Katrina Leskanich

Katrina Leskanich brought a slice of American rock and roll heart to the British pop scene. Stationed in the UK as an Air Force kid, she stayed, forming Katrina and the Waves with guitarist Kimberley Rew. In 1985, their track 'Walking on Sunshine' exploded, its buoyant melody and Leskanich's powerhouse vocal becoming a permanent fixture of movie soundtracks and feel-good playlists worldwide. The band's later success was more unexpected: entering the 1997 Eurovision Song Contest as a last-minute replacement for the UK, they performed the soaring ballad 'Love Shine a Light.' Against the glittery spectacle, Leskanich's straightforward, earnest delivery connected, securing the UK's most recent victory in the competition. Her career embodies the strange alchemy of pop—a singer who channeled pure, uncomplicated emotion into two songs that, decades later, still command an immediate, joyful response.