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Music, however, was her first love. While she was an English literature major at Columbia University's Barnard College, she performed in small venues in Greenwich Village. In 1984 she received a major label record contract.
Suzanne's eponymous debut album was released in 1985 and well received by critics. The songs are straightforward and oppose the 'bigger is better' slogan of the mid-1980s. They are not typical protest songs, but introspective, in the manner of the singer-songwriters of the 1970s.
Her sophomore effort, Solitude Standing (1987), contained two successful singles: "Tom's Diner" (a hit when remixed by the band DNA) and "Luka". "Luka" is written from the point of view of an abused child—uncommon for a pop hit. The music is more strongly pop-oriented compared with her first album.
Vega's third album, Days of Open Hand (1990) signified a change in style: the music became more experimental and the lyrics expressed greater emotion. The album lacked hit single material and is best considered as a whole.
1992 saw the release of the LP 99.9F. The album consists of a eclectic mixture of folk music, dance beats and industrial music. This gives a sunny quality to the work in contrast to the previous album. The songs are short and the lyric style compressed.
The fifth album, Nine Objects of Desire, was released in 1996. The music varies between a frugal, simple style and the industrial production of 99.9F. This album contains "Caramel", the theme of the movie The Truth about Cats and Dogs, and "Dead Man Walking", a song from the soundtrack of a movie of the same name.
September 2001 saw the release of a new album, Songs in Red and Grey, whose subject matter deals mainly with Vega's divorce from her ex-husband, record producer Mitchell Froom.
Vega has a daugter, Ruby Froom.