Music fans will always remember Irene Cara for her incredible vocals featured in songs such as Fame, Breakdance, Out Here On My Own, Why Me?, and Flashdance, which spent an incredible six weeks at the number one position on the Billboard Top 40 Pop Chart. Cara is also no stranger to movie fans, having appeared in films such as Fame, Sparkle (with Philip Michael Thomas), D.C. Cab, and City Heat (with Clint Eastwood and Burt Reynolds). Television fans will recognize Cara in projects such as the Roots series, the television movie The Guyana Tragedy, and even classic episodes of The Electric Company. These days you will find Irene Cara busy at work with Hot Caramel, her talented all-female band.

XM Fan: What is your first memory of music in your life?
Irene: My first musical memory would be me playing the piano by ear when I was very young. My dad and I were at the keys, and he was playing rhythm at the bottom end while I was playing melody at the top.

XMFan: So you come from a family of musicians?
Irene: Yes, I do come from a musical family. My dad plays piano, and both he and my brother play saxophone.

XMFan: Was it a bit intimidating performing on Broadway at the age of eight?
Irene: Being on the stage period was always a scary feeling as a child. You learn to work through your fears and share a kind of joy while you're performing with the audience.

XMFan: When did you learn to play piano?
Irene: I believe I was about four or five years old when I first started playing my older sister's piano. She ended up leaving it to me when she moved out and it remains with me till this day!

XMFan: I honestly have to say you are the most well rounded performer I have ever interviewed - songwriter, singer, actress, and dancer, with an Academy Award, two Grammys, Golden Globe, and Image Award on your mantel. Do you enjoy one aspect of performing over another?
Irene: Performing to me is all related - whether you are doing music or acting, producing other people or bringing out the most inner part of your soul as a songwriter. They all stem from the same creative energies.

XMFan: Which performers would you consider as great influences in your life?
Irene: There have been many performers who have influenced my life and my appreciation for the performing arts, so I think I'll just mention a few I've been privileged to have worked with - namely Sammy Davis, Stevie Wonder, Ruby Dee and Ossie Davis to James Earl Jones, Carole King, and Bonnie Raitt. Vickie Sue Robinson and Luther Vandross. Plus an incredible array of just the best musicians in the world!

XMFan: Your current project, Hot Caramel, consists of nine very talented female musicians. (http://www.irenecara.com/members.htm) Would you describe what fans should expect to hear on your new album?
Irene: I don't want to start by giving the fans a nice box for them to put us in. Hopefully, the listening audience will find our music sensual, emotional, organic, cool and intelligent!

XMFan: Are you working on any side projects at the moment?
Irene: As far as "side" projects go, I think I'll keep those to myself - for now anyway!

XMFan: As the saying goes, "There is nothing new under the sun." What are your feelings about the surge in popularity of your songs and movies from the 80s?
Irene: There will always be interest in great popular music from different points in time and from all genres. Isn't that why they call it "the soundtrack of our lives?"

XMFan: What advice would Irene Cara give to a young artist who wants to become professional?
Irene: My advice to any young artist trying to break in the business professionally is to read up on legal matters yourself and get as informed as possible about the ins and outs of the business. Don't rely on everybody else to watch your back, because no one you'll ever hire to do so really does. You have to take care of yourself and your own affairs, no matter what your age may be.


Irene Cara can be heard on The Groove, Chrome, 80s on 8, MTV, VH1, and The Mix.