Girl Authority facts for kids

Girl Authority was an American pop girl group. They sang cover songs, which means they performed songs originally sung by other artists. The group had nine girls, who were between 8 and 13 years old when they started. Their names were Jacqueline Laviolette, Carly Grayson, Jessica "Jess" Bonner, Crystal Evans, Kate Barker, Zoë Virant, Jessica Tarr, Gina Miele, and Alexandra "Alex" Bilbo.

The group started in the summer of 2005. It was created by their vocal coach, Samantha Hammel, along with Scott Billington, who was a Grammy Award-winning producer. John Virant, the head of Rounder Records and father of group member Zoë, also helped form the group. Girl Authority was based in Sudbury, Massachusetts. The group stopped performing in the summer of 2010. This was because the older girls were finishing high school. All the girls are still good friends and often have reunions.

All the girls had been in local musical theater together for five years before joining Girl Authority. Each member had a special "persona" or character while in the group. For example, Jacqueline was "All-Star Girl" and Carly was "Glamour Girl." Jess was "Boho Girl," Crystal was "Country Girl," and Kate was "Party Girl." Zoë was "Preppy Girl," Jessica Tarr was "Rock N' Roll Girl," Gina was "Urban Girl," and Alex was "Fashion Girl."

Their Music and Albums

Girl Authority's first album was called Girl Authority. It came out in April 2006 on the Zoë Records label. This album did very well! It reached #9 on Billboard's Top Kid Audio chart. It also reached #17 on the Top Heatseekers chart. On this album, the girls sang famous songs like Madonna's Material Girl and Kelly Clarkson's Breakaway. You might have seen their TV ads for the album on Nickelodeon.

In April 2006, the girls got to sing with the band The Dresden Dolls at a show in Boston. They also shared the stage with popular artists like the Jonas Brothers and Jesse McCartney. The group even appeared on CBS' The Early Show on TV.

Their second album was named Road Trip. It was released on March 13, 2007. This album included a special song called "Let's Get Together." It was an older song by Depeche Mode that Vince Clarke rewrote just for Girl Authority. The album also had original songs like "Rhythm of the World" and "Wild Side," which was sung by Jessica Tarr. Their own theme song, "Girl Authority," was also on this album.

The group also released a shorter album called an EP. This EP was titled Girl Authority - Halloween Party Songs. It featured cover versions of songs about Halloween. However, this EP was only sold in iParty stores.

Awards and Other Projects

Girl Authority won an award for "Best Audio" from iParenting Media.

The group worked on several other cool projects. In June 2006, they recorded "The Star-Spangled Banner", which is the national anthem of the United States. They also recorded a theme song for the Club Libby Lu store chain.

For Christmas, they released a single song called "Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town". You could buy this song online on music services like Rhapsody, URGE, Zune, and iTunes.

In July, the girls also appeared in the book series called Beacon Street Girls. The group even held a songwriting contest for readers of the Beacon Street Girls books. They chose a song called "I Am Me." It was written by a 14-year-old girl named Allison Boudreau from Swansea, Massachusetts. This song was then available for free download on the Beacon Street Girls website.

Discography

Albums

• Girl Authority (2006)
• Road Trip (2007)

EPs

• Halloween Party Songs (2007)

Singles

• "Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town" (2006)
• "Let's Get Together" (2007)
• "I Am Me" (2008)