Women That Rock Revisited: Victoria Monét’s Rise Was Years in the Making

Last Updated on 2 weeks ago

This Women That Rock profile was originally published on July 23, 2015, as part of I Hear That Girl’s music series spotlighting women artists worth paying attention to. It has been updated for clarity, context, and current relevance as part of our Women That Rock Revisited series for Black Music Month.

Some artists arrive in the spotlight overnight.

Victoria Monét is not one of them.

Her story is better than that.

Before the Grammys, before Jaguar II, before “On My Mama” became the kind of song that made women stand a little taller in the mirror, Victoria Monét was already doing the work. She was already writing. Already building. Already lending her pen, her ear, and her creative instincts to songs many people knew before they knew her name.

And that is exactly why this Women That Rock profile deserves to be revisited.

When I first introduced Victoria Monét to I Hear That Girl readers in 2015, she was highlighting an artist whose talent was already undeniable. At the time, Monét was known by many as a songwriter, but she was also carving out space for herself as a solo artist with a voice, a sound, and a story of her own.

I wrote then that Victoria Monét was “most notably known for her songwriting,” and that still matters. Because long before the world fully caught up, Monét had already proven that her pen was something serious.

She had written and collaborated with artists like Ariana Grande, Chris Brown, Fifth Harmony, T.I., Nas, and more. But even then, there was something about her own music that made you stop and listen. It had that nostalgic R&B warmth, that soft-but-confident tone, and that quiet sense of a woman who knew exactly what she was capable of, even if the industry had not fully made room for her yet.

That is the beauty of looking back at this profile now.

Victoria Monét was never brand new. She was becoming.

From Songwriter to Spotlight

Born in Atlanta and raised in Sacramento, Victoria Monét’s path into music was built through movement, performance, writing, and persistence. She danced. She wrote poetry. She worked in studios. She joined a girl group. And when that group did not take off the way she may have hoped, she did what so many creative women have had to do: she found another way in.

For Monét, that way was songwriting.

There is something powerful about that part of her story. Because sometimes the door that opens is not the door you thought you were standing in front of. Sometimes you get into the room by serving the song, supporting the vision, and learning the business from the inside.

But that does not mean the dream disappears.

It just keeps growing roots.

Years before she became a Grammy-winning solo artist, Victoria Monét was already shaping sound behind the scenes. She became a trusted collaborator, especially with Ariana Grande, and her writing credits helped build the kind of résumé many artists would be proud to claim.

Still, there was always more to her than the credits.

The Sound I Heard Early

In the original Women That Rock feature, I pointed readers toward Victoria Monét’s project Nightmares & Lullabies: Act 2, released in 2015.

And honestly, that was the right project to notice.

At that stage, Monét’s music blended smooth R&B, pop polish, and emotional storytelling. It had the kind of softness that still carried weight. Her voice was delicate without being weak, and her writing gave the songs shape beyond just a pretty melody.

I also mentioned Monét’s single “Backyard,” describing it as a record with a mellow summer feel and a flow that fit right into the kind of R&B lane that made you want to roll the windows down and let the song breathe.

That part still holds up.

“Backyard” was not just a single from a rising artist. Looking back now, it was part of the early foundation. It showed the same qualities that would later define Monét’s bigger breakthrough: sensuality, confidence, groove, and a deep respect for classic R&B textures.

Even then, you could hear the influence of the artists Leslie named in the original post: Brandy, Aaliyah, Janet Jackson, and the kind of 90s R&B that shaped so many of us.

But what makes Victoria Monét special is that she does not simply imitate that era.

She understands it.

She carries it forward.

Why Her Rise Hits Different Now

Victoria Monét’s rise feels especially meaningful because it pushes back against the idea that success only counts if it happens quickly.

So much of today’s culture rewards the instant moment: the viral song, the sudden visibility, the overnight breakthrough. But Monét’s story is slower, deeper, and more honest than that.

She spent years building credibility before the wider public fully embraced her as an artist. She was known in the industry before she was celebrated by the mainstream. She was contributing to the sound of pop and R&B before her own name became the headline.

Then came Jaguar.

Then came Jaguar II.

Then came the world finally saying what longtime listeners already knew: Victoria Monét is not just the woman behind the pen. She is the full performance. The full vision. The full artist.

Her 2023 album Jaguar II brought that truth into sharper focus. The album gave listeners lush vocals, grown-woman confidence, choreography, live instrumentation, and songs that felt both classic and current. “On My Mama” became a standout moment, not only because it was catchy, but because it carried affirmation in its bones.

It was the sound of a woman who had stopped shrinking.

Why Victoria Monét Belongs in the Women That Rock Archive

Black Music Month is the perfect time to revisit Victoria Monét because her story reminds us that Black women’s creative labor is often shaping culture long before it is publicly celebrated.

There are women writing the hooks, arranging the harmonies, building the bridges, developing the sound, and holding the vision together behind the scenes. And too often, they are not the first names people remember.

Victoria Monét’s journey helps correct that.

She represents the woman who kept going while the spotlight was elsewhere.

The woman whose roots were growing underground.

The woman whose gifts were already valid before the awards came.

That is why my original instinct was right. Victoria Monét was always a woman who rocked. Not just because she could sing. Not just because she could write. But because she had the discipline, patience, and creative clarity to keep becoming until the world finally had no choice but to see her.

And that feels like the deeper lesson here.

Sometimes you are not late.

Sometimes you are being developed.

Sometimes your name has not reached the marquee yet because your roots are still doing sacred work beneath the surface.

Victoria Monét’s story is a reminder that the woman behind the scenes is still a woman with a spotlight-worthy gift.

And when her moment comes, it does not erase the years it took to get there.

It honors them.

Listen Next

If you are revisiting Victoria Monét’s music, start with:

“Backyard”
“Moment”
“Experience”
“Coastin’”
“On My Mama”
Jaguar II

Then go back and listen again with her full story in mind.

Because once you understand the journey, the music hits different.