Portrait of Lorde

Birthday profile

Lorde

Lorde, New Zealand singer-songwriter

Born
November 7, 1996
Age in 2026
30
Zodiac sign
Scorpio
Birth year
1996

About Lorde

Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O'Connor (born 7 November 1996), known professionally as Lorde ( LORD), is a New Zealand singer-songwriter. She is known for her unconventional style of pop music and introspective songwriting. Lorde first gained recognition as a teenager during a talent show performance. She signed with Universal Music Group (UMG) in 2009 and began collaborating with producer Joel Little in 2011. Their first effort, an extended play (EP) titled The Love Club EP, was self-released in 2012 for free download on SoundCloud before it was commercially released in 2013. Its single "Royals" topped charts in multiple regions and spent nine weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100. It sold 10 million units worldwide, making it one of the best-selling singles of all time. Her debut studio album, Pure Heroine, was released that same year to critical and commercial success. The following year, Lorde curated the soundtrack for the 2014 film The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1. Lorde collaborated with producer Jack Antonoff on her next album, Melodrama (2017), which received widespread critical acclaim, debuted atop the US Billboard 200, and has since been ranked in Rolling Stone's list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time". She explored indie folk and psychedelic styles on Solar Power (2021), receiving polarised reactions from critics and listeners. For her fourth studio album, Virgin (2025), Lorde worked with musician Jim-E Stack and returned to electronic-based pop music, which garnered more critical acclaim. Lorde's accolades include 20 Aotearoa Music Awards, two Grammy Awards, two Brit Awards, a Taite Music Prize and a nomination for a Golden Globe Award. She appeared in Time's list of the most influential teenagers in 2013 and 2014, and the 2014 edition of Forbes 30 Under 30. In addition to her solo work, she has co-written songs for other artists, including Broods and Bleachers. In May 2009, Lorde and her friend Louis McDonald won the Belmont Intermediate School annual talent show as a duo.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Lorde timeline

  1. In May 2009, Lorde and her friend Louis McDonald won the Belmont Intermediate School annual talent show as a duo.
  2. Their first effort, an extended play (EP) titled The Love Club EP, was self-released in 2012 for free download on SoundCloud before it was commercially released in 2013.

The world when Lorde was born

Lorde was born in 1996. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1996

  • #1 song"Macarena" – Los Del Rio
  • Top movieThe English Patient
  • Top TV showER
  • Best-selling bookThe Runaway Jury – John Grisham

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentMichael Jordan leads Bulls to 72-10 record and 4th NBA title
  • Top headlineCentennial Olympic Park bombing in Atlanta
  • Technology milestoneDolly the sheep — first mammal cloned from an adult cell
  • Defining fadMacarena dance craze
  • Notable inventionPalm Pilot
  • World population5.77 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderBill Clinton
  • Sports championNew York Yankees (World Series)
  • Also wonChicago Bulls (NBA)
  • U.S. population265.2M

1996 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Lorde's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19962026
Gas$1.23$3.45/gal
Average home$115,800$435,000
Average income$44,006$67,500
Minimum wage$4.75$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$4.42$11.95
Postage stamp$0.32$0.73
Population265.2M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, MusicBrainz. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.