Jaci Velasquez

Award-winning singer and songwriter Jacquelyn "Jaci" Davette Velasquez (Spanish Jaci Velásquez) has captivated Christian and non-religious music fans during her two-decade-plus career. Born in Houston, Texas on October 15, 1979, the daughter of musician parents – her father was the lead singer of the Four Galileans, a Christian music group – started life as a backup singer, before flying solo and releasing two independent records. After drawing the attention of US Christian label Myrrh Records, Velasquez released her debut album Heavenly Place in 1996 and cracked the charts with five Number 1 hits. The album went platinum and earned Velasquez her first GMA Dove Award for Song of the Year ("On My Knees") in 1998. The success of Heavenly Place kickstarted a glittering musical career that has straddled the worlds of contemporary Christian pop and Latin pop, with Velasquez – who has Mexican, Spanish, French, Scottish and Arab heritage – performing in both English and Spanish. She now has 17 albums under her belt, including 1999's double-platinum effort Llegar A Ti and 2001's Mi Corazón, having veered towards alternative rock territory for 2005's Beauty Has Grace. Llegar A Ti, Velasquez's first Spanish album, received the Grammy nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in 2000. Velasquez was also nominated for the Best Female Pop Vocal Album Grammy for her 2003 album Milagro and Best Christian Album for Confío. Released in 2017, the Spanish-language album Confío was accompanied by an English-language version of the album, Trust.