[7][8] At 17, while she was still a student at Queen Elizabeth High School, in Halifax, she fronted a short-lived rock band called the October Game, whose members also included drummer Creighton Doane.

McLachlan's parents insisted that she finish high school and complete one year of studies at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design before moving to Vancouver and embarking on a new life as a recording artist.

[6] In 1994, McLachlan was sued by Uwe Vandrei, an obsessed fan from Ottawa, who alleged that his letters to her had been the basis of the single "Possession".

During this period she also contributed to an album by Moev, provided vocals on Manufacture's "As the End Draws Near", and embarked on her first national concert tour as an opening act for the Grapes of Wrath.

[16][17] McLachlan's 1991 album, Solace, was her mainstream breakthrough in Canada, spawning the hit singles "The Path of Thorns (Terms)" and "Into the Fire".

Her song "Angel"—inspired by the fatal overdose of Smashing Pumpkins touring keyboardist Jonathan Melvoin[20][21]—made sales skyrocket.

He credits McLachlan and her album Surfacing (on which "Angel" appeared) with saving his life;[22] the two have collaborated on many projects in support of the rights of adoptees.

More than five months after the film disappeared from the theatres, the soundtrack remained firmly entrenched among Billboard's top 40 albums and earned quadruple-platinum status.

The album's singles included a new live version of her earlier song, "I Will Remember You", a studio recording of which had previously been released on The Brothers McMullen soundtrack as well as Rarities, B-Sides and Other Stuff.

[25] Later that year, McLachlan recorded the Randy Newman song "When She Loved Me" on the Toy Story 2 soundtrack as the off-screen singing voice of the character Jessie.

[26] Following the death of her mother in December 2001, and the birth of her first daughter India, Mclachlan took a break from writing music, and shifted her focus to motherhood.

McLachlan had contemplated the prospect of losing career momentum during the album's creation and has described its writing process as similar to "extracting blood from a stone".

The album included 11 new recordings, featuring covers of Joni Mitchell's "River", Gordon Lightfoot's "Song for a Winter's Night", and John Lennon's "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)", which she recorded with her outreach children and youth choir, and seasonal favourites: "Christmas Time Is Here", "O Little Town of Bethlehem", "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas", "Silent Night", "The First Noel", and "Greensleeves (What Child Is This?

This release contains two discs that were compiled from two concerts performed on consecutive nights in April 1998 at the Rose Garden arena in Portland, Oregon.

[49] On October 21, 2016, McLachlan released Wonderland, her ninth studio and second Christmas album;[38] it contains interpretations of 13 traditional and contemporary holiday classics.

[53] In an interview the following month, McLachlan stated that she was set to debut a new song titled "Wilderness" during her then-current tour.

It was released as a charity single on March 2 to benefit the Feel Out Loud campaign by Kids Help Phone in support of youth mental health.

[64] In 1997, Lilith Fair, featuring McLachlan as one of the headlining acts, garnered a $16 million gross, making it the top-grossing of any touring festival.

[67] Nettwerk CEO and Lilith Fair co-founder Terry McBride announced that the all-female festival would make its return in mid-2010 in Canada, the United States, and Europe.

The song achieved significant US top 40 airplay when released as a single in late 2000, and also featured on the soundtrack for the movie Brokedown Palace.

She performed the song on The Oprah Winfrey Show;[78] during the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade;[78] and at the opening ceremony of the 2010 Winter Olympics.

[77] McLachlan participated in Dave Stewart's 2007 single "Go Green", alongside Nadirah X, Imogen Heap, Natalie Imbruglia, and others.

[79] In 2009, McLachlan provided backing vocals and piano on Susan Enan's song "Bring on the Wonder", which was featured in the television show Bones.

[91][better source needed] On April 2, 2017, at the Juno Awards ceremony, McLachlan was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.

[99] In 2012, McLachlan wrote a letter on behalf of PETA to then-Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, protesting that country's annual seal hunt.

[100] During Super Bowl XLVIII on February 3, 2014, McLachlan parodied her ASPCA appeals in an Audi commercial featuring a "Doberhuahua" dog gnawing on the neck of her guitar.

On January 29 McLachlan was a headliner for a benefit concert in Vancouver along with other Canadian superstars such as Avril Lavigne and Bryan Adams.

On July 2, 2005, McLachlan participated in the Philadelphia installment of the Live 8 concerts, where she performed her hit "Angel" with Josh Groban.

[104] These concerts were intended to coincide with the G8 summit to put pressure on the leaders of the world's richest nations to fight poverty in Africa by cancelling debt.

[105] On November 30, 2012, McLachlan lent her support to Kate Winslet's Golden Hat Foundation together with Tim Janis, Loreena McKennitt, Andrea Corr, Hayley Westenra, Sleepy Man Banjo Boys, Dawn Kenney, Jana Mashonee, Amy Petty and a choir etc.