Since her debut in 2008, Francesca Battistelli has earned a Grammy nod, six Dove Awards and 22 Dove nominations. Her debut album, My Paper Heart, was certified Gold, and her music has been featured in films and on TV. Her face even graced more than 3 million Diet Pepsi cans across the country. Despite all that success, she’s a down-to-earth singer-songwriter who appreciates good music as much as the rest of us. To prove it, she put together this playlist of some of her favorite tracks and had this to say about it:

“These are some of my favorite songs. I’ll never forget the first time I heard Sara Groves‘ Fireflies and Songs. I was sitting in a hotel room in North Carolina on a Christmas tour years ago, and I had just downloaded her new record. I heard the intro to the song and started to cry. It still speaks to me. I love it so much. Switchfoot‘s ‘Dare You to Move’ is another one for me that defines a certain season in my life. I got The Beautiful Letdown album a week before it came out, thanks to a friend who worked with the band. It was my senior year, and I saw them in concert the day the record released. I’ll never forget the fact that Jon couldn’t remember all his lyrics, and I was the only fan there who knew these new songs enough to be able to tell! So crazy that they are my labelmates now!”