Passionate and poetic singer-songwriter with a funky, soulful voice Born and raised in Canton, Ohio, Macy Gray – real name Natalie Renée McIntyre – moved to Southern California in the '80s to attend university. She studied scriptwriting and was even in film classes with Ally Sheedy and Rob Lowe. Her own debut album album On How Life Is arrived in 1999 and was a massive success thanks to the single I Try, which peaked at No.6 on the UK albums chart and went on to score her a Grammy for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.