Alessia Cara is coming for the triple axel.
OK, maybe not. But the Grammy-winning singer-songwriter is booked and busy.
After wrapping up a world tour and almost immediately hitting the studio to work on her next project, she’s found herself a new stage. The Brampton, Ont.-born artist will kick off the CBC’s coverage of the Olympic Games as the narrator of the short film The Gold Within: Family & Fire.
CBC News sat down with Cara to talk about the project, her Italian roots and what’s next…. including new music.
You’re kicking off this year’s Olympic coverage. How does it feel?
It feels really cool … especially for this one because I’m Canadian, but I’m also Italian. So it was really cool to be able to represent both this year.
I’m definitely not an athlete, but I do love watching athletes and I love the Olympics, so I’m really excited to be part of it.
Speaking of your roots, the Olympics are in Milan. Talk to me about this project and why it felt so personal.
Being Italian is such a part of my daily life … it’s literally embedded in my DNA. I think it’s informed a lot of who I am. I feel very connected to my Italian culture and, of course, my Canadian culture.
So it feels really special to be able to, like, represent both sides of that and obviously my family is super excited. And the little piece that we put together, I get to speak a little bit of Italian, too, which is something that I don’t always get to show off. So my mom is … definitely very excited about that.
The Olympics really bring everyone together. Why do you think the Games are so uniting?
There are very few things that really bring people together from all over. Music is one of those things, which I’m lucky to be a part of, but also sports. It’s one of the few things that will bring anybody together from any part of the world.
I think especially in this time, where things feel so divided and so weird and scary and everybody’s kind of wanting to retreat inward. It’s a really beautiful thing to have something that celebrates people from all over the world and people get to really loudly and proudly represent where they’re from and who they are. I think we definitely need more of that right now.
We were just talking about how neither one of us is an athlete. But there has to be a channel inside of you that says, “If I was an Olympian, this would be my sport.”
Oh my gosh, it’s so hard because I love so many of them.
I’ve always loved skating. It’s so graceful. It’s so beautiful. It feels like everything that I’m not — I’m not a graceful person and I’m not the best skater. But yeah, I feel like that would be something, if I could choose to be good at one [sport]. I would love to be an amazing Olympic skater. That would be so cool. And, like, master — what is it called? The triple axel. So fun. I would love that.
A little figure eight action!
Yeah. Maybe we could be partners!
We should start training.
I think we should … we’ll be ready in like a couple years…. It’s easy, right?
You mentioned earlier another thing that brings people together: music. Anything you’re able to tease?
I thought I was going to take some time off after tour…. And literally, the second day after I got off the road, I felt inspired again, which doesn’t always happen.
I’ve been working on a project that I’m really excited about. It’s an avenue that I’ve wanted to explore that I haven’t had the chance to explore yet. So without saying too much … it’s a little bit of a re-imagining and revisiting of some things in my past career, but also maybe some new things in a format I’m really excited about.
Speaking of music, the Grammys: some Canadians up there, some Canadians nominated. How’s it feel to see your colleagues celebrated?
It feels really awesome. I love so many artists from all over, but there’s something really special about Canadian artists doing their thing. There’s … a kinship that I feel even if I’ve never met them. I always feel a little extra excited. I’m such a fan. I mean, Justin [Bieber] being one of the many Canadian artists. I love him. He’s just so, so cool. And I just love that he’s from where I’m from. I feel really proud.
Like the Olympics! There’s this sense of inspiration — you see these athletes on the world stage and you just feel inspired.
It’s really powerful, I think, to see so many of these people’s stories, coming from all different backgrounds.
There’s something really beautiful about a success story and seeing the parents and family be so proud of these people. And it’s a really difficult, hard thing … gold medal or not, just being there. It’s a product of hard work and dedication.
Those stories always hit close to home, because we all have that in some way … we all have dreams and goals, no matter how big or small. And it’s a nice thing to see that with hard work and time and passion, those things can come true.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.