Kira Kosarin: Showbiz is in her blood

MANILA, Philippines — To see Nickelodeon star Kira Kosarin — as the superhero Phoebe in The Thundermans — in the entertainment business singing and acting since she was four is not really surprising. After all, her parents were both in Broadway when she was younger. Her mom is a singer-actress, while her dad is a musician.

“I grew up in Broadway backstage,” said Kira, who is an only child. “I was in community theater and school plays. At 11, I met an acting teacher from Hollywood who taught TV acting in Florida. He brought me out to L.A. for some classes and so I started auditioning. We ended up moving to L.A., where I also met my agent.”

Kira grew up in New Jersey and Florida, where she was “never lonely.” In 2011, her family moved to California, where she was allowed to pursue her dreams.

“I love being an only child,” the ebullient Kira attested. “I’m very social. I love people, but I also love my own time. I’m really close to my parents. They are both very supportive of my chosen career.”

At 14, Kira made her TV debut as a guest star in the Disney sitcom, Shake It Up. However, it was in 2013 when she got her big break on Nickelodeon, starring as Phoebe, one of the superhero twins in The Thundermans. She turned 15 on the first episode of the series and recently, she turned 22. “It has been a great seven years,” Kira proudly acknowledged being on Nickelodeon.

The young singer-actress was not surprised that she ended up being in the entertainment business. “I imagined it in a way of like a crazy dream, that it will be cool in some alternate universe,” Kira granted. “I never thought it was actually going to happen. When I was nine or 10, I was watching Sonny With a Chance or Drake and Josh. I feel like maybe, one day, I could do this. So that was when I started really training.”

Kira always knew she wanted to do something in the arts. “I didn’t know if it was dancing, acting or singing. For a while, I thought I was going to be a ballerina or end up in Broadway. That’s why I ended up doing singing and acting.”

It took Kira five years to wrap up 104 episodes for The Thundermans, with breaks in between. It took them a week to film an episode. One season lasted anywhere from eight to 15 months.

While The Thundermans is still airing on Nickelodeon, Kira is now focused on singing. She worked on her debut album, Off Brand, released only last April. Lead single is Vinyl, which she also wrote. Other cuts include Poison, Wandering Eyes and Love Me Like You Hate Me.

The album, Kira believes, is going to surprise people in every way. “The album shows different sides of me,” she said. “Every song has its own place, vibe-wise.”

Kira is thankful that Nickelodeon has been very supportive even to her music career. She was recently in Manila to join Nickelodeon’s first SlimeFest in Asia, held at the Mall of Asia Grounds. “It’s the biggest concert I’ve ever performed in,” Kira offered.

She visited Intramuros and had the chance to explore the old Manila. “I was told it was very warm and humid here, which I loved,” Kira said. “I lived in Florida, so tropical weather is nothing new to me. I heard traffic was also bad. I have a few friends from here, who were all really excited that I came here.”

Nickelodeon’s SlimeFest also took Kira to Germany, the UAE, even London. She is stopping in L.A. to record a music video, then after SlimeFest, she is going around US to promote her album. Her dad, Danny, accompanies her everywhere she goes.

“My dad and I work together,” Kira allowed. “He’s in every part of my life. He’s my business partner in my music career. He’s great and my mom is just supportive from home. She retired from performing in Broadway when I was seven.”

Where Kira is now in her career, she looks up to actor-musician Donald Glover and singer-actress Janelle Monae. “They are two people who are balancing the different parts of the entertainment industry really well and that’s what I want to do,” Kira asserted. “Where I can be singing, writing, also acting, directing, producing and doing all those different things at once and juggling.”

While Nickelodeon really started everything for Kira, she simply wants to do a lot of other things while she’s still young. “I have so much I want to do in my music career. I want to go on stadium world tour one day. I want to take my parents to the Grammys. I want to put out so many more albums and work with so many people. I want to do films, direct TV shows, produce music and movies. I want to teach dance classes. I have a lot to do. I’m really busy.”