Victoria Canal

Victoria Canal Tinius was born on August 11, 1998, in Munich, Germany, to an architect and an artist mother and a businessman father. Her early life involved living in multiple countries, including Shanghai, Tokyo, Barcelona, Madrid, Dubai, and Amsterdam, which contributed to her global perspective. Born without her right forearm due to amniotic band syndrome, Canal began classical piano and voice lessons at age six, learning to play at a high level despite her physical difference. By age 11, she started songwriting, drawing inspiration from artists such as John Mayer and Gavin DeGraw. Her commitment to music led her to pursue an online school program after moving to Barcelona in 2013, allowing more dedicated time for her music career.

Canal’s career began to solidify at age 13 when she recorded her first original demo CD at JR Studios in Dubai, which led to placements on MBC and Dubai One. She received a full-tuition scholarship to Berklee College of Music’s summer program, an achievement she repeated in subsequent years. After studying at Jazz Conservatory en el Aula del Conservatori in Barcelona, she moved to Atlanta in April 2015 to train with vocal coach “Mama Jan” Smith and record her debut EP, *Into the Pull*, released on January 29, 2016. Her early career also saw her tour extensively, including supporting artists like Emily King and Leslie Odom Jr., and working with Jesse Owen Astin and Demond Mickens on her primary music projects.

In 2018, Michael Franti discovered Canal on Instagram, leading to a collaboration and her participation in Franti’s 2019 Follow Your Heart World Tour, which included performances at venues like Red Rocks Amphitheater. During this period, she released singles like “Ebony,” “He Won’t Know,” and the critically acclaimed “Drama” and “Second,” with “Drama” receiving support from *Rolling Stone* and *HuffPost*. Her 2020 NPR Tiny Desk Concert submission was featured on NPR.org. In 2021, while in Amsterdam, she gained the attention of Coldplay’s Chris Martin, leading to a recording deal with Parlophone Records in May 2022. Under Parlophone, she released singles “own me,” “pity season,” and “swan song,” followed by her EP *Elegy*. In March 2023, she opened for Hozier on his Unreal Unearth Tour and received the Amazon Music Ivors Academy Rising Star Award, and later the Attitude Pride Icon Award and an Ivor Novello Rising Star Award. Her song “Black Swan” earned her a second Ivor Novello Award in 2024 for Best Song Musically and Lyrically, co-written with Jonny Lattimer and Eg White. In June 2024, she joined Coldplay on stage at the Glastonbury Festival. Canal also made her acting debut in December 2022, playing Ciela in season 2 of *Little America* on Apple TV+.