Walking down a red carpet, meeting celebrities, producing songs, and acting in films. It’s the lifestyle that many people can only dream of. As a bright, promising elementary schooler, Zoe Cannella was presented with the opportunity of a lifetime. Little did she know that she would garner the support of thousands and end up making a name for herself.
As a child, Zoe’s love for film stemmed from being constantly invited to movie showings. “My mom worked for Warner Bros, so I was always going to film premieres. I ended up discovering [that] I really liked film,” Zoe reminisces. The start of her career began when she joined the Kids First organization. She began conducting interviews, which ultimately led to her first red carpet event that she describes as a “surreal experience.”
As an interviewer for the entertainment industry, Zoe has had the opportunity to meet celebrities like Noah Centineo, John Cena, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jim Carrey, Jaren Lewison, and Darren Barnett. Although interviewing such high-profile celebrities is nerve-wracking, the growth’s she’s experienced since first starting out interviewing people has drastically changed. “When I was younger, I would just ask questions and be super focused on getting them right. But now, interviewing comes to me like a conversation… getting to know who you are talking to and really being a part of the interview, rather than asking the right questions, makes the interview better.”
It was only a matter of time until she realized her simultaneous love for acting. After watching numerous movies, Zoe fell in love with the acting world. She ended up auditioning for “Stranger Things, Barbie, Sydney to the Max, and a couple of other Disney Channel shows. Because of her persistence and dedication to her passions, Zoe has been in a variety of films, one being a short film called Circle in the Sand, as well as voice acting for a Nintendo advertisement.
However, as she approached the peak of her acting career, the COVID pandemic acted as a major obstacle to her journey. As life shifted to become fully online during the pandemic, Zoe decided to focus on her hobbies. It was through buying a Ukulele and teaching herself how to play that she discovered she wanted to do music. According to Zoe, she has been dedicating most of her time towards her music career since the pandemic.
With the release of this year’s Spotify Wrapped, Zoe’s mom came rushing into her room and learned that she suddenly received 74 new followers and over a thousand new listens. As of now, Zoe is currently working on a new album with Sony Music and attends a music academy called “Let it Beat.” Because she often leaves school early due to her busy work schedule, Zoe expresses gratitude to Mr. Bayer for everything he’s done when it comes to supporting her. “He has always been so flexible with me, so it [school] hasn’t been a huge struggle for me.”
Because of her new life as an aspiring entertainment star, Zoe has traveled to a variety of different places, all which have offered her a unique experience. From the Sonic premiere in California, to the Shazam premiere in Miami, Zoe describes the experience of being on a red carpet as “super cool. It’s different from a one-on-one interview because there’s a bunch of other people and it’s limited time. And there’s more pressure, but the experience is unique.”
As she blossoms in the arts, Zoe hopes to “take the artist’s route, because in music, there are so many things to do. I’m doing production right now and I love it. I like writing and composing. I write all of my songs.” Turning her dream into reality, her love for what she does continues to grow. To all the people who would like to go into the producing field, Zoe advises to “Be persistent in anything. As long as you keep pushing and keep being persistent you will see results.”
