 H.E.R. in 2019 | |
| Background information | |
| Also known as | Gabi Wilson |
| Born | Gabriella Sarmiento Wilson (1997-06-27)June 27, 1997 (age 28) Vallejo,California, U.S. |
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| Years active | 2011–present |
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| Website | her-official |
Gabriella Sarmiento Wilson (born June 27, 1997), known professionally asH.E.R. (pronounced "her" and standing for "Having Everything Revealed") is an AmericanR&B singer-songwriter. She has won anAcademy Award, aChildren's and Family Emmy Award, and fiveGrammy Awards, and been nominated for aGolden Globe Award, threeAmerican Music Awards, and fourBillboard Music Awards.
After initially recording under her birth name, she adopted thestage name H.E.R. in 2016 and signed withRCA Records to release her debutextended play (EP),H.E.R. Volume 1, in September of that year. It was followed by four EPs, the first two of which were part of herself-titled compilation album (2017), which peaked at number 23 on theBillboard 200 and, from five total nominations, won two Grammy Awards forBest R&B Album andBest R&B Performance for its single, "Best Part" (withDaniel Caesar).[1] Her second compilation album,I Used to Know Her (2019), met with similar commercial success and also received five Grammy Award nominations, includingAlbum of the Year andSong of the Year for its single, "Hard Place".[2]
In 2021, she won her third Grammy Award for Song of the Year with herGeorge Floyd protest-inspired single "I Can't Breathe". That same year, her song "Fight for You"—released for the filmJudas and the Black Messiah—won theAcademy Award for Best Original Song and won theGrammy Award for Best Traditional R&B Performance. This makes her the first Academy Award winner born in Generation Z. Her debut studio album,Back of My Mind (2021), was met with critical acclaim and peaked at number six on theBillboard 200.[2] In 2022, she won theChildren's and Family Emmy Award for her contributions toBarack andMichelle Obama's animated children's series,We the People.
Gabriella Sarmiento Wilson[3][4] was born on June 27, 1997, inVallejo, California,[5] to a Filipino mother and an African-American father, and raised in California'sSan Francisco Bay Area. According to an interview withGuitar Center, Wilson's father was a musician in a cover band, and hosted their practice sessions in the family's living room.[6] Additionally, members of her mother's extended family were guitarists, drummers and bassists, as well as vocalists, often playing for karaoke events.[6] Wilson states that these were some of her earliest influences, musically.[6]
At age ten, performing as Gabi Wilson, she played anAlicia Keys song on the piano for theToday Show[3] and at the famedApollo Theater (Harlem, New York City) on September 23, 2007, coveringAretha Franklin's "Freeway of Love".[7][8] She made her acting debut at the age of 9, starring in theNickelodeon television filmSchool Gyrls, created byNick Cannon.[9] She also performed onMaury (2007), andGood Morning America andThe View (both in 2008).[9] At this time, she was managed byWill Smith'sOverbrook Entertainment.[9] She performed at age 12 at the 2010BET Awards, covering Keys' 2001 hit "Fallin'", sang a tribute to Keys at theASCAP Awards, and competed onRadio Disney's The Next BIG Thing at age 12, with her song "My Music", featured onRadio Disney.[9]
Wilson signed a record deal with Sony's RCA Records viaJ Records in a deal arranged by her manager Jeff Robinson's MBK Entertainment in 2011 when she was 14. In 2014, her debut single "Something to Prove" was released under her real name.[9][10]
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Rebranding in late 2016 with the new H.E.R persona, Wilson released her debut EP,H.E.R. Vol. 1 on September 9, 2016, produced by songwriter David "Swagg R'Celious" Harris. She received support fromUsher,Tyrese,Pusha T, andWyclef Jean; labelmatesAlicia Keys and Bryson Tiller helped get the word out through Twitter co-signs, shoutouts, and re-posts.[11][12] In April 2017, Barbadian singerRihanna posted an Instagram clip with H.E.R.'s track "Focus" playing in the background. The clip has been viewed over 5 million times.[13] Additional industry support came fromIssa Rae of HBO'sInsecure,Taraji P. Henson ofEmpire,Kylie Jenner, andKendall Jenner.[citation needed]
NPR listedH.E.R. Vol. 1 as the first selection in its "5 Essential R&B Albums You Slept On".[14] Calling the music "Slow-burning R&B that zooms in on emotional highs and lows,"Rolling Stone included H.E.R. in its March 2017 "10 Artists You Need To Know" roundup.[15]Forbes named her one of "5 Alternative R&B Artists to Look Out for in 2017", reporting: "In the same vein asThe Weeknd's enigmatic introduction to the world, H.E.R.'s image remains a mystery. The irony, though, is that her moniker is an acronym for Having Everything Revealed."[16]
Wilson's follow-up EP,H.E.R. Vol. 2 (2017) also produced by Harris, was released on June 16, 2017, and includes the single "Say It Again". She went on tour with Bryson Tiller for the Set It Off tour, and concluded her first headlining tour, the Lights On Tour, in support ofH.E.R. Vol. 2.[17] She releasedH.E.R. Vol. 2, The B Sides (2017), produced by Harris, on October 20, 2017, and the single "2" on October 13, 2017. The compilation albumH.E.R. was released on October 20, 2017, comprising the songs from each of the three EP's in this series. The album won Best R&B Album and received four other nominations at the61st Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year andBest New Artist.[18]
Wilson announced in September 2018 the I Used to Know H.E.R. Tour in support of her EP seriesI Used to Know Her: The Prelude andI Used to Know Her: Part 2.[19][20] Her second compilation albumI Used to Know Her was released on August 30, 2019.[21] She performed as one of the headliners of the 2019Global Citizen Festival inCentral Park, New York on September 28.[22][23] On October 5, she participated in the 2019 edition of theRock in Rio festival located inRio de Janeiro, Brazil. Among the headliners wereDrake,Foo Fighters,Bon Jovi,Red Hot Chili Peppers,Iron Maiden,Pink andMuse.[24]
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On September 20, 2020, she sangPrince's song "Nothing Compares 2 U" for the In Memoriam segment of the72nd Primetime Emmy Awards. In February 2021, during the pre-game festivities forSuper Bowl LV,[25] she performed "America the Beautiful", singing and playing guitar. On June 17, 2021, her single "Damage" topped the US R&B radio chart.[26] The song is from her debut full-length albumBack of My Mind, which was released on June 18, 2021. In August 2021, it was announced that Wilson was in final negotiations to make her feature film debut in the2023 film adaptation ofThe Color Purple, playing the role of Squeak.[27][28] She also sings a duet withTauren Wells on the song called "Hold Us Together". On November 30, 2021, theApple Music Awards announced H.E.R. as the winner of Songwriter of the Year.[29]
H.E.R. joined Usher's performance at Super Bowl LVIII on February 11, 2024, playing electric guitar during "U Got It Bad" and "Bad Girl."[30] On February 13, 2024, H.E.R. announced a new management deal withLighthouse Management + Media, whose founderAleen Keshishian also represents singersOlivia Rodrigo andSelena Gomez.[31] The move came after legal disputes with Wilson's previous management, MBK Entertainment, which included Wilson filing a lawsuit to be released from the MBK label.[32][33]
On October 29, 2025,The Hollywood Reporter announced that H.E.R. would voice Jo, one of the main characters in theDreamWorks animated filmForgotten Island, which will be released on September 25, 2026.[34]
Consisting mostly ofR&B ballads, H.E.R.'s songs have been described as "downcast post-breakup material that sounded vulnerable and assured at once".[5] In an interview, H.E.R. mentioned that she grew up listening to Filipino ballad singers such asSharon Cuneta andJay R.[35] H.E.R. has also openly credited the singerPrince as one of her biggest influences.[36][37] She has also cited artists such asLenny Kravitz andB.B. King as influences.[38]
Addressing the secrecy over her identity, she has said: "The mystery is a metaphor for who I am, or who I was at the time of creating the project... I feel like oftentimes we don't like to be open as people about our emotions or things that we are going through. At the time [of recording], I was very closed off except for when I was writing or when I was in the studio."[39]
She explained further: "I am a voice for women who feel like they're alone in these situations. This project came from emotion, and that's what I want it to be about – not what I look like or who I'm with, but the raw emotion and support for women."[40] To NPR she said, "I feel like this is the era of the anti-star. I really just wanted it to be about the music, and get away from, 'Who is she with?' and 'What is she wearing?'"[41]
H.E.R. appeared as herself in the movieYes Day (2021).[42] She performed her original song "Change" on the episode "Active Citizenship" of the 2021Netflix educational animated seriesWe the People.[43] On July 20, 2022, it was announced H.E.R. would be singing the role ofBelle for ABC'sBeauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration.[44] The television special aired on December 15, 2022. She sang the National Anthem at Game 1 of the2023 World Series between theTexas Rangers andArizona Diamondbacks. On October 28, 2023, she made a surprise appearance onSaturday Night Live, performing “The Glass” with Foo Fighters. She made her big-screen acting debut inThe Color Purple,[45] which was released in theaters on December 25, 2023.
On August 11, 2024, she sang the national anthem of the United States of America, "The Star-Spangled Banner", during theclosing ceremony of the2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France as part of the handover ceremony from Paris to Los Angeles.[46]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Erma | Erma | Short film | |
| 2021 | Yes Day | Herself | Film debut | |
| 2023 | The Color Purple | Mary "Squeak" Agnes | ||
| 2026 | Forgotten Island† | Jo | [34] |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | School Gyrls | Gabi | Television film |
| 2020 | Saturday Night Live | Herself | Episode: "Adele/H.E.R." |
| 2021 | We the People | Performer | Episode: "Active Citizenship" |
| 2022 | Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration | Belle | Special |
| Blue's Clues & You! | T.Rex (voice) | Episode: "Blue's Dino Clues" | |
| Bob's Burgers | Aliah (voice) | Episode: "The Plight Before Christmas" |
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