Lorde

Ella Yelich-O’Connor, better known by her stage name Lorde, earned two Grammy Awards in 2014 at the tender age of 17, making the “Royals” chanteuse one of the youngest trophy winners in Grammy history. A New Zealand native who still lives with her parents, Lorde has already won raves from both U.S. music heavyweights Kanye West and Taylor Swift, the latter of whom the teen considers a close pal.

Covering Duffy’s “Warwick Avenue” during a middle school talent show when she was 12 turned out to be Lorde’s big break, once her schoolmate’s dad sent a copy of the performance to an A&R exec in New Zealand. Inking a deal with Universal Music Group, Lorde’s debut album, Pure Heroine, was released four years later.

Known for her eclectic style as much as her vocal stylings, Lorde parlayed her childhood fascination with royals and aristocracy into her moneymaking moniker, dead-set on adding an ‘E’ to ‘Lord’ to make it more feminine. Currently dating James Lowe, Lorde — whose parents still keep tabs on her iPhone use so she doesn’t OD on Facebook and Instagram — is set to graduate high school in 2015.