She is the lead vocalist, guitarist and principal songwriter of the band Big Thief, as well as an established solo artist.

Lenker was born in Indianapolis and was raised in a Christian cult until the age of four,[1][2] but primarily grew up in Minnesota.

When Lenker was 5 years old, she was hospitalized after a railroad spike fell from the roof of a makeshift treehouse located in the yard of her family's rented home in Nisswa, lodging itself into her skull, nearly killing her.

She recounts that she would intentionally show up late for school in order to get lunch detention to avoid social alienation in the lunchroom.

[15] On May 1, 2014, Lenker, together with future bandmate Buck Meek, released the LP records a-sides and b-sides.

[12] In 2015, Lenker and Meek, alongside Max Oleartchik and James Krivchenia, formed the band Big Thief.

[20] While in isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic, Lenker wrote and recorded two albums, Songs and Instrumentals, which were released on October 23, 2020.

[23] In the same month, Lenker also announced her sixth studio album, Bright Future, which was released on March 22, 2024.

[24] On March 11, 2024, Lenker released an EP, I Won't Let Go of Your Hand, exclusively on Bandcamp with proceeds going to the Palestine Children's Relief Fund.

[12] Lenker elaborated on her mindset and approach to songwriting in an interview, where she likened her process to a "collaboration with the universe or a higher power".

"[26] Lenker met the future Big Thief co-founder Buck Meek at a concert when she lived in Boston.

She then re-encountered him at Mr. Kiwi, a small grocery store in Bushwick, Brooklyn, the day she moved to New York.

[27] She later spoke of continuing to work with Meek in the band following the divorce: "It's felt sustainable because there's an extraordinary amount of love.

In an interview with The Brag, Lenker said of those lyrics, "I feel within myself a constant dialogue between my masculinity, my femininity and the part of me that is neither of those things.