• July 11, 1996
• She was born Alessia Caracciolo in Brampton, Ontario, Canada, the daughter of Italian parents. Her mom is a hairdresser from Italy who at first spoke little English when she immigrated to Canada and her father is a first-generation welder.
• When she first thought about what she wanted to do with her life, Alessia thought her interests in painting, drawing and crafting would lead her to becoming a visual artist. It was only later she decided that singing was what she wanted.
• Alessia Cara got her start in the music world by posting acoustic cover songs to YouTube, starting when she was just 13 years old. She recorded them in her closet so she wouldn't disturb her little brother.
• She kept quiet about her music endeavors in high school. "I wanted to get through high school anonymously," Alessia told Billboard. "I didn't want to be that girl in the hallways."
• Her acoustic selection of covers grabbed the attention of Def Jam, and she signed with EP Entertainment and Def Jam Recordings in 2015. Her debut single, "Here," was based on a true story of a party that Alessia hated so much, she called her mom to pick her up and take her home.
• Alessia Cara won Best New Artist at the Grammy Awards in 2018. She described how the award helped her battle with insecurities.
  
  "I've been shown that what I've created is worth something and that people actually give a s--t," she said. "All of the years feeling like I wasn't good at anything or that I was naive for dreaming about something improbable have paid off in a way that I have yet to process."
• She is a talented mimic and can impersonate accurately such celebrities as Adele and Ariana Grande. When Alessia played Wheel of Musical Impressions on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, she nailed each one.
• She has a tattoo of a sailboat on her wrist. "It's a reminder that even though I'm small and seem weak, I'm not," Alessia explained.

Comments

More Songfacts:

I Ran (So Far Away)A Flock of Seagulls

"I Ran (So Far Away)" by A Flock Of Seagulls ends with an alien abduction.

StanEminem

Thanks to Eminem's song, the word "stan" was added to the Oxford American Dictionary in 2017. It means an obsessive fan.

Sloop John BThe Beach Boys

"Sloop John B" is a traditional West Indian folk song, and it was a huge hit for The Beach Boys in 1966. They tweaked the lyric, "This is the worst trip since I've been born" to "...I've ever been on" as a wink to acid culture.

3 AMMatchbox Twenty

The Matchbox Twenty song "3 AM" is about the difficult times lead singer Rob Thomas spent caring for his mother, who had cancer.

Nothin' On YouB.o.B

When "Nothin' On You" reached #1 on the Hot 100, B.o.B became the first American act whose name is a palindrome to top the chart. The other two who did so prior to the Atlanta rapper were both Scandinavian groups - ABBA and A-Ha.

Just Give Me A ReasonPink

Pink wrote "Just Give Me A Reason" about how one partner can feel jilted over something trivial, like how her boyfriend passes her the butter.

Editor's Picks

Oliver LeiberSongwriter Interviews

Oliver Leiber talks about writing and producing hits for Paula Abdul, and explains his complicated relationship with his father, the songwriter Jerry Leiber.

Ian Gillan of Deep PurpleSongwriter Interviews

Deep Purple frontman Ian Gillan explains the "few red lights" in "Smoke On The Water" and talks about songs from their 2020 album Whoosh!

Gary Brooker of Procol HarumSongwriter Interviews

The lead singer and pianist for Procol Harum, Gary talks about finding the musical ideas to match the words.

Glen BallardSongwriter Interviews

Glen Ballard talks about co-writing and producing Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill album, and his work with Dave Matthews, Aerosmith and Annie Lennox.

Part of Their World: The Stories and Songs of 13 Disney PrincessesSong Writing

From "Some Day My Prince Will Come" to "Let It Go" - how Disney princess songs (and the women who sing them) have evolved.

Lip-Synch RebelsSong Writing

What happens when Kurt Cobain, Iron Maiden and Johnny Lydon are told to lip-synch? Some hilarious "performances."