Vanessa Carlton Biography

Vanessa Carlton was born August 16, 1980, in Milford, Pennsylvania, and raised in a musical family. Dad Ed is a pilot who also plays the fiddle, while mom Heidi is a pianist and music teacher -- and was Vanessa's first teacher.

Surrounded by classical music such as Mozart, Mendelssohn and Debussy thanks to her mom, and Pink Floyd and Supertramp thanks to her dad, it was no surprise that Vanessa felt a connection with music early on.

Her first brush with music was at the age of 2, when she was able to pump out "It's a Small World" on the piano after a visit to Disneyland, which prompted Mrs. Carlton to expose her to classical composers. Even while enrolled in Montessori school, her artistic side manifested itself in music and art.

By the time she was 8, Vanessa was writing music on the piano, without lyrics. Although music was her first love, she became passionate about ballet a year later, but thankfully, her mother encouraged her to continue playing the piano. Wanting to pursue a career in dance, she moved to New York to study with renowned ballet dancers, and at 14, was accepted into the School of American Ballet.

But life as an aspiring ballet dancer is far from easy, and Vanessa felt isolated, trapped and unable to handle the daunting pressure and fierce competition. Her only means of escape was the piano and songwriting (this time with lyrics), and she immersed herself back into her music, even though she was on the verge of becoming a professional dancer.

At 17 years old and after graduation, Vanessa traded in life as a ballerina for an apartment in Hell's Kitchen, where she worked as a waitress in order to support herself. She also hit the New York open-mic club circuit, performing in the hopes of being discovered.

After a year of playing the crowds in downtown New York, scouts from A&M Records were in the audience during one of her shows, which led to her record contract with Interscope, Geffen and A&M Records.

On the strength of her first single, "A Thousand Miles" -- which was picked up by radio stations and MTV several weeks prior to the album's release -- her debut album, Be Not Nobody hit the 5th spot on the Billboard 200 album chart in the week of its April 2002 release. The album is on its way to hitting gold and perhaps even platinum status.

With songs such as "Ordinary Day" (her favorite song on the album), " Prince ," "Twilight," and of course, "A Thousand Miles," listeners can sense Vanessa's passion for the piano, theatrical sound, and pure classical infused pop. Trying to dodge comparisons to fellow female musicians like Tori Amos and Sarah McLachlan simply because she is unique, it's clear her fans will run a thousand miles to get their hands on this ingenious' album.

Not satisfied with pop stardom, Vanessa will pursue her education at Columbia University and is continuing to dance, but this time, solely for herself.

Vanessa Carlton is a rising star in the music industry . Steamrolling with an original sound and the backing of a major label, expect to see considerably more of Vanessa in the years to come. Merely in her early 20's, she is revealing the tip of the iceberg that is her enormous potential with her first single "A Thousand Miles." At a time when young female stars are prepackaged for MTV and lacking in talent and longevity, Vanessa is slowly and implicitly staking a claim to the pop throne.

Vanessa is one talented musician. The offspring of a pilot father and a piano-teacher mother, Vanessa's DNA spells music and combines classical, rock 'n' roll and pop. Watching her in interviews and her videos, you can detect a sense of humility that is unheard of with other singing ladies. Of course, while her cohorts rely solely on their physical assets, Vanessa has at her disposal the dexterity and training of a virtuoso, so she can let her music do the talking while the men do the gawking.

With only one album under her belt, Vanessa legitimately has a shot to one day displace the female titans of music. After all, her piano playing is flawless, her voice is powerful and her songwriting unique. Her first single, "A Thousand Miles," is as good if not better than anything released by a leading diva in the past decade. And Vanessa is no diva, but rather a sweet, young and adorable woman that has a great future ahead of her.

On the one hand, Vanessa seems like the girl next door -- a shy, unassuming cutie with deep, engaging eyes and sensuous lips -- who looks too innocent for her own good. On the other hand, when reading some of her interviews, there are hints of a more mischievous side; the kind only a close friend would see.

When all is said and done, Vanessa is smokin', and if you want proof, allow us to present exhibit A: the picture to the left. Maybe it's because we've always had a soft spot for petite brunettes, maybe it's because Vanessa's statuesque body is pictured on the back sleeve of her album cover, standing tall with her legs crossed. Any male with a pulse would wish nothing more than to creep up from behind and take her...

Unlike other female pianists who use the piano to vent their anger and bitterness, Vanessa's innocent disposition pours from her piano playing, tempting us to use the instrument as a prop in other exercises with her.

If Vanessa were judged on her first career choice -- ballet -- then she might have been deemed a failure. After all, after moving to New York City at the tender age of 14 to study dance, she dropped out altogether and sought refuge in music. And her upbringing played a major role in her music: her mother was a piano teacher who gave young Vanessa a steady diet of Mendelssohn while her father, a pilot, gave her a healthy dose of rock 'n' roll.

Given that we are judging Vanessa on her musical aspirations, let's just say that the luscious Miss Carlton has lived up to her expectations -- no small feat considering she started to play the piano at age 2.

What has made Vanessa's rise to the top of the charts more rewarding is that by her senior year, she was burned out from her stint at NYC's School of American Ballet. It was in music generally, and at the piano specifically that she found solace, refuge and peace.

Over the ensuing years, she proceeded to bang out three songs on her 4-track, and eventually signed a record deal with A&M Records. President Ron Fair presided over the recordings of her first album, Be Not Nobody .

For the video of "A Thousand Miles," director Marc Klasfeld took Vanessa on a journey, riding her piano through streets, beaches, the mountains, and the suburbs. In essence, she is one with her piano and according to her, "connecting with as many people as I can" throughout her journey.

Her first TV appearance was on none other than MTV's TRL , where nothing but good things were said about Vanessa. An even more discriminating music icon, Rolling Stone , named her one of the "Top 10 Artists to Watch in 2002." Fitting, for a young prodigy that wrote every song on her first album.

Vanessa is too young to be judged on this one. After all, at 21, we imagine that she will shed her girlish look for a more mature and sophisticated image in the years to come. But assuming that she will build on those engaging eyes, sensuous lips and striking back cover pose that has us mesmerized, we can say with utmost conviction that Vanessa is a babe.

Vanessa looks like most of the ladies in her age group, and gets our kudos for shunning -- at least for now -- the get-ups made popular by so many other female pop stars. In fact, Vanessa dresses more like the girl you can show off to mom and less like a lap-dancing, pole-hugging and chair-mounting kind of gal, which is a pretty refreshing change.