Natasha Bedingfield

Looking back at her breakthrough successes in the early 2000s, pop singer Natasha Bedingfield knows exactly why her music connected on such a massive scale.

As she tells Apple Music, “It had this innocent positivity that comes from real-life situations and sometimes a lot of pain—but going through that and being uplifted.” Born in 1981, the West Sussex native comes by that inspirational power honestly: Among her pre-fame pursuits was writing and singing for the London branch of the Hillsong contemporary-worship empire.

But with its shimmering fusion of Alanis’ edgy alt-pop and Lauryn Hill’s empowering R&B, Bedingfield’s 2004 solo debut, Unwritten, refashioned her as secular crossover star, albeit one whose catwalk-ready swagger was undercut by a self-effacing relatability.