Biography

Normani Kordei Hamilton (born May 31, 1996), recording mononymously as Normani, is an American singer, songwriter and dancer, best known as a member of the girl group Fifth Harmony, which was formed on the second season of The X Factor US in 2012. In 2017, she was a contestant in season 24 of Dancing with the Stars. Her first single as a soloist, the duet "Love Lies" with singer Khalid recorded for the soundtrack of the movie Love, Simon, reached number 9 on the US Billboard Hot 100. She is currently working on her debut solo album.

Early life

Normani was born in Atlanta, Georgia and raised in New Orleans, and is the daughter of Derrick and Andrea Hamilton. She has two older half sisters. She and her family relocated to Houston, Texas, after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. At a young age, Normani competed in dance, gymnastics and beauty pageants. She performed gospel music as a child, and recorded her first song at age 13.

Normani has listed 1990s and 2000s R&B music, Aaliyah, Alicia Keys, Aretha Franklin, Beyoncé, Jennifer Hudson, Missy Elliott, and Lauryn Hill as influences.

Career

2012–2018: The X Factor and Fifth Harmony

Normani auditioned on the second season of The X Factor USA in 2012 with "Chain of Fools" by Aretha Franklin. She advanced to the next round after getting all four approval yeses from the judges. It was during the second round of boot camp that led to her elimination. That marked the end of Normani's X Factor participation as a solo artist. However, she was brought back to the show and put into a group with four other girls, Ally Brooke, Lauren Jauregui, Dinah Jane, and Camila Cabello, who would later become Fifth Harmony. At the end of the show's season, the group managed to make it to the finale and finished in third place.

In October 2013, Fifth Harmony released their first EP, Better Together. Subsequently, the group released their debut album, Reflection(2015), and their second album, 7/27 (2016), which spawned singles such as "Worth It" and "Work from Home", respectively. On August 25, 2017, Fifth Harmony released their self-titled album, their first as a quartet. On March 19, 2018 the group announced their decision to take an indefinite hiatus to pursue solo careers.

2015–present: Solo projects

In 2015, Normani released two dance videos performing "Fuck Up Some Commas" and "Do Not Disturb" with Fifth Harmony's choreographer Sean Bankhead on her YouTubechannel. As of December 2017, she has released three cover-mashups (of Drake's "Fake Love"/"Sneakin'", Solange's "Cranes in the Sky"/"Don't Touch My Hair" and Tory Lanez's "Say It") with the help of the producers The Invaders.

Normani competed on season 24 of Dancing with the Stars. Her partner was professional ballroom dancer Valentin Chmerkovskiy. The team reached the finals and finished in third place.

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