Katherine Maria Jenkins was born on June 29, 1980, in Neath, Wales. She and her sister Laura were raised by their parents, Selwyn John and Susan. From a young age, Jenkins showed musical promise, participating in school productions and local performances.
She attended Alderman Davies Church in Wales Primary School, Dwr-y-Felin Comprehensive School, and Gorseinon College. Excelling academically, she received top marks in her GCSEs and A-levels, and was involved in school musicals such as Calamity Jane and Guys and Dolls. Jenkins studied vocal performance, receiving instruction from John Hugh Thomas, and passed her Grade 8 exams in both singing and piano with distinction.
From 1991 to 1996, Jenkins was a member of the Royal School of Church Music Cathedral Singers and was awarded the prestigious St Cecilia Award, the highest honor for female choristers within the organization. She also performed with the National Youth Choir of Wales for three years, and twice won the BBC Radio 2 Welsh Choirgirl of the Year contest. Additionally, she received the BET Welsh Choirgirl of the Year title and the Pelenna Valley Male Voice Choir Scholarship for promising young singers.
At 17, she won a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music, one of the world’s leading conservatories. She graduated with honors, earning a diploma in music.
After graduation, Jenkins undertook various roles including work as a freelance vocal coach and a tour guide on the London Eye. In 2000, she won the Face of Wales modeling competition, before turning her full focus to music. She gained wider public attention in 2003 after performing at Westminster Cathedral for a service celebrating the silver jubilee of Pope John Paul II.
In 2004, Jenkins signed a major record deal with Universal Classics, reportedly worth £1 million, marking one of the most significant contracts in British classical music at the time.
Between 2004 and 2008, six of Jenkins’s seven studio albums reached No. 1 on the UK classical charts, with total sales exceeding four million worldwide. Her debut album, Premiere, made her the fastest-selling mezzo-soprano to date. Her follow-up album, Second Nature, reached number 16 on the UK Albums Chart and earned the Album of the Year title at the 2005 Classic BRIT Awards.
Her third album, Living a Dream, featured the Italian-language cover “L’Amore Sei Tu” (“I Will Always Love You”) and held the top spot on the classical chart for nearly a year. The album also peaked at number 4 on the mainstream charts, earning Jenkins her second consecutive Classic BRIT Award for Album of the Year.
| Birth Date: | 29 Jun, 1980 |
| Age: | 39 yrs |
| Occupations: | Singer Opera singer Music artist |
| Citizenship: | United Kingdom |
| Birth Place: | Neath |
| Education: | Royal Academy of Music |
| Gender: | Female |
| Description: | Welsh classical crossover singer |
| Twitter Id: | KathJenkins |
| Spouse: | Andrew Levitas [M. 2014] |
| Net Worth 2021: | 21 million |
