American singer (born 1989)
Loren Allred |
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 Loren Allred, performing in Sopot, 2022 |
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| Born | (1989-09-07) September 7, 1989 (age 34)
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
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| Occupation(s) | |
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| Years active | 2008–present |
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Musical artist
Loren Allred (born September 7, 1989)[1] is an American singer. Allred made her Billboard Hot 100 debut with the platinum-selling "Never Enough" from The Greatest Showman musical. She is featured on Michael Bublé's Love album in a duet of "Help Me Make It Through the Night", and alongside David Foster, as part of his An Intimate Evening PBS concert special and album. Her debut EP Late Bloomer was released on September 24, 2021.
Early life and education
Allred is the eldest daughter born to musician parents. Her mother, Carol Ann Allred, is a classical soprano and voice teacher; her father, Brady R. Allred, was formerly the director of the Pittsburgh Bach Choir and an artistic director and conductor of Salt Lake Choral Artists.[2] She has three younger sisters – Megan, Brennan, and Karin.[3]
After a year of studying musical theatre at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah, she transferred to the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. While in Boston, she uploaded videos to YouTube and was discovered and championed by Ne-Yo, ultimately leading to a record deal with Island Def Jam.
Career
In 2012, Allred was a contestant on season 3 of the American television show The Voice and selected Adam Levine as her coach. Allred was eliminated after the first week of the live playoffs, tying for 13th place.
In 2014, she worked as a playback singer and member of the recording ensemble for a film musical being developed by the Broadway songwriting team of Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. After working on early demos, she was cast as the singing voice of Rebecca Ferguson's character, Jenny Lind, on the project The Greatest Showman. The film soundtrack and song were successful, going Platinum and the soundtrack topping the Billboard albums chart in January 2018.[2] That same month, "Never Enough" (Allred's featured song) reached number 88 on the Hot 100.[4]
Allred's vocal performance of "Never Enough" has received widespread acclaim. Variety said her "incandescent" performance "will sweep you up";[5] Just Jared called it "Next Level". American Idol alum Kelly Clarkson recorded a cover for the album The Greatest Showman: Reimagined and praised Allred on Twitter for her performance of the song.[6] Other notable artists who have since covered the song include Jennifer Hudson, Nicole Scherzinger, Katharine McPhee, Maria Simorangkir, Jona Viray and Morissette.
In early 2019, Allred joined Michael Bublé's Love album for a duet of "Help Me Make it Through the Night." Bublé discovered Allred while watching The Greatest Showman and released a behind the scenes recording of their duet. Bublé noted that Allred has "the most beautiful voice and control".[7]
Allred joined Andrea Bocelli for selected performances on his 2021 USA Tour. In promoting the tour, he said: "If an artist wants to move the listener, he or she must have something intense and convincing to tell through the singing. This something comes from experiences and insight: it is the inner wealth that you can acquire by living. Loren Allred is a perfect example of this: her richly nuanced voice, her expressiveness, and her powers of communication describe and celebrate the beauty she has managed to cultivate within herself. A versatile musician raised in the arts, I remember how pleasantly surprised I was when we sang together for the first time in Saudi Arabia. I am delighted to soon be able to return to the stage with Loren, in that great country that is her homeland and my adoptive homeland."[8]
In 2022, Allred auditioned for the 15th series of Britain's Got Talent, performing "Never Enough". Simon Cowell said "You sang one of the biggest songs of all time. Why didn't you get that big deal after the song?" She responded:
"I was more comfortable singing behind the scenes. But I feel kind of like the song was meant for me, and I'm kind of ready to put a face to the song. So I'm here to do that."[9]
She received the Golden Buzzer from Amanda Holden, sending her through to the semifinals.[10] She won her semifinal on 2 June and competed in the final, finishing in ninth place.[11]
| Stage
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Song
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Original Artist
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Date
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Episode
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Result
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| Audition
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"Never Enough"
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Loren Allred
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April 16, 2022
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1
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Advanced Direct to Semi Finals
(Amanda Holden's Golden Buzzer)
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| Semi Finals
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"You Say"
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Lauren Daigle
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June 2, 2022
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12
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Advanced To Final
(1st Place)
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| Grand Final
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"Last Thing I'll Ever Need"
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Loren Allred
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June 5, 2022
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14
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Finalist (9th Place)
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On January 27, 2023, the “World of Color – One” for Disney 100 debuted at Disneyland featuring the new original song “Start a Wave” featuring Allred[12] and written by Grammy-nominated artist Cody Fry.
In July 2023, Allred announced she would be joining Andrea Bocelli and David Foster for select performances throughout Europe, starting in late July 2023, according to Allred and Foster's Instagram.
In December 2023, Allred was announced as the performer of the theme song, "No Promises to Keep", for Final Fantasy VII Rebirth at The Game Awards 2023, which also featured a performance of the song.[13]
In January 2024, Allred was featured as a contestant on America's Got Talent: Fantasy League at Cowell's invitation, performing a new arrangement of "Never Enough". She was among contestants selected to continue in the competition after that initial performance.[14]
