About Jennifer Knapp
Jennifer Lynn Knapp is an American-Australian folk rock and contemporary Christian music singer-songwriter, author, and LGBTQ advocate. She is best known for her first single "Undo Me" from her Gold-certified debut studio album, Kansas , and the song "A Little More" from her Grammy Award-nominated album, Lay It Down . The Way I Am was also nominated for a Grammy. In total, the three albums have sold approximately 1 million copies. After a seven-year hiatus, Knapp returned to music and came out as gay, sparking controversy among her Christian fans. On May 11, 2010, she released Letting Go which debuted at No. 73 on the Billboard 200 chart. Knapp's memoir, Facing the Music, was published in 2014. Since then, she has become an advocate for LGBTQ Christians and continued to perform and create music. Her most recent album is Kansas 25 , a re-recording of Kansas.
Knapp was born in Chanute, Kansas on April 12, 1974, with her twin sister Lori. Knapp has called her childhood "difficult" and "abusive" due in part to her parents' acrimonious divorce and her father's remarriage.
As a teenager, she was a classical trumpet player. In 1992, Knapp attended Pittsburg State University on a music scholarship. Initially, she identified as an atheist; but, after making Christian friends, she converted to Christianity.
Knapp began writing her own music and performing locally as much as possible. Years later, she spoke about the role that her college years played in kickstarting her career: "I just kept saying ‘yes’ to people who asked me to play and people just kept asking me to play." Knapp began selling her two independent albums at shows. Her second album, Wishing Well, attracted the attention of TobyMac, who signed her to Gotee Records. She left school to go on tour before finishing her degree.
Kansas , Knapp's critically acclaimed studio debut, eventually sold over 500,000 copies, becoming Gold-certified by the RIAA. Knapp won 1999 Dove Awards for New Artist of the Year and Rock Song of the Year for "Undo Me". She also contributed vocals to Audio Adrenaline's cover of "It Is Well with My Soul", and an early studio version of “A Little More” from Lay It Down was featured on Sparrow Records' Listen Louder . Knapp toured the US, singing primarily in churches but also performing at festivals. At the 1999 Lilith Fair, she joined the Indigo Girls and Sarah McLachlan on stage to sing “Closer To Fine”, a performance she has referred to as her favorite concert experience.
In addition to writing and performing music, Knapp co-founded an artist management company, Alabaster Arts, with business partner Steve Thomas. She was motivated by a desire to mentor Christian musicians as well as to ensure she would have "a job after I had had my day in the spotlight”. Alabaster's clients included Relient K, The O.C. Supertones, and Katy Hudson .
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