Florence Welch

The leading lady of Florence and the Machine, Florence Welch — who performs with Isabella Summers, Robert Ackroyd, Christopher Lloyd Hayden, Tom Monger and Mark Saunders — released her debut disc with the group, Lungs, in the U.K. in 2009. It was released in the U.S. in October 2010, and the group enjoyed massive Stateside success with the single “Dog Days Are Over.” Music from the group’s debut disc has been featured on Gossip Girl, Glee, Grey’s Anatomy and The Vampire Diaries.

Confessing to write her best songs when drunk or suffering from a hangover, Welch attended Camberwell College of Arts before realizing that music was her true calling. Welch and her band celebrated a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist in 2011, the same year their sophomore album, Ceremonials, was released. The next year, they earned nominations for Best Pop Vocal Album (Ceremonials) and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance (“Shake It Out”).

Welch was briefly sidelined from performing in the summer of 2012, when she suffered a vocal injury that resulted in her losing her voice. “I actually felt something go pop or snap, or whatever. Whatever it is, it was very frightening. I had to really adjust because it happened in the middle of a show,” the singer told Us Weekly after the incident, which led her to cancel two subsequent performances. She was able to resume touring without surgery.