Grace VanderWaal facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Grace VanderWaal
VanderWaal in 2018
Background information
Born	(2004-01-15) January 15, 2004 (age 21) Kansas, U.S.
Genres	Pop
Occupation(s)	Singer songwriter actress
Instruments	Ukulele
Labels	Syco Columbia Pulse

Grace Avery VanderWaal (born January 15, 2004) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is famous for her special voice. Grace often plays the ukulele while she sings.

Grace began her music journey by sharing her original songs and covers on YouTube. She also performed at open mic nights near her home in Suffern, New York. In September 2016, when she was 12, she won the eleventh season of the TV show America's Got Talent (AGT). She impressed everyone by singing her own songs.

In December 2016, Grace released her first collection of songs, called an EP, titled Perfectly Imperfect. It was the best-selling EP of that year. Her first full album, Just the Beginning (2017), was also very popular. She released another EP, Letters Vol. 1, in 2019.

Grace has performed at many big events and places. These include Madison Square Garden and the Austin City Limits Music Festival. She has also appeared on various TV talk shows. Grace went on her first concert tour in 2017. She later toured with Imagine Dragons in 2018. In 2019, she opened for Florence and the Machine before starting her own "Ur So Beautiful" tour.

In 2020, Grace started acting. She starred as Susan "Stargirl" Caraway in the Disney+ movie Stargirl. She returned for the sequel, Hollywood Stargirl, in 2022. Grace released her second full album, Childstar, in April 2025. She followed this with her "Childstar Tour" in May 2025.

Grace has won several awards for her music. These include two Radio Disney Music Awards and a Teen Choice Award. Billboard magazine has named her one of "music's hottest young stars" multiple times. She is also the youngest person ever on the Forbes list for music.

Grace's Early Life and Music Beginnings

Family and School Years

Grace VanderWaal was born on January 15, 2004. Her parents are Tina and David VanderWaal. They lived in Lenexa, Kansas, when she was born. In 2007, her family moved to Suffern, New York. Grace later moved to South Carolina. She has an older brother and sister.

After winning America's Got Talent in 2016, Grace was homeschooled for a while. She also took online classes for 7th grade. Later, she attended public school part-time. She finished high school in 2022.

How Grace Started Making Music

Grace loved singing and making up songs from a very young age. When she was a preteen, she found ideas for songs by watching movies. She would imagine what characters were feeling and write songs about it.

She decided to learn the ukulele after seeing someone play it and watching a Twenty One Pilots video. For her 11th birthday, she asked for a ukulele. Her mom thought she might not learn it, so she said no. But Grace bought one herself with her birthday money. She taught herself to play by watching more videos. She also played the saxophone in her school's marching band.

In 2015, Grace started recording songs. She posted both her own songs and covers on her YouTube channel. She played the ukulele with her songs. She says artists like Jason Mraz and Katy Perry influenced her music. Grace also began performing at open mic events near her home. She started studying music theory too.

Grace's Amazing Career Journey

Winning America's Got Talent and First EP

On June 7, 2016, Grace auditioned for AGT. She sang her original song, "I Don't Know My Name." One of the judges, Howie Mandel, chose her as his "golden buzzer" act. This meant she went straight to the live shows. Judge Simon Cowell even called her "the next Taylor Swift."

Grace kept performing her own songs on the show. For the quarterfinals, she sang "Beautiful Thing," a song for her sister. In the semi-finals, she performed "Light the Sky." For the finals, she sang "Clay," a song about dealing with bullies. The video of Grace's AGT audition has been watched over 100 million times.

Grace performed "I Don't Know My Name" again at the AGT finale. She then introduced Stevie Nicks, who also performed. At the end of the show, Grace was announced as the winner of season 11. She was the second female winner and the second child winner in the show's history.

Grace planned to use some of her winnings for charity. She also wanted to buy two tree houses for herself and her sister. After AGT, Grace appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. She also performed four sold-out concerts in Las Vegas. In December, she performed her version of "Frosty the Snowman" on the America's Got Talent Holiday Spectacular.

Grace signed a music deal with Columbia Records in 2016. She released her first EP, Perfectly Imperfect, on December 2, 2016. It had five songs, including all four of her original songs from AGT. The EP was a big hit, reaching No. 9 on the Billboard 200 chart. It was the best-selling EP of 2016.

Grace promoted her EP with many performances. She sang at a New York Knicks game and in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. She also performed on the Today show and at a Christmas tree lighting event. In December, she sang on The Wendy Williams Show and at Cyndi Lauper's holiday fundraiser. She even sang with Cyndi Lauper on "True Colors."

First Album and Tours (2017–2018)

In early 2017, Grace started working on her first full album. It was called Just the Beginning. She said it would be "less acoustic" and "more produced." She learned to write songs with other people for this album.

In June 2017, she performed at VidCon. There, she sang "Moonlight" for the first time. This was the first song from her new album. She released more songs from the album later. In August, she returned to AGT to sing "Moonlight."

Grace promoted Just the Beginning with more performances. She sang on Ellen and at the Austin City Limits Music Festival. She released Just the Beginning on November 3, 2017. The album reached No. 22 on the Billboard 200 chart.

Grace started her first solo concert tour, the "Just the Beginning Tour," on November 5, 2017. All the tickets for the tour sold out quickly. The tour lasted until February 2018.

In March 2018, Grace went to Kenya with the Starkey Hearing Foundation. She helped young people with hearing problems. In April, she performed on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. From June to August 2018, she was the opening act for Imagine Dragons on their "Evolve World Tour."

Grace performing in 2018

Acting Debut and New Music (2019–2023)

In early 2019, Grace recorded her first song for a movie soundtrack. It was called "Hideaway" for the animated film Wonder Park. She also joined Florence and the Machine for some tour stops in June 2019. Then, she went on her own "Ur So Beautiful" tour in North America.

Grace released several new songs in 2019. She also released an EP called Letters Vol. 1 in November 2019.

In 2020, Grace made her acting debut in the Disney+ movie Stargirl. She played the main character, Susan "Stargirl" Caraway. Both the movie and Grace's acting received good reviews. Critics said she was "magnetic" and had "heaping amounts of magnetism."

Grace released a couple of new songs in 2021 and 2022. She played Stargirl again in the sequel, Hollywood Stargirl, which came out on Disney+ on June 3, 2022. In 2023, Grace performed live in Brooklyn, New York, and played some new music.

Recent Projects (2024–Present)

Grace VanderWaal appeared in the 2024 film Megalopolis. This movie was written and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. Grace played a character named Vesta Sweetwater. She also wrote two songs for the film's soundtrack and performed them. In 2024, she sang "The Impossible Dream" at the Kennedy Center Honors.

Grace released her second full-length album, Childstar, in April 2025. She then started her "Childstar Tour" in May 2025.

Awards and Achievements

Billboard magazine has recognized Grace VanderWaal many times. They included her on their "21 Under 21" list of "music's hottest young stars" for several years. She was also named one of Variety magazine's "Young Hollywood Impact Report 2017."

Grace won the 2017 Radio Disney Music Award for Best New Artist. She also won a Teen Choice Award in 2017. Refinery29 listed her as one of 29 young stars "on the verge of superstardom."

Grace is known for helping make the ukulele more popular. In 2017, Fender made her their youngest "Signature Series" artist ever. She was also their first collaboration with a ukulele player. Her line of instruments was released in 2018.

Grace received Billboard's 2017 Women in Music Rising Star Award. She also won the 2018 MTV Europe Music Award for Best Push Artist. She is the youngest person ever to be included on the Forbes music list. In 2019, the New York State Senate honored her for her work to help music education.

By 2024, Grace had over thirteen million followers on social media. Her Instagram account has more than six million followers. Her YouTube channel has over three million subscribers. Her Facebook page has more than one million followers.

Awards and Nominations Grace Has Received

Grace's Music Releases

Albums

EPs (Extended Plays)

Popular Singles

Grace's Film Roles

Movies Grace Has Starred In

Grace's Concert Tours

Headlining Tours (Her Own Shows)

• Just the Beginning Tour (2017–2018)
• Ur So Beautiful Tour (2019)
• Childstar Tour (2025)

Opening Act Tours (Performing Before Other Artists)

• Imagine Dragons – Evolve World Tour (2018)
• Florence and the Machine – High as Hope Tour (2019)

See also

In Spanish: Grace VanderWaal para niños