Lauren Daigle is a contemporary Christian music singer from Lake Charles, Louisiana. She has been in the music industry since 2010 and she is 33 years old. She is pretty popular with the people who listen to this type of music. She was actually a contestant on the TV show “American Idol” in 2010, 2011, and 2012 before dropping her first album in 2015–“How Can It Be.” Her newest album was released on August 16, 2024, and it is named “Sessions.”
Daigle resorted to a music career after getting diagnosed with a severe form of mono, cytomegalovirus, at the age of 15. It kept her out of school for two years, so she took voice lessons. She says that her father inspired her to do music.
Unfortunately, she has faced many setbacks in her career. First, she decided to go on “American Idol.” Her first appearance on the show was in 2010 when she missed out on the top 24. She then tried out the following year and didn’t make it to Hollywood. Her third time as a contestant was in 2012 when she was cut from the show in the Las Vegas round. In an interview with Cosmopolitan, she said these rejections spiked her to keep going. She said, “I remember thinking, My whole plan has just flipped upside down…I knew right then sitting in that moment, I’m going to have to decide whether I’m going to get back up and start trying or if I’m gonna let that just determine the course of my life.”
After being signed to Centricity Music, she released her first and debut album, “How Can It Be,” in 2015. It eventually reached No. 1 on the Billboard Top Christian Albums chart along with three songs in the album: “First,” “Trust in You,” and “O Lord.” In an interview with Women In Pop, Daigle said, “In 2015, I remember being in the studio and not understanding the vernacular and needing to learn so much and needing to learn how to communicate my ideas, how to sing in a studio mic and hear rhythm with headphones on. There were so many things I needed to learn along the way. But one of the big things I’ve learnt that impacted me now is that I’m no longer afraid to express ideas anymore.”
Her second album is called Behold. This album is her version of Christmas songs. Some songs include “Jingle Bells,” “White Christmas,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” and “O Holy Night.” I have never heard of this album before, but I might go listen to them when the Christmas season comes!
Next, she released an album named Look Up Child. It was released on September 7, 2018, through Centricity Music. This album received the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Christian Music Album at the 2019 Grammy Awards. The two songs I usually hear most on the radio from this album are “You Say” and “Rescue.” She wrote this album to capture the youthful whimsy of childhood, encourage others to maintain that childlike wonder, and not lose passion for what they love.
In 2023, she released an album called Lauren Daigle. Atlantic Records released the first volume of the album on May 12, 2023 and the second volume on September 8, 2023. In an interview with Relevant Magazine, she stated that she felt “powerless and voiceless” due to the state of the world and her personal life at the time, and that God orchestrated the right people at the right time. She sees this album as her “rebirth” and considers it an “incredible musical journey.” She named it after herself because she was struggling to think of a name to begin with, so she talked to some friends for advice and they suggested that she name it after herself because she poured so much into it. In another interview, she stated that it took her previous records to find her voice and express her love for the sound and recording process, so the title fit perfectly. One of my favorite songs in this album is “Be Okay.” This song means so much to me, and it helps me get through hard times. I always keep repeating the song in my head when I am going through something and it helps calm me down and reassure me.
Her most recent album is called Sessions, and it was released on August 16, 2024. This album mostly consists of live acoustic versions of previous songs that she has written. Some of these songs include: “Thank God I Do,” “You Say,” and “Be Okay.” Since it hasn’t been out long, there isn’t much feedback on it yet. When sharing her thoughts about this album, Daigle says, “I love that we’re able to share versions of these songs that people might not have heard before. I think it’s what makes them special.”
Daigle headed out on The Kaleidoscope Tour in February of 2024. After kicking off in Charlotte, North Carolina, the tour covered most of the United States by September. She will also play select dates throughout December of 2024.
In addition to two Grammy Awards, Daigle has won seven GMA Dove Awards, five Billboard Music Awards, two American Music Awards, and has had four number one singles on both the Billboard Christian Airplay and Hot Christian Songs chart. She went through a lot of failure to get to where she is now, but still came out on top!
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