Lindsey Stirling

Stirling attended Brigham Young University to study filmmaking and later served as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in New York City. A story about that experience was published in Do Not Attempt in Heels: Mission Stories and Advice from Sisters Who've Been There. She returned to BYU in 2009 and graduated from the BYU Marriott School of Management in 2015 with a Bachelor of Science degree in recreation management.

Stirling has spoken publicly about overcoming anorexia, drawing on that experience in the song "Shatter Me." She was also diagnosed with cross-dominance in the second grade and was prescribed an eye patch, an experience that inspired the title of her autobiography, The Only Pirate at the Party. Stirling dated filmmaker Devin Graham after they collaborated on the music video for "Spontaneous Me," but their personal and professional relationship later ended.

Stirling began violin lessons at age five, taking half lessons because of her family's financial limitations. At 16, she joined the rock band Stomp on Melvin with four friends and wrote a solo violin rock song. Her performance helped her win Arizona's Junior Miss title and the Spirit Award in the America's Junior Miss Finals competition. She also performed for about a year with the Charley Jenkins Band.

She registered the YouTube channel Lindseystomp in 2007. In 2010, at age 23, she became a quarter-finalist on the fifth season of America's Got Talent, where her combination of violin playing and dance was described as a "hip hop violinist." Although she was eliminated after the quarterfinals, the experience encouraged her to continue developing her distinctive style independently online.

After America's Got Talent, Graham contacted Stirling about making a YouTube video together. Their production of "Spontaneous Me" was filmed in 2011 and helped increase her visibility. Her channel became the main home for music videos featuring her blend of classical, pop, rock, electronic dance music and dubstep, including the viral video "Crystallize."

Stirling released her self-titled debut album in September 2012. It included original tracks such as "Crystallize," "Shadows" and "Electric Daisy Violin," and combined Celtic and modern classical influences with dance and electronic production. "Crystallize" became one of YouTube's most-viewed videos of 2012, while the album received gold and platinum certifications in several European countries.

Her collaborations have included Pentatonix, John Legend, Owl City, Lzzy Hale, Peter Hollens and The Piano Guys. Stirling and Pentatonix won Response of the Year at the 2013 YouTube Music Awards for their version of "Radioactive." She also performed alongside John Legend on "All of Me."

The deluxe re-release of Lindsey Stirling reached No. 23 on the Billboard 200. Her second studio album, Shatter Me, debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 and won the 2015 Billboard Music Award for Top Dance/Electronic Album. Stirling also won the Echo award for Crossover National/International in 2014 and Best Crossover Act in 2015.

Stirling's third studio album, Brave Enough, was released in 2016 and debuted at No. 1 on the U.S. Dance/Electronic Albums chart. Its release was followed by the documentary Lindsey Stirling: Brave Enough, which follows her during a worldwide tour. She also performed at the opening ceremony of The International 2016, a Dota 2 tournament.

In 2017, Stirling released the holiday album Warmer in the Winter, featuring Sabrina Carpenter, Becky G, Trombone Shorty and Alex Gaskarth. She later released Artemis in 2019 and continued appearing in music videos and soundtrack-related projects, including work connected with Pete's Dragon, A Ghost Story and The Old Man & the Gun.

Stirling competed on season 25 of Dancing with the Stars, partnering with professional dancer Mark Ballas. Despite suffering a serious rib injury shortly before the finale, she and Ballas continued in the competition and finished in second place.

Stirling co-authored The Only Pirate at the Party with her sister Brooke S. Passey. Published in 2016, the autobiography reached No. 10 on The New York Times hardcover nonfiction best-seller list. Its title refers to Stirling's childhood experience with cross-dominance and the eye patch she was prescribed.

Her charitable work has included a partnership with the Atlanta Music Project, which used proceeds from limited-edition shirts to support music education for underserved children. She also joined Cirque du Soleil for the 2014 One Night for One Drop event in Las Vegas and performed at Jump Jive and Thrive, an event benefiting cancer survivors.