Nellie McKay

Eleanora Marie McKay, known professionally as Nellie McKay, is an English-American singer, songwriter, and Broadway performer born on April 13, 1982, in London, England. She holds dual British and American citizenship.

McKay was raised by her mother, actress Robin Pappas, in several locations including Harlem, New York, Olympia, Washington, and Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania. Her father is the English writer and director Malcolm McKay, and she has a half sister, author Alice Clark Platts. She studied jazz voice at the Manhattan School of Music without completing a degree. Early performances at New York City venues such as the Sidewalk Cafe and Joe's Pub attracted the interest of record labels.

Her debut album, Get Away from Me, was recorded in August 2003 with producer Geoff Emerick, who had previously served as the Beatles' engineer on albums including Revolver and Abbey Road. The title references Norah Jones' Come Away with Me. Released in February 2004, the album received praise from Jon Pareles of The New York Times, who described it as "a tour de force from a sly, articulate musician who sounds comfortable in any era," and appeared on multiple year-end best-of lists. McKay was recognized as a major breakout artist at the 2004 SXSW Festival and reached the finals of the 2004 Shortlist Music Prize. That July, she served as an opening act during the first half of the Au Naturale tour, which was co-headlined by Alanis Morissette and Barenaked Ladies.

McKay made her Broadway debut between 2006 and 2007 in the Roundabout Theatre Company's limited-run production of The Threepenny Opera, playing Polly Peachum alongside Alan Cumming, Jim Dale, Cyndi Lauper, and Brian Charles Rooney. The performance earned her a Theatre World Award for Outstanding Debut Performance in 2006. She had also appeared in The 24 Hour Plays in 2004. Her second album, Pretty Little Head, was released on October 31, 2006, through her own label, Hungry Mouse, with marketing handled by SpinART Records.

McKay's third studio album, Obligatory Villagers, arrived on September 25, 2007. Spanning only nine tracks and approximately 30 minutes, it was considerably shorter than her two previous double-disc releases. Her fourth album, Normal as Blueberry Pie – A Tribute to Doris Day, came out on October 13, 2009, on Verve Records, featuring twelve covers of songs associated with Day alongside one original composition. Home Sweet Mobile Home followed on September 28, 2010, also on Verve Records, comprising original tracks produced by McKay and her mother, Robin Pappas, with artistic contributions from David Byrne. Her sixth album, My Weekly Reader, released on March 24, 2015, is a covers collection drawing from 1960s material, including songs by Moby Grape, The Small Faces, the Steve Miller Band, Frank Zappa, The Beatles, The Cyrkle, and Herman's Hermits.

Beyond recording, McKay appeared in the 2013 Off-Broadway revue Old Hats and starred in the independent film Downtown Express, directed by David Grubin, to which she also contributed music alongside violinist Philippe Quint. She developed the musical show I Want to Live!, based on the life of convicted murderer Barbara Graham, whose story also inspired a 1958 film of the same name. On February 1, 2017, McKay performed at the Brooklyn Academy of Music as part of Four Scored, a single-night event featuring Laurie Anderson, Joan Osborne, Suzanne Vega, and the Brooklyn Philharmonic Orchestra.

McKay is a vegan and has been publicly active in support of various causes, performing at events for organizations including Planned Parenthood, Farm Sanctuary, and the Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages, as well as for the progressive radio station WBAI. She wrote the song "Columbia Is Bleeding" addressing animal cruelty at Columbia University and contributed a song in support of Georgia death row inmate Troy Davis alongside several other musicians. Her 2004 song "John John" expressed her support for presidential candidate Ralph Nader over Democratic candidate John Kerry.