Alessia Cara

I'm not a fitness model; I'm just a singer. If people focus on that, that's what I care about.

I didn't start writing songs, honestly, until I started making my album. I was always doing poetry, but I never thought I could write songs. I discouraged myself and thought it was so hard. But starting this process and learning just what it is to be a songwriter and performer taught me that you don't have to feel discouraged about anything.

I was one of those weird kids who didn't really speak or smile. I remember my teachers would call home and ask if everything was fine at home because I would never smile. Then I got into this phase, from maybe fourth to eighth grade, where my personality just did a 180.

Both my parents are Italian. My mom was born and raised in Italy. My dad was born in Canada, but then they moved to Italy.

As a kid, my parents would always listen to a lot of Beatles, Queen, Elvis. My mom was born and raised in Italy, and my dad was born in Canada and moved back and forth between Canada and Italy, so they would also listen to all the big Italian stars like Eros Ramazzotti, Gigi D'Alessio, Tiziano Ferro, Laura Pausini.

I'm really in touch with my Italian roots. My mom's whole side of the family is there.

Having a mom as a hairdresser was really awesome: I was always her test dummy. I've had every style, every color you could imagine.

It's good to have a reminder that we can love ourselves and be beautiful even though we don't really fit into certain standards of what beauty may be.

I first picked up a guitar when I was ten years old; my parents surprised me with it for my tenth birthday. I started taking lessons when I was thirteen, but only for a few months, and then I just kept teaching myself.

I've never hosted a party in my life, not even my own birthday party. I'd feel really uncomfortable saying, 'Hey everybody, let's celebrate me!' But I'm not antisocial. I don't hate people.

It's important to show that there's different ways of doing things. Some people like to be glamorous, and that's perfectly fine, and that's amazing. If I were that style, then I would do that. I'd wear heels every day, and I'd strut around in a dress, but that's not me.

You can do anything and be a star. You can dress like however you want, and you can do whatever you want. If you wanna wear meat suits like Lady Gaga, good. She's freaking amazing! She's doing that, and she's unbelievable. I can wear T-shirts and still be great, too. So that's just what I'm proving to people.

I feel like I'm in my own head a lot; it just feels amazing, but scary, weird and confusing.

The definition of being a feminist is equality, and if you're not a feminist at this point, then what are you really promoting?

It's amazing: it's so cool being from Brampton, Ontario, and being able to travel the world and being embraced by so many countries.

'Wild Things' is saying, 'I don't have to belong anywhere. This is where I belong.' It's a place in the back of my mind that I created, and it's cool, and I love it here.

It's so cool though when I see thirty-year-old men that are coming in to watch my shows. It's like, 'You really like my music? Like a teenage girl, you relate to it?' It just proves how much people are alike.

Success is when you see something, and you say, 'I want to do that,' and then you do it. It's being happy with what you do and doing what you love every day.