Her debut studio album, Santogold (2008), was released by Atlantic Records and met with widespread critical praise for its cross-genre blending of dub, new wave, and hip hop music.

[6] Additionally, Santigold has collaborated with artists including Beastie Boys, Jay-Z, Kanye West, David Byrne, Mark Ronson, Karen O, ASAP Rocky, and Diplo.

[13] She worked for Epic Records as an A&R representative but left the position to co-write and executive produce How I Do, the singer Res's debut album.

[14] She was the singer of Philadelphia-based punk rock band Stiffed, which released the EP Sex Sells (2003) and the album Burned Again (2005).

[15] While in the band, White was offered a solo contract by Martin Heath of London-based independent label Lizard King Records.

Artistes") received attention from Internet media outlets in 2007,[16] and her debut album Santogold, conceived with fellow Stiffed member John Hill,[17][18] was issued in April 2008.

[19] Blending a variety of musical genres ranging from new wave to alternative rock and reggae, the album was very well received by critics upon release and was noted for its "cross-genre confidence".

[35] She finished the second leg of the tour in August 2009 at the Lollapalooza Festival in Chicago[36] with Billboard noting that she "delivered a bright set and drew a headliner-sized audience" for a late afternoon concert.

[43] "Disparate Youth" was featured in a December 2012 advertisement for the 2013 Honda Civic[44] and a piano version of the song was used in a 2012-13 ad for Direct Line insurance.

On August 15, 2012, she performed on the deck of the USS Intrepid as part of "Stephest Colbchella '012: Rocktaugustfest" on The Colbert Report, and on May 9, 2013, she appeared as herself on The Office episode "A.A.R.M."

[53] Santigold released the dancehall-inspired mixtape I Don't Want: The Gold Fire Sessions on July 27, 2018,[54] after announcing it the day before.

[citation needed] After a four-year musical hiatus, Santigold reemerged in May 2022 with "High Priestess", the lead single from her fourth album, Spirituals.

[65] The Guardian hailed it as "a winding journey through a landscape of loneliness, triumph and rage, inspired by African American folk song" and rated it 4 out 5 stars.

[66] Besides her own work, Santigold has also collaborated with a number of other artists, including Mark Ronson in 2007, David Byrne in 2010 and Beastie Boys in 2011.

[citation needed] That same year, she featured vocals on the single "Brooklyn Go Hard" by rap artist Jay-Z: the track, produced by Kanye West, also contained a sample of Santigold's "Shove It".

White collaborated alongside Lil Wayne for Drake's song "Unstoppable", from his mixtape So Far Gone (2009).. Also in 2009, her vocals were included on the Major Lazer track, "Hold the Line".

[76] Santigold, alongside Switch and Sam Endicott of The Bravery, helped write the Christina Aguilera songs "Monday Morning" and "Bobblehead" for the album, Bionic.

[citation needed] In 2012, Santigold was one of the guests on Amadou & Mariam's album Folila, featuring on the track "Dougou Badia.

In 2018, she was featured on Matt and Kim's single "Glad I Tried", along with Night Riots' Travis Hawley and Walk the Moon's Kevin Ray.

"[19][83] White has mentioned her liking for dub and punk,[83] and she has also revealed her appreciation of new wave music,[19] saying that "My Superman" is an interpolation of a Siouxsie and the Banshees' song "Red Light".

"[19] The singer's main influences are James Brown and Aretha Franklin[85] and she has cited Devo as her "ultimate favorite band.

[85] Beyoncé gave a shout-out to Santigold in the 2022 track of "Break My Soul (The Queens Remix)", citing her among 29 legendary Black women in music.

In the song, Beyoncé name-dropped her creative heroes, and she opened with "Rosetta Tharpe, Santigold/ Bessie Smith, Nina Simone", next to Grace Jones.

[87] Australian singer-songwriter Kevin Mitchell, under the moniker of Bob Evans, stated that Santigold's work was an influence for the creation of his fourth album, Familiar Stranger.