Cara's interview on Voice of America, 19 December 2016
Alessia Caracciolo (born July 11, 1996), known professionally asAlessia Cara (/əˈlɛsiəˈkɑːrə/),[5] is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She began posting covers of songs on YouTube at age 13.[6][7] After uploading acoustic covers of songs such as "Love Yourself" and "Sweater Weather" online, she signed with EP Entertainment andDef Jam Recordings in 2014 and released her debut single, "Here", the following year. It peaked at number 19 on theCanadian Hot 100 chart and was asleeper hit in the US, peaking at number 5 on theBillboard Hot 100 chart.[8][9][10]
Alessia Cara was born on July 11, 1996, inMississauga, Ontario,[16] and grew up inBrampton, where she attendedCardinal Ambrozic Catholic Secondary School.[17] Her family is fromCalabria,Italy; her father was born in Canada to Italian parents, and her mother is an Italian immigrant.[18][19] Cara is the second of four children.[20] She can speak Italian fluently.[21] As a child, she wrote poetry and performed in theatre.[22] She began playing guitar at the age of 10 and taught herself how to play various songs.[22] At the age of 13, she began her own YouTube channel where she posted covers of songs that she performed.[22] She sawJustin Bieber as a career model at the time.[23]
In July 2014, Cara, accompanied by her father, went to New York,[24] where she signed a management deal with EP Entertainment,[25][26][27][28][29][30] and began work on her debut studio album later that same year.[31][30] She briefly took theprofessional name simply of Alessia before adding a clipping of her surname to become known as Alessia Cara.[32] In April 2015, Cara released her official debut single throughDef Jam.[33] Titled "Here", it was described byMTV as "a song for everyone who secretly hates parties."[28] Produced byPop & Oak andSebastian Kole, the song is about her personal experience with going to a party and being uncomfortable at it.[8] On May 5, 2015, the song was chosen as the "can't-miss" track bySpin,[34] as well as being listed as a "must hear song" byCosmopolitan.[35] The song was also named one of the best Canadian songs of April byComplex[36] and included onBillboard's "20 Pop Songs You Need For Your Summer Playlist" in June 2015.[37]Rolling Stone later ranked "Here" at number 21 on its year-end list of the 50 best songs of 2015.[38] On July 29, 2015, Cara made her television debut onThe Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.[39] "Here" then received a nomination for "Original Song" at theStreamy Awards.[40] She released the EPFour Pink Walls, containing five songs, including her debut single. Her debut album,Know-It-All, was released on November 13, 2015.[41]
From January to April 2016, Cara embarked on her first headlining tour, the "Know-It-All Tour", performing in various US and Canadian cities.[42] She was short-listed for the BBC MusicSound of... award for 2016 and finished as the runner-up.[43] Cara was awarded as Breakthrough Artist of the Year at the 2016Juno Awards.[44] On March 7, 2016, Cara released a music video for "Wild Things".[45] In April 2016, Cara was announced to be one of the supporting acts of Britishalternative rock bandColdplay in the European and North American legs of theirA Head Full of Dreams Tour, alongside British singer songwriter andGrammy winnerFoxes.[46] On June 23, 2016, Cara was featured in a re-released version of the song "Wild" byTroye Sivan. The music video was released on July 22, 2016.[47] She playedGlastonbury Festival on June 24, 2016, in the John Peel tent. The music video for Cara's version of the single "How Far I'll Go", from theDisney filmMoana, was released on November 3, 2016, and since then has received over 270 million views on YouTube.[48] The song was written byLin-Manuel Miranda, produced byOak Felder, and the video was directed byAya Tanimura.[49] On December 15, 2016, Cara released a music video for "Seventeen".[50]
Cara performed as the musical guest onSaturday Night Live on February 4, 2017.[51] On April 18, 2017, the music video of the song "Stay" byZedd featuring Cara was released. Cara was also featured on the song "1-800-273-8255" fromLogic'sEverybody album. The song was released as a single on April 28, 2017, and also features American singer-songwriterKhalid. Cara also made an appearance in the video, which was released on August 17, 2017.[52]
On January 28, 2018, Cara was named the Best New Artist at the2018 Grammy Awards, making her the first Canadian artist to win this award.[53] The decision to award her the Grammy was fervently condemned in some quarters, with Cara receiving hateful messages anddeath threats from angry fans of American singerSZA.[54] As a result, Cara briefly deactivated her social media accounts.[54]
On June 1, 2018, Cara released a teaser video following a week of cryptic Twitter posts.[55] On June 9, she posted lyrics to a new song on her social media accounts for fans to piece together. Once completed, she announced the single's cover and name on June 11.[56] The single, entitled "Growing Pains", was released on June 15, 2018.[57] Its music video was released on June 20, 2018,[58] and was nominated for Best Cinematography at the 2018MTV VMAS.
On July 10, 2018, Cara announced that she would be releasing a song she made in her basement, written and produced by her, the next day, as a small gift for her birthday. The single, titled "A Little More", was released on July 11, 2018, with the music video also released the same day.[59][60][61][62] On September 29, 2018, theCanadian Football League announced that Cara would be the halftime performer at the106th Grey Cup.[63] In October 2018, she collaborated with Italian singerEros Ramazzotti for the song "Vale per sempre", from the albumVita ce n'è.[64] On October 5, 2018, Cara released another song, entitled "Trust My Lonely". A music video for the song was released the same day.[65][66] On November 8, 2018, a music video for the song "Babies" byKyle featuring Cara was released.[67] On November 13, 2018, Cara released another song, entitled "Not Today".[68] The release date coincides with the three-year anniversary of the release of her debut album. Cara's second studio album,The Pains of Growing, was released on November 30, 2018.[69] It debuted at number one on the US iTunes Pop Charts, in less than two hours after its release. Despite the successful position on iTunes, the album debuted at number 71 on theBillboard 200; 62 positions lower than her debut album in 2015.[70] "Out of Love" was eventually serviced tocontemporary hit radio as the album's third single in January 2019.[71] Cara also collaborated withAlec Benjamin on "Let Me Down Slowly", which was released on January 7, 2019. On February 21, Cara announced she would joinShawn Mendes as the opening act on hisself-titled world tour for the European, United Kingdom, and United States legs.[72][73] In May, she headlined "The Pains of Growing Tour", visiting Canadian cities in the month of May.[74]
In July 2019, Cara announced the release of an EP,This Summer, with tracks to be issued "every couple of weeks" leading up to its release on September 6, 2019.[75] She also announced that she would be adding a new leg of "The Pains of Growing Tour", visiting various US cities in October and November.[76][77] The first single of the EP, "Ready", was released on July 22.[78][79] The second single, "Rooting for You", was released on August 9.[80] The third single, "OKAY OKAY", was released on August 23.[81] The fourth single, "October", was released on September 3.[82][83] The music video for "October" was released on October 1, 2019.[84]
On March 6, 2020, Cara collaborated with American singer and songwriterLauv for the song "Canada" on Lauv's debut album,How I'm Feeling. On April 3, 2020, Cara released "I Choose", for the 2020Netflix animated movieThe Willoughbys, where she made her debut voice-role on a film for the character "Jane Willoughby".[86]
On July 17, 2020, Cara released her first live EP,This Summer: Live Off The Floor, which features live, reimagined performances of the songs off ofThis Summer, as well as three bonus tracks and an intro that interpolatesSummertime by George Gershwin. All of Cara's proceeds from the EP for the next 21 years are going toSave The Children.[87]
On July 2, 2021, Cara announced that the lead singles "Sweet Dream" and "Shapeshifter" from her third studio album would be released on July 15, 2021.[88] The announcement of this release came after five days of cryptic posts on Instagram and Twitter, each with pictures that would turn out to be related to the music videos for the singles. The music video for "Sweet Dream" was released that same day,[89] while the music video for "Shapeshifter" was released on July 23, 2021.[90] A riddle to help fans decode the title of the album was sent to Cara's emailing list the day before.
On August 2, 2021, it was announced that Cara would be releasing "The Use In Trying", an original song for the 2021 animated moviePAW Patrol: The Movie, on August 10, 2021.[91] On August 5, 2021, it was announced that Cara wrote and sang "Feel You Now", the theme song forBlade Runner: Black Lotus.[92]
On August 31, 2021, another clue about the album was sent to Cara's emailing list, this time an image of five clocks all pointing towards 9:24. On September 2, 2021, Cara revealed the album's cover and announced that it is titledIn the Meantime and would be released on September 24, 2021.[93] On September 10, 2021, Cara collaborated with the Mexican rock bandThe Warning, on a cover of "Enter Sandman", which was released on the charity tribute albumThe Metallica Blacklist.[94] This particular cover was famously used for theteaser trailer of the 2022 strategyrole-playing video gameMarvel's Midnight Suns.[95]
On September 24, 2021, Cara's albumIn the Meantime was released alongside the music video for the song "Best Days".[96] The album was met with critical acclaim from music critics, praising Cara's introspective and vulnerable lyricism. Cara starred in the 2021 edition ofYearly Departed, which was released in December 2021 onAmazon Prime Video, and performed "My Heart Will Go On" at the end of the production.[97]
In 2023, she participated in an all-star recording ofSerena Ryder's single "What I Wouldn't Do", which was released as a charity single to benefitKids Help Phone's Feel Out Loud campaign for youth mental health.[98]
Cara performing in Sydney, Australia on the Love and Hyperbole Tour in May 2025.
In August 2023, Cara confirmed on anX posting that she was working on her fourth studio album,[15] on which work began on in late 2021, continuing into 2024.[99] The lead single "Dead Man" from the album and the accompanying music video were released on July 19, 2024.[100] The album, titledLove & Hyperbole, was released on February 14, 2025.[101] In August 2025, Cara joined theJonas Brothers on their Greetings from Your Hometown tour as a surprise guest, to perform her single "Scars to Your Beautiful".[102] Cara later announced that a deluxe edition ofLove & Hyperbole would be released on October 24, 2025, comprising three previously unreleased songs and remixes featuringJulia Michaels,Lucky Daye, andTiny Habits.[103] In December 2025, Cara will join Canadian singerBryan Adams for a performance, as part ofBryan Adams and Friends: A Great Big Holiday Jam, which is expected to be released for streaming and digital download.[104]
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