Taking the personal and making it universal is just one of this 24-year-old Atlanta based singer-songwriter's talents. Delivering catchy songs in a voice reminiscent of Shania Twain is another.

Raised in the small town of Rome, Georgia, Hope Sonam was encouraged to explore her talents at an early age. "My family always nurtured creativity," she says. "My dad is a cartoonist and my parents sang with my brother and I all the time. As a kid, I remember laying in bed with my Gran and instead of...