Julia Michaels

Los Angeles-based artist Julia Michaels crafts R&B-tinged, dance-focused pop as both vocalist and composer. Prior to stepping forward as a performer she penned material for Demi Lovato, Selena Gomez, Ed Sheeran, Shakira, Fifth Harmony, Linkin Park and numerous additional acts. Feature appearances followed on Jason Derulo’s “Trade Hearts,” Zedd’s “Straight Into the Fire” and Kygo’s “Carry Me,” the last of which she delivered at the 2016 Olympic Games closing ceremony in Rio de Janeiro.

Born Julia Carin Cavazos in Davenport, Iowa, in 1993, she relocated during childhood to Santa Clarita, California, where she began singing and taking the stage near age twelve. As a teenager she adopted the professional name Julia Michaels and began writing alongside songwriters Joleen Belle and Lindy Robbins. Their joint efforts produced tracks for the same roster of pop and rock artists already noted.

Michaels issued her first solo single, “Issues,” in 2017; the track achieved multi-platinum status in the United States, Australia and Norway while also anchoring her debut EP, Nervous System, released that summer on Republic Records. The seven-song collection reached the upper half of the Billboard 200 and earned her Grammy nominations for Best New Artist as well as Song of the Year for the single itself. She further co-wrote and performed on Clean Bandit’s global hit “I Miss You,” then joined Trippie Redd on the 2018 single “Jump.”

A pair of EPs titled Inner Monologue appeared in 2019; the opening installment contained “Anxiety” featuring Selena Gomez and “What a Time” featuring Niall Horan, while the June follow-up comprised eight songs solely credited to Michaels. That year she also recorded the romantic duet “If the World Was Ending” with JP Saxe, which later received a 2020 Grammy nomination for Song of the Year. Additional 2020 releases included a re-recorded “Heartless” alongside Diplo and Morgan Wallen plus her own single “Lie Like This.”

Her first full-length album, Not in Chronological Order, arrived in April 2021 with production contributions from the Monsters & Strangerz, G Koop, German and others. Alongside “Lie Like This,” the Billboard 200-charting project spotlighted the rock-leaning single “All Your Exes.” Subsequent singles encompassed 2021’s “Only One” with Khea, Becky G and Di Genius and 2023’s “In a Perfect World” with Dean Lewis. Songwriting placements brought further recognition: H.E.R.’s Back of My Mind earned a 2022 Album of the Year nomination, and Maren Morris’ “Circles Around This Town” was nominated for Best Country Song in 2023.

For the 2023 Disney animated feature Wish, Michaels and Benjamin Rice supplied seven original songs; she performed the end-credits number “A Wish Worth Making.” The accompanying soundtrack entered the Billboard 200 and peaked at number four on the Top Soundtracks chart. Recent activity has paired her with both country and pop artists on “Cut!” with Maren Morris, “Want This Beer” with Josh Ross and “Thick of It All” alongside Joe Jonas and Norwegian DJ Alan Walker. She opened 2025 with the solo release “Scissors.”