The daughter of a woodworking father and a screenprinting mother,[1] Gallup studied modern dance and ballet as she grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Before her initial public performance in 1988, Gallup worked as a cook on a yacht, a designer of wedding rings, and a massage therapist.
[3] Gallup has ten CDs of original songs as a solo artist, and seven with Peter Gallway as the duo Hat Check Girl.
She was awarded an ArtServe Michigan/Michigan Council of the Arts and Cultural Affairs project grant in 2001 to create and perform her theater piece Stay Me With Flagons"The CD Pearl Street, a collection of linked-narrative songs, was adapted from another theater piece, originally called Skinny Arms.
Her song "Circle" was covered by Chuck Brodsky on his album Radio.