrow.BelieveMarch 2005 brought the release of fourth full-length Awaken, which was followed later in the year with the Christmas album Believe. Awaken reached number 141 on the Billboard 200 as well as the Top Three of the Christian albums chart, where Believe reached number 29. Both releases helped Grant win the 2006 Dove Award for Female Vocalist of the Year, an award she also took home the next three consecutive years. During that span, Relentless, her sixth album, went to number two on the Christian albums chart. That chart position was matched by her next long-player, 2010’s Love Revolution, and in 2012, her single “Alive” from the Bible-inspired compilation Music Inspired by The Story, earned her a Grammy nomination for Best Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music Performance.Be OneReleased in 2013, Hurricane proved to be another major success for Grant, topping Billboard’s Christian albums chart and reaching number 17 on the Billboard 200. It also earned her three more Grammy nominations, including one for Best Contemporary Christian Music Album. Another nomination in the same category followed for 2015’s Be One, which also went to the top of the Christian chart. Still with Curb Records, Grant returned in 2020 with her tenth studio album, the Grammy-nominated No Stranger.