Who Is Yola? 5 Things You Need to Know

Vocal powerhouse Yola's full-length studio debut, Walk Through Fire, encapsulates all of the lush, expansive limbs of her stylistic influences, from soul to country to pop and back again. However, it took her quite a while to get there.

The 35-year-old singer grew up in Bristol, England, the child of a single mom who struggled to make ends meet and discouraged Yola and her siblings from pursuing "luxurious" careers such as singing. However, not to be deterred, Yola chased her dream, performing in a variety of bands and formats in her hometown and London.

In 2016, Yola released an EP, Orphan Offering, a sparse, simply constructed project that mostly featured her voice with acoustic backing. When it came to record Walk Through Fire, however, she went in nearly the opposite direction, working with a diverse group of ace producers, songwriters and musicians who, as a group, represent all the genres to which she feels connected. The end result is a cathartic, exalted project: It tells the stories of breakups that are also about death and rebirth, house fires that are also about letting some outdated parts of yourself go, car rides that are also about burying the past and much more.

Want to know more about Yola? Read on to learn about this unforgettable country up-and-comer.