Lee is the American chairperson for the international epilepsy awareness foundation Out of the Shadows, and in 2012 was honored with United Cerebral Palsy's Luella Bennack Award for her work.

[23][24][15] Lee considers the Lacrimosa movement of Mozart's Requiem her favorite piece of music, and wove it into The Open Door song "Lacrymosa".

Her first song with lyrics was called "A Single Tear", which she wrote for an eighth-grade assignment, recording it on a cassette tape and playing guitar while her friend from choir did backup vocals.

[27] During her pre-teen years, Lee's family moved to many places, including West Palm Beach, Florida, and Rockford, Illinois, eventually settling in Little Rock, Arkansas.

[41] Lee's earliest memory of wanting to fuse various musical genres, especially contrasting styles, was when she was training in classical piano and noticed that a "real shreddy" section of a composition from Baroque composer Bach resembled heavy metal.

[60][53] After graduating high school, Lee attended Middle Tennessee State University to study music theory and composition for film scoring, but left after a semester to solely focus on Evanescence.

[78] After finishing the tour for Evanescence's live album and DVD Anywhere but Home (2004) and overwhelmed by label pressure, Lee retreated to her house, cut off contact with people, and spent the next 10 months writing music again, painting and going to therapy.

[25][26] She referenced a session of interpreting recurring themes in her dreams, acknowledging a longstanding, deep-rooted feeling of "always something looming under the surface", which she later overcame.

[72] Throughout the stages of writing The Open Door, Lee had moved from California, rented a place in Florida, and eventually settled in New York.

[88] In 2009, Evanescence began playing live shows again, with Lee realizing that she missed this part of her life, stating: "I had to get back together with all the guys, and we practiced all the old stuff ... and I enjoyed it so much.

"[96] Following several solo projects by Lee from 2014 to 2017, including film scoring, and Evanescence's resumed touring in 2015,[99] the band worked on their fourth studio album, Synthesis, released in 2017.

[102] Four songs from the album were released as singles throughout 2020 and 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic, while a virtual live-streamed show was performed by the band from their recording base at Rock Falcon Studio, Nashville, in December 2020.

[109] The singer also made a brief guest appearance in the music video for Johnny Cash's "God's Gonna Cut You Down" in late 2006.

Her scene was recorded at Trinity Church in Manhattan, during which she wore a black velvet coat that previously belonged to Tim Burton.

[119] In a Spin interview in March 2010, Lee stated that she was "in a very different creative space then" regarding her previous work on new material, and that while she wrote some good songs, nothing from those efforts would be included in the band's album Evanescence,[120] which was released on October 7, 2011.

The organization stated: The committee has selected Amy for this award for her commitment to bring attention to issues of education and personal dignity of people living with a disability by serving as the International spokesperson Out of the Shadows.

Because of her personal pledge to making life more accessible and understood by everyone, we cannot conceive of a more interesting, motivated and deserving individual to honor on Luella's behalf.

[125] During an interview with MTV, Lee explained that it would be a "surprise" to her fans; the fact that the film was "dark" and lacking of conversations made it a "beautiful, sad platform for music".

Speaking about the song "Push the Button" which she originally penned for the movie, Lee explained that it marked a departure for her due to its electronic sound.

In March 2015, Lee and Eggar announced that they were recording music, along with Chuck Palmer, for Hammerstep's short film Indigo Grey: The Passage, which was released on September 14, 2015.

[139] She also stated that she does not have "any news or plans" for new Evanescence music,[139] but assured fans on Twitter that the band has not broken up saying, "We don't follow the rules of a commerce-driven timeline.

[141] In December 2015, Lee confirmed that she plans to complete some songs from an Evanescence album (originally produced by Steve Lillywhite) that was rejected by Wind-up Records in 2010.

On September 14, 2016, MTV News reported that Lee had worked on music for the film Blind, starring Alec Baldwin and Demi Moore.

[144] On February 10, 2017, Lee released an English-language cover of Francesca Michielin's "L'amore esiste" ("Love Exists"), which she heard while working on a film project in Italy.

With Guy Sigsworth as producer and Dave Eggar providing string arrangements, Lee recorded her translated and reinterpreted version of the song over the course of a week at Flux Studios in New York City.

[152] The song was written and recorded the day before their orchestral show in Osaka on February 16, 2020, where Lee performed as a guest, but it was finished through file sharing due to the coronavirus pandemic.

[153] On October 30, 2020, Lee featured on the Bring Me the Horizon song "One Day The Only Butterflies Left Will Be In Your Chest As You March Towards Your Death" from their EP Post Human: Survival Horror.

[224] Topics she has written about in Evanescence include: loss, abuse, fears, numbness, harassment, solitude, artifice, relationship dynamic, sorrow, relationship with music, aimlessness, contentment, mental health, defiance, indulgence, longing, nature, dreams, the music industry, identity, autonomy, disillusionment, speaking up, social issues, illusions, spiritual uncertainty, perseverance, and solidarity.

[235][236] Lee has cited influence from composers such as Mozart, Danny Elfman, and Hans Zimmer,[237] and artists like Björk,[225] Portishead,[135] Massive Attack,[120] Korn,[238][239] Nine Inch Nails,[225] Tori Amos,[225] Radiohead,[240] Shirley Manson and Garbage,[241] Nirvana,[197] Soundgarden,[225][242] Pantera,[243][40] Depeche Mode,[225] Rob Zombie, White Zombie,[243] The Smashing Pumpkins,[225] Pearl Jam,[244] Metallica,[40] Joan Jett,[72] and A Perfect Circle.

[250][251] In 2006, Blender listed Lee as one of the hottest women in rock alongside such singers as Joan Jett, Courtney Love and Liz Phair.