How Old Is Grace VanderWaal? Age, Family & Music Career (2026)

The Short Answer: 22 Years Old

Grace VanderWaal is 22 years old. She was born Grace Avery VanderWaal on January 15, 2004, which means she celebrated her 22nd birthday in January 2026. What makes her age story remarkable is how young she was when the world first heard her: she won America's Got Talent in 2016 at just 12 years old, performing original songs on her ukulele.

Her age has been part of the narrative at every stage. Simon Cowell famously called her the next Taylor Swift after her audition. She was 13 when she released her debut EP, Perfectly Imperfect, and 14 when her debut album, Just the Beginning, arrived in 2017. Growing up in public while developing as an artist is the defining tension of her career.

Now at 22, VanderWaal has spent a full decade in the spotlight — half her life. Her music has matured from ukulele folk-pop to a more sophisticated indie-pop sound, and she has added acting to her resume with a role in the Disney+ film Stargirl. The child prodigy is now a young adult artist defining herself on her own terms.

Biography Snapshot

Grace Avery VanderWaal was born on January 15, 2004, in Lenexa, Kansas, near Kansas City. The family moved to Suffern, New York, in Rockland County, where Grace grew up. Her father, David VanderWaal, is of Dutch descent and worked as a vice president of marketing at LG Electronics; her mother, Tina VanderWaal, is a New Yorker of Italian descent who attended college in Texas.

Grace began playing ukulele at 11 after watching YouTube tutorials, and she taught herself songwriting by posting covers and originals online. In 2016, at 12, she auditioned for season 11 of America's Got Talent with her original song I Don't Know My Name — and earned Cowell's golden buzzer. She won the season in September 2016, taking the $1 million prize and a Las Vegas residency slot.

Her post-AGT career moved fast: a five-song EP in December 2016, a full album in 2017, tours, and an acting debut. She has continued releasing music through her late teens, with her sound evolving toward dreamier, more introspective pop. In 2020, she starred as the lead in Disney+'s Stargirl, and in 2024 she made her feature return in the sequel Hollywood Stargirl.

Parents and Sister

Grace's parents are Tina VanderWaal and David VanderWaal. Her father is of Dutch ancestry — the VanderWaal surname is distinctly Dutch — and her mother is of Italian descent. Both supported her music from the beginning; her father has said he knew she was special when she started writing songs at 11, and her mother managed much of the early chaos of fame.

She has an older sister, Olivia VanderWaal, who has largely stayed out of the spotlight. The sisters grew up together in Suffern, and Grace has said her family kept her grounded during the whirlwind of AGT and its aftermath. Unlike many child stars, Grace's family remained in New York rather than relocating to Los Angeles full-time, a decision that helped her keep a sense of normalcy.

Family life for the VanderWaals changed overnight in 2016. Grace went from a seventh-grader to a national celebrity in months, and her parents had to navigate contracts, tours, and media attention while keeping her in school. By all accounts, they did it well: Grace has spoken positively about her upbringing and has avoided the tabloid troubles that often follow young fame.

The AGT Win at 12

The audition that changed everything happened in June 2016. A 12-year-old Grace walked onto the AGT stage with a ukulele and played I Don't Know My Name, an original song about being yourself. Simon Cowell pressed the golden buzzer mid-song, sending her straight to the live shows. The performance has tens of millions of views online.

She won the season on September 14, 2016, becoming one of the youngest winners in AGT history. The $1 million prize was paid out as an annuity, but the real prize was the platform: within months, she had a record deal with Columbia, an EP, and a national profile.

Cowell's Taylor Swift comparison followed her for years — flattering but heavy for a 12-year-old. Grace has since said she appreciated the praise but wanted to be seen as her own artist. At 22, with a decade of releases behind her, that identity is finally taking shape on her own terms.

Music Career After AGT

Grace's debut EP, Perfectly Imperfect, arrived in December 2016 when she was 12, and debuted in the top 10 of the Billboard 200 — the youngest artist to do so in years. Her debut album, Just the Beginning, followed in November 2017 when she was 13. Both showcased her distinctive, slightly raspy voice and ukulele-driven songwriting.

As she moved through her teens, her music grew more complex. The 2019 EP Letters Vol. 1 showed a shift toward indie-pop, and her 2021 album ...continued the evolution. She toured extensively, including opening slots and headlining runs, and her live shows earned a reputation for warmth and musicianship.

Her songwriting has always been the throughline. Grace writes or co-writes her material, and her lyrics have grown from adolescent self-discovery to more adult themes of relationships and identity. Critics who once saw her as a novelty act have acknowledged her development into a genuine songwriter.

Acting: Stargirl and Beyond

In 2020, at 16, Grace made her acting debut as the lead in Disney+'s Stargirl, playing a free-spirited teen who shakes up a small Arizona high school. The role was a natural fit — Stargirl is a ukulele-playing outsider, and Grace brought her real musicality to the part. The film was a hit for Disney+, and she reprised the role in 2022's Hollywood Stargirl.

Acting gave her a second creative lane, and she has said she enjoys it as a complement to music. The Stargirl films also introduced her to a new generation of fans who knew her as an actress first and a singer second.

At 22, Grace is at the age where child-star transitions either happen or don't. She has the advantage of a genuine skill set — songwriting, musicianship, and now acting — and a public image that has stayed remarkably clean. Her challenge is the same one facing every former teen star: turning early fame into a lasting career.

Grace VanderWaal's Age in Context

At 22, Grace VanderWaal is the same age as many of the pop stars who broke through as adults, but she has a decade of industry experience they don't. She was 12 when she won AGT, 13 when her debut album charted, and 16 when she headlined a Disney film. That compression is rare even among child stars.

Comparisons are inevitable: Taylor Swift was 16 when her debut album released; Billie Eilish was 17 when her debut album topped the charts. Grace was younger than both at her breakthrough, which makes her longevity — still releasing music and acting at 22 — all the more notable.

Her fans have literally watched her grow up. The 12-year-old with the ukulele is now a 22-year-old woman writing about adult life. That evolution, documented in real time across albums and films, is the core of her appeal: audiences feel they know her, because in a sense, they watched her become herself.

What Fans Also Ask

Beyond her age, fans constantly ask about Grace VanderWaal's family, her ukulele, her relationship status, and what she's working on now. The answers below cover the most-searched Grace VanderWaal questions, from her AGT win to her acting career.

What keeps Grace relevant a decade after her breakthrough is authenticity. She never tried to be a manufactured pop star; she was a kid with a ukulele and something to say. At 22, she still is — just with better songs and a bigger stage.

Frequently Asked Questions

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