Tori Sparks, a folky singer/songwriter graced with a fiery, gutsy delivery worthy of Ani DiFranco, emerged in 2003 with an EP called Tidewaters, which she recorded while she was a student at Florida State University. Her debut full-length, Rivers + Roads, followed in 2005, released on the now-defunct Nashville label Pure Platinum. She spent the following year touring and promoting her album, and succeeded in generating some buzz in mainstream outlets like ~Paste and ~The Village Voice. She returned to the studio in 2006 and had her third full-length, Under This Yellow Sun, ready to go the following year.