the voice
Tarrey Torae
Chicago bred ✦ Southern at heart
Singer. Songwriter. The voice on records that made history — and a body of work all her own.
Chicago bred ✦ Southern at heart
Singer. Songwriter. The voice on records that made history — and a body of work all her own.
Tarrey Torae is a two-time GRAMMY® Award-winning singer/songwriter — a winner alongside J. Ivy for The Poet Who Sat by the Door and The Light Inside — and her voice is certified on GRAMMY®-winning albums by Kanye West and John Legend, plus the GRAMMY®-nominated Catching Dreams. During the making of The College Dropout, she recorded 32 songs with Kanye West; on John Legend's classic debut Get Lifted, she co-wrote and co-sang “Live It Up.”
A six-time Showtime at the Apollo winner, Tarrey has toured with hip-hop icons including Talib Kweli, Common, The Roots, and the legendary Slick Rick — and appears in the Netflix documentary jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy. She is currently on the road with J. Ivy for the Beauty of the Journey Tour.
Chicago bred and southern at heart, Tarrey is a political science / pre-law graduate of Mississippi Valley State University, an HBCU whose stages heard her voice first. Her albums — The Sweetest Survivor, Catching Feelings, and Catching Feelings: Live In Chicago — carry her mission in every note:
“I make music to match life — not trend. May it remind you of a moment, inspire action, and promote hope.”
2x
GRAMMY® Award winner — with J. Ivy for The Poet Who Sat by the Door & The Light Inside; certified on The College Dropout & Get Lifted
6x
Showtime at the Apollo winner
Netflix
Featured in jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy
GRAMMY®
Nominated
Catching Dreams with J. Ivy
“Tarrey Torae is a great talent. She co-wrote and sang on one of my favorite songs on my album. No one can do what she does. The song ‘Live It Up’ would not have happened without Tarrey. I owe her a lot for that. You should see her on stage. Her performances are full of electricity!”
John Legend
“Tarrey Torae has a soulful and distinctive voice. As a producer that is what you look for and that is why I put her on my album… She has a bright future ahead of her.”
Kanye West
“Even in the background vocals I could hear her voice. Very distinct, unique, soothing and strong… I appreciate her voice.”
Stevie Wonder
“I am so impressed! Tarrey can really sing! I know that I will be seeing her in the future doing her thing!”
Patti LaBelle
“That girl has a voice on her. She's one of the best that I've heard. I can't wait to see what she does with it. I will definitely be supporting her!”
Mo'Nique
“Anybody can sing, but it's all about feeling… really giving something from the soul. I can tell that she really feels it, because I feel it in my soul when she sings. She really has something special.”
El DeBarge
“Tarrey Torae is one of those rare talents that shines thru trends and will be talked about long after the music industry is gone.”
Talib Kweli
“Tarrey Torae's voice is a melodic, sultry and soulful sound. Her style is universal and rooted in Chicago.”
Rolling Out Magazine
“Tarrey Torae is the Lead Singer in God's Choir!”
J. Ivy
THE APOLLO
Six wins on the most unforgiving stage in American music, in the era hosted by Mo'Nique.
2001
Featured on J. Ivy's debut — the beginning of a creative partnership that never stopped.
2004
Recorded 32 songs in the College Dropout sessions with Kanye West; co-wrote and co-sang “Live It Up” on John Legend's debut. Both albums won GRAMMY® Awards.
2018
Her full-length statement — survival, sweetness, and Chicago soul.
2020
The album with J. Ivy earns a GRAMMY® nomination.
2022
Releases her album Catching Feelings, appears in Netflix's jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy, tours the country with Slick Rick the Ruler — and sings on J. Ivy's The Poet Who Sat by the Door, winner of the first-ever GRAMMY® for Best Spoken Word Poetry Album — her first GRAMMY® win.
2023
Catching Feelings comes home — recorded live in the city that raised her. And she wins her second GRAMMY® on J. Ivy's The Light Inside, featured on “Come Back To You” with DJ Jazzy Jeff and “Winning” with Anthony Hamilton.
2025
Featured on Maurice Brown's “FREE” and the Terry Hunter remixes of J. Ivy & Anthony Hamilton's “No Words” with the HBCU Symphony.
2026
On the road with J. Ivy — 33 cities, from Chicago to Cape Town.