Cara won an Academy Award in 1984 in the category of Best Original Song for co-writing Flashdance...What a Feeling. She is best known for her recordings of the songs Fame and Flashdance... What a Feeling. She also starred in the 1980 film version of Fame.
Personal
Her father Gaspar (died in 1994) is an Afro-Puerto Rican. Her mother Louise is of French and Cuban descent. She has 2 sisters and 2 brothers.
Married Hollywood stuntman Conrad Palmisano in 1986. They divorced in 1991.
Her age has always been a confusing mystery by biographers who stated her birth year as either 1959 or 1964 from the day she shot to fame. In July 2004 the Associated Press claimed to have found her voter registration record in Florida, where she lives. However, Ms. Cara has never voted or registered to do so in Florida. Ms. Cara disputes this and claims that she has never voted. Her date of birth is March 18th 1962 on Twitter.
Career
Irene first captivated the audiences of her family sometime after her fifth birthday when she began to play the piano by ear. Irene soon moved into serious studies of music, acting, and dance. Her career started on Spanish-language television as a child, professionally singing and dancing. By age 8, Cara recorded a Latin-market Spanish-language record; an English Christmas album soon followed.
From there, Cara appeared in on- and off-Broadway theatrical shows including the musical The Me Nobody Knows (which won an Obie award) and Maggie Flynn, opposite Shirley Jones and Jack Cassidy.
As a pre-teen, Her first national exposure was in the educational series The Electric Company, playing a member of the band The Short Circus. The series also featured Bill Cosby, Rita Moreno, Morgan Freeman, Mel Brooks, Joan Rivers and Gene Wilder.
Next came her role as Angela in romance thriller classic Aaron Loves Angela, followed by her portrayal of the title character in Sparkle.
Television brought Irene international acclaim for serious dramatic roles in two outstanding mini series, Roots: The Next Generations, the critically acclaimed adaptation of Alex Haleyโs moving novel and Guyanna Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones.
1980s box office smash movie Fame catapulted Irene to stardom. As Coco Hernandez she sang both the title song Fame and the filmโs second hit single Out Here On My Own. This made the movie soundtrack be a multi-platinum album that topped the charts. Further history was made when at the Academy Awards that year; for the first time two songs from one film were nominated in the same category: Fame and Out Here On My Own. Cara had the opportunity to be one of the few singers to perform more than one song at the Oscar ceremony. (Note: Robert Goulet, who sang all the Oscar-nominated songs in 1963, is among several singers who had done so in the past.) Fame, written by Michael Gore and Dean Pitchford, won the award that year.
Fame earned Irene a 1980 Grammy nominations for "Best New Female Artist" and "Best New Pop Artist," as well as a Golden Globe nomination for "Best Motion Picture Actress in a Musical". Billboard Magazine named Irene "Top New Single Artist," while Cashbox awarded her both "Most Promising Female Vocalist" and "Top Female Vocalist."
In 1982 Irene earned the Image Award for Best Actress when she co-starred with Diahann Carroll and Rosalind Cash in the NBC Movie of the Week, Maya Angelou's Sister, Sister. Irene portrayed Myrlie Evers-Williams in the PBS TV movie about Civil Rights Leader Medgar Evers, For Us the Living: The Medgar Evers Story; and earned an NAACP Image Award Best Actress nomination. She also was in 1982's Killing 'em Softly.
In 1983, Irene's title song for the movie Flashdance Flashdance...What A Feeling, which she co-wrote with Giorgio Moroder and Keith Forsey won her numerous awards. She won the 1983 Academy Award for Best Song(Oscar); 1984 Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, 1984 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song, Top Female Vocalist-Pop Singles, Black Contemporary Female Vocalist-Pop Singles, Top Pop Crossover Artist-Black Contemporary Singles, Pop Single of the Year, American Music Awards for Best R&B Female Artist and Best Pop Single of the Year.
In 1984 she was in City Heat and in 1985 she was in Certain Fury and in 1986 she was in Busted Up. She provided the voice of Snow White in the unofficial sequel to Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in Filmation's Happily Ever After in 1993.
In 1992, Irene toured in the revival of Jesus Christ Superstar, along with Ted Neely and Carl Anderson playing their respective roles from the film adaptation of the play.
Singing Career
Along with her successful career in acting, Cara released three albums in the 1980s: Anyone Can See in 1982, What A Feelin' in 1983 and Carasmatic in 1987. She also released a compilation of Euro-dance singles in the mid to late 90's entitled Precarious 90's.
Currently
In June 2005, Irene won the third round of NBC television series Hit Me Baby One More Time, performing "Flashdance (What a Feeling)" and covered Anastacia's hit "I'm Outta Love" with her current band, Hot Caramel.
At the 2006 AFL Grand Final in Melbourne, Cara performed "Flashdance (What a Feeling)" as an opener to the pre-match entertainment.
She lived in Florida and continues work in preparation for her band Hot Caramel's album.
Cara died at her home in Largo, Florida, on November 25, 2022, at the age of 63. The official cause of death was determined to be arteriosclerotic and hypertensive heart disease.
Romance
Irene Cara Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Switching channels, haven't found the
Right station yet
What I need is Romance '83
I try to fix the tuning on my radio
Getting up I trip over the remote control
What I need is Romance '83
I thought that love and kindness were
The things we all need
A bit of sensitivity
Just living life simple was the thing to
Believe in
I don't really know really know anymore
Sharing all the human feelings deep inside
Instead we hide behind machines
I really wonder if there can ever be a
Place for a little
A little bit of Romance '83
Input, output, microprocessor delay
VCI, VCA, modulation for decay
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The invert mode for stereo
Set mode channels two selectors
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Your busy when I call you up on the telephone
You're playing those Atari games and
I'm here alone
What I need is Romance '83
Sometimes it makes me think if I can
Ever be free
Life is no longer a challenge and there's
No mystery
What I need is Romance '83
I look back on a time when the world
Was so young
A beautiful ecology
A flowing river and a bright beautiful
Sun was enough
Now I don't really know anymore
Satisfied with only the land and the trees
Instead we mass-produce machines
I really wonder if there can ever be a
Place for a little
A little bit of Romance '83
What I need is Romance '84
In this song, Irene Cara seems to be expressing her dissatisfaction with the increasingly technology-driven world of the 1980s. She starts off by talking about how she's flipping through channels on her TV and searching for a radio station that plays the music she wants to hear. But what she's really looking for is something more elusive: Romance '83.
As she lists off various technological terms - input/output, microprocessor delay, etc. - she seems to be suggesting that the machines and gadgets of modern life are crowding out real human connection. She feels neglected by a lover who is always playing video games, and she longs for a time when life was simpler and people were more in touch with nature.
Overall, the lyrics of "Romance '83" are a comment on the alienation and disconnection that can result from our reliance on machines and technology. Irene Cara seems to be yearning for a return to a more human-centered way of life, where there is room for love and romance.
Line by Line Meaning
Staring at the images on my TV set
I am looking at the TV screen with images flashing by and wondering what I actually need in life.
Switching channels, haven't found the
Right station yet
I keep changing channels, but I still can't find anything that satisfies me.
What I need is Romance '83
I long for love and romance in my life that is missing in this modern world.
I try to fix the tuning on my radio
I attempt to adjust the tuning of my radio to pick up some good music.
Getting up I trip over the remote control
As I stand up, I inadvertently stumble on the remote control lying on the floor.
What I need is Romance '83
I crave love and romance in my life more than ever before.
I thought that love and kindness were
The things we all need
I used to think that love and kindness were the essentials of life, which everyone needs.
A bit of sensitivity
Being sensitive to others' needs and feelings is crucial for a peaceful life.
Just living life simple was the thing to
Believe in
Living life in a simplistic way was the ideal before, but things have now become complicated.
I don't really know really know anymore
I am not sure what to think or believe anymore.
Sharing all the human feelings deep inside
Expressing emotions and feelings is becoming increasingly rare these days, and most people bottle them up inside.
Instead we hide behind machines
We take refuge behind technology-mediated communication rather than engaging in face-to-face conversations.
I really wonder if there can ever be a
Place for a little
A little bit of Romance '83
I wonder whether we can ever experience true love and romance in today's world filled with technology and distractions.
Input, output, microprocessor delay
VCI, VCA, modulation for decay
DIN sync into control
The invert mode for stereo
Set mode channels two selectors
Audio schematic vectors
These lines describe the technicalities of music recording and production, and how the focus on technology is slowly taking over the artistic and creative aspects of making music.
Your busy when I call you up on the telephone
You're playing those Atari games and
I'm here alone
When I try to connect with someone, they're too absorbed in their digital world and don't have time for meaningful connections.
What I need is Romance '83
I yearn for love and romance in my life, more specifically from a time before technology took over our lives.
Sometimes it makes me think if I can
Ever be free
I sometimes wonder if I can ever break free from technology and the pressures of the modern world to find true happiness.
Life is no longer a challenge and there's
No mystery
Life seems mundane and lacks the mystery and adventure it once had.
What I need is Romance '83
I continue to long for the love and romance of an earlier era.
I look back on a time when the world
Was so young
I reminisce about a period when the world was simpler and without the distractions of today.
A beautiful ecology
A flowing river and a bright beautiful
Sun was enough
The beauty offered by nature was enough to bring happiness and fulfillment without the need for technology.
Now I don't really know anymore
However, currently, I'm unsure what the solutions are to get us back to that place of fulfillment.
Satisfied with only the land and the trees
We should be grateful for the beauty and purity of nature that still exists around us.
Instead we mass-produce machines
Unfortunately, we seem to be caught up in making more machines to keep us busy and distracted from what truly matters.
I really wonder if there can ever be a
Place for a little
A little bit of Romance '83
I still question whether we can ever bring back the simplicity and beauty of romance found in earlier times.
What I need is Romance '84
Ultimately, I still hope to find the love and romance I have been searching for, even if it comes in a more modern context.
Lyrics ยฉ Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: GIORGIO MORODER, IRENE CARA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@johnbratton9934
Not only a great song but an AWESOME album!!! I love how Irene changes it to Romance '84 at the end!! haha! oh how the years go by!!! :-)
@paulwilson9281
Love this song.
@javierbilbao73
Amazing! I was a teenager back then, but I remember this song so clearly! Thanks for sharing! XXX
@orlandobatistadossantos6193
Caramba, essa mulher passou despercebida em sua trajetรณria de glรณria, ela sempre esteve anos luz do alcance das lentes dos entendidos em dons e talentos. Ela foi grande, tรฃo grande, que esses experts enxergaram apenas parte dela.
@rauldulosa6278
This song is all about the nature here on earth. I love this song so much. I miss also the artist Irene Cara. RIP You are now in the hands of the Lord.
@babylonlarry
Love Irene Cara. So glad most of the tunes on this album are here on Utube. The album is not on Spotify๐ RIP to the best Pop singer of the 80's
@somedeerboi
It should be on Spotify now!
@babylonlarry
@SomeDeerBoi Yes, thanks.
@CurragaoMattson
The Feeling and Your Voice! ๐
@user-gs1zn1lm4g
I love this album ๐น๐น๐น๐นโ๏ธ My father bought me this album when I was a teenager ๐๐ My love and condolences to Mrs IRENE CARA and her Family. I will miss you I just wish I could have met her in person. I loved her as a child when she played on all the television shows and she played the beautiful SPARKLE in the movie SPARKLE. My mother used to take me and my brother to the show every Wednesday to a matinee to see movies lady's day. I will truly miss my favorite singer. One of my favorite songs was YOU WERE MADE FOR ME and FAME my favorite movie. She was always beautiful and stayed beautiful too. ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ๐๏ธ