Karly-Marina Loaiza (born July 17, 1994), better known as Kali Uchis , is an American singer. After releasing her debut mixtape Drunken Babble (2012), she released her debut EP Por Vida (2015). She released her debut studio album Isolation (2018) to widespread acclaim. Her second studio album and first Spanish-language project Sin Miedo (del Amor y Otros Demonios) (2021) spawned the single “Telepatía”, which became her first solo charting hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. Her third studio album Red Moon in Venus (2023) became her first to debut within the top 10 on the Billboard 200.

Uchis was featured on Kaytranada’s 2019 single “10%”, which won the Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording. Her other accolades include an American Music Award, two Billboard Music Awards, and a nomination for a Latin Grammy Award.

Uchis was born Karly-Marina Loaiza in Alexandria, Virginia, on July 17, 1994, the daughter of an American mother from Virginia and a Colombian father from Pereira. Her parents met during the late 1980s, and her father moved back to Colombia when Uchis was in high school. She subsequently spent summers in Colombia with her father, uncles, and aunts. During the school year, she lived with her mother and older siblings. In high school, she learned to play the piano and saxophone. She participated in a jazz band, and graduated from Alexandria City High School (then called T. C. Williams High School). She often skipped class to spend time at the photo lab, making experimental short films. Her interest in photography led to her creating mixtape cover art. Skipping class and breaking the curfew set by her parents led to her being kicked out of her home. During this time, she lived in her car and wrote songs on her keyboard which would later appear on her debut mixtape Drunken Babble (2012). She also wrote poetry and did not initially intend to sing, being more interested in directing films than being in the spotlight. She was given the nickname “Kali Uchis” by her father and adopted it as her stage name.

Shortly after graduating, Uchis released her debut mixtape, Drunken Babble, on August 1, 2012. The mixtape was described as “genre-defying”, noted for its influences from doo-wop, reggae and early 2000s R&B. In 2014, she collaborated with rapper Snoop Dogg on the song “On Edge” for his mixtape, That’s My Work 3.

In February 2015, Uchis released her debut EP Por Vida for free download on her official website, and later on iTunes. The project featured production from various musicians, including Diplo, Tyler, the Creator, Kaytranada and BadBadNotGood. She embarked on her first tour during October 2015 with Leon Bridges, touring through the United States and parts of Canada.

In April 2017 the 5th studio album by Gorillaz, Humanz, was released and included songs featuring Uchis — namely “She’s My Collar”; “Ticker Tape” – a bonus track from the album’s Deluxe Edition; and “She’s My Collar (Kali Uchis Spanish Special)” – a bonus track from the album’s Super Deluxe Edition. The following month, Uchis released “Tyrant”, featuring English singer Jorja Smith, to serve as the lead single from her then-upcoming debut studio album. In June 2017, she announced her first headlining tour, specifically a North American tour in support of the album. The tour took place from August to October 2017, starting at the Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival in San Francisco, with a stop at the Pop Montreal music festival.  Uchis then released “Nuestro Planeta”, featuring Reykon, as the second single from the album, on August 25, 2017. In October 2017, Uchis was nominated for a Latin Grammy Award for Record of the Year for “El Ratico”, her collaboration with Colombian musician Juanes. She was also nominated for a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards for “Get You”, her collaboration with Canadian singer Daniel Caesar.

Uchis supported Lana Del Rey on select North American arena dates of her world tour, the LA to the Moon Tour, from January 15 to February 16, 2018. “After the Storm”, a track featuring Tyler, the Creator and Bootsy Collins, was issued as the third single in January 2018, followed by the announcement of Isolation, in March 2018, which took place during Uchis’ appearance on The Tonight Show. Isolation was officially released worldwide on April 6, 2018. It received widespread acclaim from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 87, based on 17 reviews. The album’s fourth and final single, “Just a Stranger”, featuring Steve Lacy, was released on October 30, 2018.