Quick Facts
Biography
Alyssa Bonagura (born April 1, 1988) is an American singer-songwriter.
Early life and career
Alyssa Bonagura is from Franklin, Tennessee. She is the daughter of singers Michael Bonagura and Kathie Baillie of Baillie & the Boys. She has been singing since the age of 2 and is a multi-instrumentalist. At the age of 11 she was asked by Kenny Rogers to sing a duet with him on his Christmas album Christmas From The Heart. She was awarded the Sennheiser Scholarship which allowed her to graduate from Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts with a degree in sound technology in 2009. She performed back up vocals in "That Old Glass Case" on her mother's 2006 album Love's Funny That Way. While studying in England from 2006 to 2009, she became a temporary member of Pete Wylie and The Mighty Wah! and played at such events as the 2007 Queens Variety Show in Liverpool, England at the Empire Theatre, and Knowsley Hall Music Festival alongside acts such as The Who, The Coral, and The Thrills. She performed at the 2008 European Capital of Culture event, Liverpool: the Musical – the event which inaugurated Liverpool's new Echo Arena with Ringo Starr.
In 2010, Bonagura signed with Rondor Music International (A division of Universal Music) as a songwriter and has successfully written songs for Raquel Castro's debut single "Diary". In 2011, Sarah Jarosz released a single that she co-wrote with Bonagura called "Run Away." She's also co-written the song "Keeping Secrets" with Tyler Ward on his 2012 album Hello. Love. Heartbreak. and "Like U" for Kaya Jones former member of The Pussycat Dolls on her Release album.
She has produced artists including Jo Dee Messina and Jessie James. Alyssa co-wrote, produced, and was featured on the song Unbreakable, the first song Messina has released since her split from a major label. Jessie James' version of Bonagura's song "Nothing More To Say" was featured on Perez Hilton's blog site in 2010.
In 2012, her song "I Make My Own Sunshine" was used in a Lowe's commercial. Her debut album Love Hard was released on October 30, 2012.
Penned by Bonagura, her father Michael, and the Nelson twins (Matthew Nelson and Gunnar Nelson), the single, "This Christmas", featuring Alyssa Bonagura, is the title-track of the Nelson's album and marks their first return a Billboard magazine chart in more than 20 years. "This Christmas" debuted at #22 on the Adult Contemporary chart on December 12, 2015.
On March 13, 2016, Bonagura performed with band mate Ruby Stewart at the CMC Rocks festival in Queensland, Australia. Billing themselves as The Sisterhood, the two have been working together for a year after Rod Stewart told them, "you two should start a band, your voices are good together." The Sisterhood will perform a one-hour set with backing by the Morgan Evans band.
Discography
Albums
- 2008 Before the Breaking (EP)
- 2010 The English Diaries
- 2012 Love Hard
- 2016 Road Less Traveled
Singles
- 2011 "Killing Me" (feat. Tyler Wilkinson)
- 2012 "I Make My Own Sunshine"
- 2012 "Nothing More to Say"
Music videos
| Year | Title | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | "Rebel" | Dallas Wilson |
As a writer
| Year | Artist | Album | Song |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Steven Tyler | "We're All Somebody from Somewhere" (Dot Records) | "I Make My Own Sunshine" |
| 2015 | Jana Kramer | Thirty One (Warner Bros. Records) | "Circles" |
| Jessie James Decker | Single | "Lights Down Low" | |
| 2014 | Jessie James Decker | Comin' Home (19 Recordings) | "Rain on the Roof of This Car" |
| "Diary" | |||
| "Momma Wrote You A Lullaby" | |||
| Jo Dee Messina | "Me" (Dreambound) | "Not Dead Yet" | |
| "He's Messed Up" | |||
| Tyler Hilton | Indian Summer | "I Want To Be in Love So Bad" | |
| Morgan Evans (Australian Country Artist) | Morgan Evans (Self Titled) (Warner Music Australasia) | "Tornado" | |
| "I Wanna Go" | |||
| "Best of Me" | |||
| "Best I Never had" | |||
| 2013 | Tyler Ward | Hello. Love. Heartbreak.(EP) Sony Music Entertainment | "Keeping Secrets" |
| Jo Dee Messina | iTunes Single | "Unbreakable" | |
| Sarah Jarosz | Build Me Up From Bones (Sugar Hill Records) | "Gone Too Soon" | |
| 2012 | Chelsea Basham (Australian Country Artist) | Single | "I Make My Own Sunshine" |
| 2011 | Sarah Jarosz | Follow Me Down (Sugar Hill Records) | "Run Away" |
| Isabelle Boulay | "Les grands espaces" (Disques Chic Musique) | "All I Want Is Love" | |
| Jessie James Decker | "Unreleased Single " (Featured on Perez Hilton's Website) | "Nothing More To Say" |