Gracie Madigan Abrams (born September 7, 1999) is an American singer-songwriter. She signed with Interscope Records to release two extended plays, Minor (2020) and This Is What It Feels Like (2021). After performing as an opening act on Olivia Rodrigo’s Sour Tour, Abrams released her debut studio album, Good Riddance (2023), which moderately entered the Billboard 200. Throughout 2023, she performed as an opening act for Taylor Swift on her Eras Tour, and received a nomination for Best New Artist at the 66th Grammy Awards. In late 2023, Abrams was featured on a remix of the song “Everywhere, Everything” by Noah Kahan, marking her first entry on the Billboard Hot 100. Abrams’ second album, The Secret of Us, was released on June 21, 2024, to favourable reviews and commercial success, debuting at number two on the Billboard 200.
Early life and education
Born and raised in Los Angeles County, California, Abrams is the daughter of the filmmaker J. J. Abrams and the film and television producer Katie McGrath. Her father’s family is Jewish, while her mother’s background is Irish Catholic. She has two brothers, an older brother named Henry and a younger brother named August.
She became interested in music at a young age, and started songwriting when she was eight. She attended The Archer School for Girls in West Los Angeles. After graduating from high school in 2018, Abrams studied international relations at Barnard College in New York, but took a break after her freshman year to focus on music.
Career
2019–2022: Minor and This Is What It Feels Like
In October 2019, Abrams released her debut single, “Mean It”, under Interscope Records. On July 14, 2020, Abrams released her debut extended play, Minor which saw her collaborating with producers such as Joel Little and Blake Slatkin. The EP was supported by various singles, including “I Miss You, I’m Sorry”. On March 24, 2021, Abrams featured alongside Benny Blanco on “Unlearn”.
In May, Abrams released the standalone single “Mess It Up”. In October 2021, Abrams announced her next EP, This Is What It Feels Like, which was released on November 12, 2021.The EP was preceded by the singles “Feels Like”, and “Rockland”; with the latter created alongside Aaron Dessner. In support of the EP, she embarked on the This Is What It Feels Like Tour, which started on February 2, 2022, in Salt Lake City and concluded on May 31, 2022, in Stockholm. Along with her headlining tour, Abrams opened for Olivia Rodrigo as the supporting act for her Sour Tour. Abrams released “Difficult”, the lead single to her then-upcoming debut album in October 2022.
2023–present: Good Riddance and The Secret of Us
On February 24, 2023, Abrams released her debut album Good Riddance. A deluxe edition was released in June of that year. Throughout 2023, Abrams performed as an opening act at selected shows of the US leg of Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour, and is set to return as Swift’s opening act for more US and Canadian shows in late 2024. She also embarked on the Good Riddance Tour, her third headlining concert tour. On November 8, 2023, she released the song “Cedar” which was featured on the soundtrack of The Buccaneers. She was nominated for Best New Artist for the 66th Annual Grammy Awards. Abrams was featured on a remix of the song “Everywhere, Everything” by Noah Kahan, which was released on December 1, 2023 and marked her first entry on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 79. Late that year, Abrams featured on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list.
On April 29, 2024, Abrams announced her second album, The Secret of Us, which was released on June 21, 2024. The first single, titled “Risk”, was released on May 1, 2024. To support the album, Abrams will embark on The Secret of Us Tour through the United States between September 5 and October 10, 2024. “Close to You” was released as the second single on June 7, 2024. The song was released after being previously teased seven years prior. She collaborated with Taylor Swift on the song “Us”, which was released as part of the album.
Artistry and reception
Abrams has cited Joni Mitchell, Simon & Garfunkel, Elvis Costello, Bon Iver, Elliott Smith, Kate Bush, The 1975, James Blake, Taylor Swift, Lorde, Metric, The Killers, and Phoebe Bridgers as her musical influences.
Swift, Bridgers, Lorde, Post Malone, Billie Eilish, and Olivia Rodrigo each expressed their admiration for Abrams. She has joined both Swift and Rodrigo on tours.
Activism
Ibn a 2020 interview, Abrams supported expressing personal views through music, saying, “I can’t separate my music from my opinions… it’s a whole that reflects my way of thinking. You shouldn’t be afraid to talk about what you believe in.”
After a leaked draft opinion showed that the U.S. Supreme Court was planning to overturn abortion rights established in Roe v. Wade, Abrams was among 160 musical artists including Clairo, Lorde, Olivia Rodrigo, Billie Eilish, Halsey, and Phoebe Bridgers that signed a full-page ad in The New York Times in May 2022 condemning the planned Supreme Court decision. In July 2022, Abrams released a limited-edition t-shirt whose complete sale proceeds would go to the National Network of Abortion Funds. While this is “only a small part in a massively anti-democratic effort that is underway in this country” Abrams admits, she believes that she can “use [her] platform to amplify the experts in this moment”.
Abrams endorsed Kamala Harris in the 2024 United States presidential election.
GRACIE ABRAMS URL LINKS:
Website: http://www.gracieabrams.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gracieabrams
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@GracieAbrams
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tehegracietehe
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gracieabrams
X: https://www.x.com/gracieabrams