Carlos PenaVega | |
|---|---|
 PenaVega in 2010 | |
| Born | Carlos Roberto Pena Jr. (1989-08-15)August 15, 1989 (age 36) Columbia, Missouri, U.S. |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 2004–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 4 (1 stillborn) |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | Latin pop |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Labels | |
| Member of | Big Time Rush |
Musical artist | |
Carlos Roberto PenaVega[1] (né Pena Jr.; born August 15, 1989[2]) is an American actor and singer. He starred on theNickelodeon seriesBig Time Rush as Carlos García, and is a member of the namesake groupBig Time Rush. He was also the host of the network's game showWebheads. He currently voices Bobby Santiago inThe Loud House franchise.
PenaVega was born on August 15, 1989, inColumbia, Missouri.[1] His father is ofSpanish andVenezuelan descent, and his mother isDominican.[3] He was raised inWeston, Florida.[2][4] He attendedSagemont Upper School where he was a cheerleader. He appeared in local productions ofGrease andMan of La Mancha.[5] He also had a role in a production ofTitanic by theAmerican Heritage School, which he attended before moving to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career.[4][6] During his run inTitanic he fell in love with singing and dancing.[4]
His first acting role was a guest star at the age of 15 onER, followed later that year by guest-starring roles onJudging Amy,Summerland, andNed's Declassified School Survival Guide.[7][4][6][8] While still in high school, PenaVega appeared in television commercials for theSuper Soaker brand recreationalwater gun, and his image even appeared on the toy's packaging. PenaVega was studying musical theater at theBoston Conservatory when his manager urged him to audition forBig Time Rush. Although he was reluctant to do so, he submitted an audition tape and won the role almost two years later.[2] PenaVega moved toHollywood in August 2009, The show had four seasons and was one of the most popular shows onNickelodeon.
Big Time Rush is an American pop boy band that formed in 2009. The band consists of PenaVega,Kendall Schmidt,James Maslow, andLogan Henderson, all on vocals. PenaVega co-wrote the song "Oh Yeah" off of the group's first album,BTR. On the second album, he wrote "Invisible" along with Charley Greenberg, Cody Williams, Daniel Andrew Wayne and J.R. Rotem. As of 2011, the band has released two albums,BTR andElevate. They later released their third album,24/Seven. He co-wrote "Picture This" with bandmate, James Maslow. PenaVega wrote "Lost in Love" for his wife,Alexa PenaVega. He also wrote the song "Na Na Na" on24/Seven. In addition, BTR embarked on the Summer Break Tour, in support of the album.
He released his first solo single in Spanish on February 4, 2014, titled "Electrico". The song charted in the top 10 of the Latin iTunes songs charts. He was presented for the first time at the first annualNickelodeon Colombia Kids' Choice Awards given inBogotá. PenaVega competed on the21st season ofDancing with the Stars in Fall 2015. His wife was also a contestant that season.[9] His professional partner wasWitney Carson.[10] PenaVega and Carson reached the finals but were eliminated on the week's performance night and ended the competition in fourth place. In 2017 he released the single "Bésame" featuring MAFFiO.
In 2017 he starred alongside his wife in the Hallmark movieEnchanted Christmas and alongside Adelaide Kane inA Midnight Kiss. In 2018 he starred alongside his wife again in the Hallmark movieLove at Sea. He was a series regular in the one season CW seriesLife Sentence. In 2019 PenaVega and his wife starred in the Hallmark movie seriesPicture Perfect Mysteries.
In 2021 Big Time Rush announced they would be reuniting for shows in New York and Chicago. The band also made an appearance at several Jingle Ball concerts in December 2021. In 2022 they announced the Forever Tour that would take them around the U.S. and Mexico. His family has traveled on the tour with him.
Carlos and Alexa PenaVega released a book in 2022 calledWhat If Love is the Point.
On October 4, 2024, Carlos announced via Instagram his new band (in addition to BTR) Angels + Kings[11] with friendAlex Marshall. The bands first song "Lightning" came out on October 25, 2024.
In 2012, PenaVega began dating American actressAlexa Vega after meeting her at aBible study.[12][13] She made a guest appearance on the final episode ofBig Time Rush, playing the on-screen new girlfriend of his character. The couple became engaged in August 2013, and were married on January 4, 2014, inPuerto Vallarta, Mexico,[14] both taking PenaVega as their married name. They are both devout Christians.[15]
The couple shares a YouTube channel, La Vida PenaVega (formerly LexLovesLos).[16] The couple have three children - sons born in 2016 and 2019, and a daughter born in 2021.[17][18][19][20] The couple announced in November 2023 that they were expecting their fourth child;[21] in April 2024, Alexa gave birth to astillborn daughter.[22] In 2023, the couple moved toNashville, Tennessee after having lived inMaui since 2017.[23][24]
PenaVega and his partners ofBig Time Rush were honored in 2010 in the category "One to Watch" at theYoung Hollywood Awards.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Little Birds | Louis | |
| 2012 | Yak: The Giant King | Krudd | Voice role (English dub) |
| 2014 | Code Academy | Marcos | |
| 2015 | Spare Parts | Oscar Vasquez | |
| 2017 | Killing Hasselhoff | Pedro | |
| 2018 | Sleep Away | Joaquin | |
| 2020 | Mighty Oak | Pedro | |
| 2021 | The Loud House Movie | Bobby Santiago | Voice role[25][26] |
| 2024 | The Casagrandes Movie | Bobby Santiago, Flat Arturo |
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | ER | Arlo Escobar | Episode: "Shot in the Dark" |
| 2004–2005 | Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide | King Bee | Recurring role (season 1) |
| 2005 | Judging Amy | Diego Valdesera | Episode: "Diego Valdesera" |
| Summerland | Student | Episode: "Sledgehammer" | |
| 2009–2013 | Big Time Rush | Carlos Garcia | Main role (as Carlos Pena Jr.); director: "Big Time Tour Bus" |
| 2011 | Hand aufs Herz | Himself | Episode: "August 11, 2011" |
| Nick News | Episode: "Lies We Tell In Middle School" | ||
| 2012 | Big Time Movie | Carlos Garcia | Television film |
| How to Rock | Himself | Episode: "How to Rock an Election" | |
| Cupcake Wars | Guest judge | Episode: "Big Time Rush" | |
| 2012–2013 | Figure It Out | Himself | Panelist |
| 2013 | Marvin Marvin | Episode: "Big Time Marvin" | |
| 2014–2015 | Webheads | Host | |
| 2015 | Dancing with the Stars | Contestant (season 21) | |
| The Thundermans | Tech Rider | Episode: "No Country for Old Mentors" | |
| The Penguins of Madagascar | Carlos the Beaver | Episode: "Tunnel of Love" | |
| Instant Mom | Roger | Episode: "Turning a Blind Eye" | |
| 2016 | Grease: Live | Kenickie | Television special[27] |
| 2016–present | The Loud House | Bobby Santiago, Boys Will Be Boyz, additional voices | Recurring voice role |
| 2017 | Enchanted Christmas | Ricardo Archuleta | Television film (Hallmark) |
| 2018 | Love at Sea | Tony Rieves | Television film (Hallmark)[28] |
| A Midnight Kiss | David Campos | Television film (Hallmark) | |
| Life Sentence | Diego | Main role[29] | |
| 2019 | Picture Perfect Mysteries: Newlywed and Dead | Detective Sam Acosta | Television film (Hallmark Movies & Mysteries) |
| 2019–2022 | The Casagrandes | Bobby Santiago, Ronnie Anne Lookalike, additional voices | Main voice role |
| 2020 | Blue's Clues & You! | Himself | Episode "Happy Birthday, Blue!" |
| Picture Perfect Mysteries: Dead Over Diamonds | Detective Sam Acosta | Television film (Hallmark Movies & Mysteries) | |
| Picture Perfect Mysteries: Exit, Stage Death | |||
| 2021 | The Loud House Mega Music Countdown | Himself | Host |
| 2022 | Love in the Limelight | Nick Mendez | Television film (Hallmark) |
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Latin [30] | |||||||||||||
| "Electrico"[31] | 2014 | 17 | Non-album single | ||||||||||
| "Bésame"[32] (featuring MAFFiO) | 2017 | — | |||||||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. | |||||||||||||
| Title | Year | Other(s) artist(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Principio Y Fin"[33] | 2015 | Evan Craft | Principio Y Fin |
| "Summer Nights" | 2016 | Grease: Live cast | Grease: Live |
| "We Go Together" | |||
| "Greased Lightnin'" | Aaron Tveit |
| Big Time Rush(TV series) | |||||||||||
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| TV movie | |||||||||||
| Tours | |||||||||||
| Discography |
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| International | |
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| National | |
| Artists | |
