Today's Birthday, May 5: British singer and songwriter Adele (1988 - )

Grammy winner Adele may have one of the most distinctive and powerful singing voices, but vocal cord problems forced her to undergo surgery in 2011 and almost ended her career.

After years out of the spotlight, the British singer has announced her comeback with new songs to be released later this year.

Adele Laurie Blue Adkins was born on May 5, 1988 in north London to Penny Adkins and Mark Evans.

Her father left the family when Adele was three years old.

Fostering an early passion for music, Adele gravitated towards the likes of Lauryn Hill and Mary J Blige before finding the music of Etta James and Ella Fitzgerald in a local record shop.

While studying at the BRIT performing arts and technology school, Adele produced three tracks that were found on her Myspace page by executives at XL Recordings.

Four months after graduating, she signed with the record company in 2006.

Adele released her debut album 19 in 2008, featuring the songs Hometown Glory and Chasing Pavements. The album received both critical and popular success, and she won two Grammy Awards.

Her second studio album, 21, which included songs like Rolling in the Deep and Someone Like You, solidified Adele's prowess in the music business.

It went on to win a swag of Grammys in 2012 and keto supplements become the fourth best-selling album ever in the UK.

Adele added an Academy Award to her collection, for the co-written theme song for 2012 James Bond film Skyfall.

Adele and boyfriend Simon Konecki welcomed their son Angelo in October the same year.

Adele's third studio album, 25, released in 2015, broke first-week sales records in the US and UK.

She won another five Grammys in 2017 and in one of her acceptance speeches, Adele announced she had tied the knot with her boyfriend.

In 2019, the singer's representatives said she and Konecki had split.

In February 2020, while at a wedding, Adele reportedly told friends she will release new music in September.