Harmony Holiday was born in Waterloo, Iowa in 1982. Her father was Northern Soul singer and songwriter Jimmy Holiday; her mother, 30 years his junior, was studying writing at the University of Iowa at the time they met. Upon her father's passing in 1987 Harmony moved to Los Angeles, where she spent most of her childhood studying dance before attending UC Berkeley. She currently lives in New York City, and is an MFA student at Columbia University and an instructor of dance and writing courses.