Amy Lee was born in Riverside, California, to parents John Lee, a disc jockey and television personality, and Sara Cargill. She has two sisters, Carrie and Lori. Lee had a younger sister, Bonnie, who died in 1987 at the age of three from an unidentified illness, and a brother named Robby who died in 2018 after struggling with severe epilepsy for most of his life. The songs "Hello" from "Fallen" and "Like You" from "The Open Door" were reportedly written for her late sister.