Meet the Singer Giving Zayn a Run For His Money on the New Cover of "A Whole New World"
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It's a time-honored tradition with Disney movies to have a "pop" cover of one of the soundtrack's most iconic songs. John Legend and Ariana Grande covered "Beauty and the Beast" for the 2017 remake (and the 1991 original featured Celine Dion and Peabo Bryson), while Demi Lovato did the pop version of Frozen's "Let It Go." For the upcoming live-action remake of Aladdin, we're getting treated to a pop arrangement of the movie's Oscar-winning duet "A Whole New World." While you absolutely will recognize the male vocalist — Zayn Malik — you might not be familiar with his duet partner. Zhavia Ward isn't a big name yet, but she's definitely a singer-songwriter to watch! Here are some things you should know about the teen singer with the distinctive voice.
She Got Her Start on Reality TV
Zhavia first came into the public eye as a 17-year-old contestant on the Fox singing competition The Four: Battle For Stardom. She was a finalist in 2018's first season, and although she didn't win, Columbia Records signed her to a contract only months after the show ended. Since then, she's been appearing on some major tracks, including the Diplo and Lil Pump song "Welcome to the Party," featured in Deadpool 2.
She's a True Cali Girl
There's no doubt about it: Zhavia is a Cali girl at heart. Born and raised in Monrovia, CA, she continues to work in the SoCal area as her music career builds.
She Knows Exactly Who She'd Love to Work With
As an up-and-coming singer-songwriter, Zhavia has definitely got a bucket list of artists she'd love to collaborate with, and she knows exactly what kind of sound they'd make as duos. She told Direct Lyrics that she's aiming high:
"I have three [dream collaborators]: Jessie J, Post Malone, and Drake. I definitely want to do a really cool ballad with Jessie J because I feel like we could do some dope harmonies. With Post Malone, I'd probably want to do a feel-good song, really rhythmic and upbeat. And with Drake, something really soulful and more slow tempo."
Her Earliest Inspiration Was a Pop Icon
You might not guess it from her sound, but Zhavia's earliest musical inspirations came from 1980s girl-power pop.
"I also do listen to a lot of different genres — like '80s pop. When I was really young, my first female inspiration was Pat Benatar," she revealed to Hollywood Life.
Zhavia Isn't Her Real First Name
"Zhavia" is a pretty unique name, but it's not actually her legal first name. The singer's real name is Carisa Ward; Zhavia is her middle name, but she's pretty much always gone by it professionally.
Her Songwriting Is Deeply Personal
Zhavia's best-known song up until now is probably her 2018 single "Candlelight," which she both performed and wrote. As she explained to Direct Lyrics, the song was a way of sharing some very personal emotions with listeners.
"'Candelight' was inspired by a time in my life where I felt like I had no hope, and it's really rare for me to feel like that because I try to be so optimistic and so positive," she said. "It really brought me down but I wanted to write about how you can get through it and how you can overcome anything. I felt like 'Candlelight' was the ideal track to release because I feel like people would be able to relate to it the most. Everybody goes through hard times in their life and I wanted people to be able to connect with that."
She's a Makeup Guru, Too
In addition to being a talented singer-songwriter, Zhavia is also pretty great with makeup! She told JustJared that she actually does a lot of her own makeup, even for photos and video shoots.
"I do my own makeup for all my shoots, my favorite thing to do for makeup is my eye shadow," she said. Zhavia also told Hollywood Life that she'd love to design a beauty line one day.
"Beauty is my way to express myself. Eventually, I'd like to make a line, one that is a little more daring to wear."