Newham is also self-taught on piano and guitar, wrote her first songs at age 14, and began performing as a singer-songwriter two years later.

[4] After school at Ascham in Sydney and Frensham in the Southern Highlands, NSW, Newham attended Berklee College of Music in Boston.

[10] An independent, free-download release initially, the EP's huge success online helped lead to a large amount of major label interest, before she ultimately signed with RCA Records.

[12] On 11 September 2013, Spencer Stout uploaded a YouTube video[13] of him proposing to his boyfriend Dustin in a flash mob dance routine at a Salt Lake City, Utah Home Depot.

[17] The song is used over the end credits of the 2015 film Pitch Perfect 2. Who has praised Katy Perry, Robyn and Miley Cyrus as influences.

[21][22] On 16 February 2018, the singer released a cover of Kylie Minogue's "Come Into My World" for Made in Australia compilation by Amazon Music.

[23] In 2018, Who released a remixed version of Widelife's "All Things (Just Keep Getting Better)" to be used as the theme song for season two of the Netflix reboot Queer Eye.

[30] The lyrics that were revealed were "You've got one hand on the wheel", "Sitting at the red light, tensions are high, vibe you could cut with a knife", and "just between you & me, I can feel something here, wondering if you do too".

[34] That September, Who made her acting debut in the comedy-drama film Unpregnant portraying Kira Matthews, a character she described as "a totally badass, confident and queer race car driver".

The music video, directed by Tyler Cunningham, made its broadcast premiere on MTV and finds Who embracing the '80s aesthetic as she dances around in a Jamie Lee Curtis-inspired workout leotard, sweatband, and high socks as she sings about self confidence and love.

[1][4] Several critics have noted Who's songs, particularly her early work,[45] are heavily influenced by 1980s music,[4][46][47] with the singer herself admitting she is strongly biased towards "big-sounding 1980s synth-pop",[48] a sound she and songwriting-producing partner Peter Thomas spent two-and-a-half years cultivating.

[41] AllMusic biographer Heather Phares said the singer "makes big-hearted pop music" while "Borrowing sounds and styles from the '80s onward and putting her own joyous stamp on them".

[54] CBS News described her debut album Take Me When You Go as a combination of "dance hits, love songs and ballads – all with a hint of synthesizer, drums and keyboard",[40] whereas Betty was her most musically diverse body of work upon release.

[44] Josh Rogosin of NPR, who served as audio engineer for Who's Tiny Desk Concert in 2019, observed that "When all the studio production is stripped away, what's left are intricate melodies that soar through Betty's impressive vocal range and relatable lyrics".

[55] According to Sam Lansky of Idolator, she frequently combines heartbreaking lyrics with infectious melodies, spunk and "massive" hooks,[49] while AXS said she "paint[s] pictures with a hypnotic and heartfelt honesty".

[49] Following her successful debut, in 2014 Edward Helmore of The Guardian hailed Who as "the latest bright young thing to provide a lesson in how to construct a career with few of the conventional components", describing her as "a singer whose talent and following has come naturally, rather than under the direction of a pop Svengali or management team that oversees every tweet or Instagram picture".

[48] Meanwhile, music consultant Andy Gershon labeled her "an accidental pop star" due to her perceived authenticity and way in which she initially established a strong following and fanbase with little involvement from a record company.

[48] Comparing her public profile and potential to that of dance-pop contemporary Carly Rae Jepsen, Sawdey observed that Who continues to fall short of mainstream success despite positive reviews and constantly selling out smaller venues, describing her as "a guilty pop secret that only a select few knew about".

[53] Who cites actress Marilyn Monroe as one of her main fashion inspirations, crediting her size with helping her appreciate her own body type.