Amy Lee of Evanescence - Talented, Beautiful and Socially Responsible

Raven-haired songstress, Amy Lynn Lee was born in Riverside, California on December 13, 1981. Her parents moved frequently during her childhood and eventually settled in Little Rock, Arkansas, where Amy attended Pulaski Academy, a private elementary and junior/senior high school. She graduated in 2000 and briefly attended Middle Tennessee State University. Amy studied classical piano for nine years, and also plays guitar.

At a youth summer camp in 1994, Amy met guitarist and fellow music enthusiast, Ben Moody, while she was playing a Meatloaf tune on the piano. It was only a matter of weeks later that the two formed a group in Little Rock and began to develop a following. Amy sang her lungs out, Ben played lead guitar, they both wrote songs and by 2000, the group signed with Wind-Up Records. When their album Fallen was released in 2003, it debuted at No. 7 and met with phenomenal success, going platinum by May 2003. The band was considered a shoo-in for Grammy nominations, and that came true. However, by the time the Grammy ceremonies took place, Ben Moody had left Evanescence very suddenly, in the middle of a tour. Evanescence did win the Grammy awards for Best New Artist of 2003, as well as Best Hard Rock Performance (Bring Me To Life). Ben Moody attended despite his creative differences with Amy Lee.

There were further conflicts down the road, when Amy felt compelled to terminate the group's managerial relationship with Dennis Rider, and on December 1, 2005, Rider sued her for breach of contract, claiming his termination was both unjust and prematurely. Amy countersued Rider for breach of fiduciary duty, sexual assault and battery and a host of other charges that included using her corporate a credit card to purchase gifts for his mistress.

In the meantime, ex-Cold guitarist Terry Balsamo had been brought in replaced Moody in the band. Terry and Amy click as songwriting partners and they worked hard to further define Evanescence's classically influenced hard rock identity. In November 2004, the band released a live album Anywhere But Home, recorded at a show in Paris. It also went platinum.

Reversals of fortune were still not over, when in the fall of 2005, Terry Balsamo suffered a stroke. After a period of convalescence, a new album, The Open Door, was released in early October 2006. featuring the goth princess as Little Red Riding Hood in the video for single Call Me When You're Sober.

Any doubt about the song's subject was set to rest almost immediately when Amy's ex-boyfriend, Seether frontman, Shaun Morgan, went into rehab the day after the song was released. Shaun was not exactly thrilled to have the couple's 'dirty laundry' aired in public. Amy's fans were thrilled, however, to see a gorgeous Amy levitating and getting the last laugh on "The Big Bad Wolf."

Amy's powerful vocals dominate Evanescence. She has cited Mozart as one of her major influences, and has said that she fell in love with Mozart when seeing Amadeus. She also has been influenced by modern artists such as Björk, Tori Amos, Danny Elfman, and Plumb (Tiffany Arbuckle-Lee - no relation to Amy). Fans love her originality which extends to designing her own clothing. She sometimes even makes her own clothes. Amy Lee's fans also praise her refusal to engage in publicity stunts that would draw attention to her sexuality.

Amy Lee is also the American Chairperson for Out of the Shadows, an international foundation aimed at educating others about epilepsy. She will help the Epilepsy Foundation to raise awareness about the condition, raise funds for research as well as help end discrimination against those afflicted with epilepsy. Lee said in a statement, "I'm committed to this cause because epilepsy affects someone very dear to me, and I'm humbled to know that I can be a catalyst for change. I can help enlighten people about the condition and erase their fears about reacting when someone has a seizure. If more people knew how common it was, maybe we could raise more money for research to cure it."