AJ Michalka
Michalka at the 2019 WonderCon
Born
Amanda Joy Michalka

(1991-04-10) April 10, 1991
Torrance, California, U.S.
Occupations
  • Actress
  • musician
  • singer
  • songwriter
Years active2002–present
Works
RelativesAly Michalka (sister)
Musical career
Genres
Labels
Member ofAly & AJ

Amanda Joy Michalka (/miːˈʃɑːkə/ mee-SHAH-kə;[1] born April 10, 1991)[2] is an American actress, musician and singer-songwriter who is best known as one half of the musical duo Aly & AJ (briefly 78violet), alongside her older sister Aly Michalka. She has appeared in films such as The Lovely Bones (2008), Secretariat (2010), Super 8 (2011), Grace Unplugged (2013), Weepah Way for Now (2015), and Support the Girls (2018). Michalka also starred in the ABC sitcom The Goldbergs (2013–2023) and its spin-off series Schooled (2019–2020). She is also known for voicing a lead role as Catra in the Netflix animated adventure series She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018–2020).[3]

Early life

Michalka was born in Torrance, California and is the younger sister of actress and musician Aly Michalka. Her father, Mark, owns a contracting company, and her mother, Carrie, is a musician and performed with the Christian rock band "JC Band". Her parents are divorced. As a little girl, she briefly lived in Seattle and Milwaukee.[4][5] Both she and her sister attended Mack Elementary. She has played the piano since she was six and started playing the guitar in her early life. She started acting when she was five, mostly in church play productions. She was raised as a Christian and homeschooled for part of her childhood.[6][7][8] Michalka was in a number of musical productions at her school in Milwaukee as a young woman.[7]

Career

Michalka performing in 2007

She plays a variety of instruments such as acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and piano. She was a model for catalogs. In 2006 she made her Disney Channel debut in the Disney Channel Original Movie Cow Belles, as "Courtney Callum", along with sister Aly, as "Taylor Callum". She has also appeared on shows such as Oliver Beene, Six Feet Under, The Guardian, and General Hospital.[7][8][9] She and her sister appeared in the MTV film Super Sweet 16: The Movie.

In 2009 she was featured in the Peter Jackson film The Lovely Bones, released widely on January 15, 2010.[10]

From 2009 to 2013 Michalka and her sister performed as the musical duo 78violet. They decided to change its name back to "Aly and AJ" in 2015. She was cast as a recurring character on The CW series Hellcats[11] starring Ashley Tisdale and her sister Aly Michalka. The series ran for one season and was cancelled in May 2011.

Michalka appeared in the 2011 film Super 8, directed by J. J. Abrams. Her first big-screen starring role was as the title character in 2013's Grace Unplugged.

Since 2013, Michalka has had a recurring role on the ABC sitcom The Goldbergs as Lainey Lewis, the best friend of main character Erica Goldberg and one-time girlfriend of Erica's brother, Barry. In May 2015, it was announced that she was promoted to series regular for the show's upcoming third season.[12] She also played the Lainey character in a lead role on the spinoff series Schooled, which ran for two seasons.

Michalka voices the character Stevonnie in Steven Universe, a fusion of the protagonist Steven and his best friend Connie. In July 2014, she and her sister filmed an untitled drama in Laurel Canyon, California. The film was directed and written by Aly's husband, Stephen Ringer. Michalka was one of the producers of the film, with her sister and Ringer, and participated in the casting process. In May 2015, it was announced that the film, Weepah Way for Now, would premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival on June 16, 2015. The film was released on DVD, iTunes, and other streaming platforms in June 2016.[13]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2009 The Lovely Bones Clarissa
2010 Slow Moe Emily
Secretariat Kate Tweedy
2011 Super 8 Jen
2013 Grace Unplugged Grace Trey
Angels in Stardust Vallie Sue
2015 Weepah Way for Now Joy Also co-producer
2016 Dirty Lies Tiffany
2017 Apple of My Eye Kai
2018 Support the Girls Krista

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2002 Passions Sheridan's Daughter 1 episode
Birds of Prey Young Dinah Lance Episode: "Pilot"
2004 General Hospital Ashley B. 2 episodes
Six Feet Under Ashley
2002–2004 The Guardian Shannon Gressler Recurring role (seasons 2–3), 15 episodes; as Amanda Michalka
2003–2004 Oliver Beene Bonnie Recurring role, 9 episodes; as Amanda Michalka
2006 Cow Belles Courtney Callum Television film
Haversham Hall Hope Mason Unaired television pilot
2007 Punk'd Herself Episode dated May 29, 2007
Super Sweet 16: The Movie Sara Connors Television film
Aly & AJ: Sister Act Herself MTV television special
2011 Hellcats Deirdre Perkins 3 episodes
Salem Falls Gillian Duncan Television film
2013–2023 The Goldbergs Lainey Lewis Recurring role (seasons 1–2, 5); main role (seasons 3–4, early season 6); guest (seasons 7–10)
2014 Silicon Valley Charlotte Episode: "Proof of Concept"
Motive Emily Williams Episode: "Dead End"
Expecting Amish Hannah Yoder Television film
2015–2019 Steven Universe Stevonnie Recurring voice role; 8 episodes
2016 Cupcake Wars Herself / Contestant Celebrity special
All My Friends Are Getting Married Chloe Web series; 6 episodes
2018 Celebrity Family Feud Herself Episode: "Aly Michalka & AJ Michalka vs. Adrienne Houghton"
2018–2020 She-Ra and the Princesses of Power Catra Main voice role
2019–2020 Schooled Lainey Lewis Main role
2020 The Disney Family Singalong Herself Television special
2022 Ray Donovan: The Movie Young Abby Television film
The Good Doctor Nelly Dunn Episode: "Yippee Ki-Yay"[14]

Music videos

Year Title Artist(s) Role Ref.
2012 "Gotten" Slash featuring Adam Levine Joanna Martin [15]
2020 "Malibu" (At Home Edition) Kim Petras Herself [16]

Discography

Soundtrack appearances
Year Track Album
2010 "It's Who You Are" Secretariat
2013 "All I've Ever Needed" Grace Unplugged
"Desert Song"
"You Never Let Go"
"Misunderstood"
2017 "Here Comes a Thought"
(with Estelle)		 Steven Universe, Vol. 1 (Original Soundtrack)
"Tom Sawyer"
(with Hayley Orrantia)		 The Goldbergs Mixtape
"Eternal Flame"
(with Hayley Orrantia)
"Walking on Sunshine"
(with Hayley Orrantia)
2018 "We Deserve to Shine"
(with Zach Callison, Grace Rolek, Estelle, Deedee Magno Hall, Michaela Dietz, Charlyne Yi and Erica Luttrell)		 None
2019 "Escapism"
(with Zach Callison and Grace Rolek)		 Steven Universe, Vol. 2 (Original Soundtrack)
2020 "Warriors" The Music of She-ra

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Nominated Work Result
2006 American Music Awards Contemporary Inspirational Artists of the Year Into the Rush Nominated
2014 Movieguide Awards Most Inspiring Performance in Movies Grace Unplugged Won
2015 Napa Film Festival Special Jury Award-Acting in a Lounge Feature Film (shared with Aly Michalka) Weepah Way for Now Won
2017 Behind the Voice Actor Awards Best Female Vocal Performance in a Television Series in a Guest Role Steven Universe Won

References

  1. ↑ Semigran, Aly (August 14, 2009). "Aly Michalka, actor and musician". Entertainment Weekly.
  2. ↑ "Family Tree Legends". Family Tree Legends. Retrieved May 11, 2010.
  3. ↑ "She-Ra gets a makeover! A first look at the new Netflix series and meet the cast". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on September 8, 2019. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
  4. ↑ Axson, Scooby (July 7, 2006). "Article: Pop sisters: Better known for their acting, Aly and AJ leap onto music... | AccessMyLibrary – Promoting library advocacy". AccessMyLibrary. Retrieved May 11, 2010.
  5. ↑ "Tweenage Riot". Blender Magazine. May 23, 2006. Archived from the original on June 28, 2010. Retrieved September 24, 2010.
  6. ↑ "78 Violet, 11/05 – Interviews – Christian Music Today". Christianitytoday.com. Archived from the original on September 11, 2009. Retrieved May 11, 2010.
  7. 1 2 3 "Tweenage Riot Article on Blender". Blender.com. May 23, 2006. Archived from the original on December 18, 2008. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
  8. 1 2 Grounded in Faith – Today's Christian Archived June 15, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  9. ↑ Argyrakis, Andy (November 14, 2005). "Away from the Rush". Christianity Today. Archived from the original on September 11, 2009. Retrieved May 11, 2010.
  10. ↑ Graff, Gary (January 10, 2008). "Aly & AJ Writing New Songs, Plot Films". Billboard. Brightspot. Retrieved February 17, 2019.
  11. ↑ Valiente, Maria (January 20, 2011). "Hellcats Star Aly Michalka Reveals AJ's Character's Name!". Wetpaint.com. Archived from the original on March 18, 2012. Retrieved March 28, 2012.
  12. ↑ Goldberg, Lesley (May 18, 2015). "'The Goldbergs' Promotes AJ Michalka to Series Regular". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved June 7, 2015.
  13. ↑ Kilday, Gregg (May 5, 2015). "Los Angeles Film Festival Unveils Lineup". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved June 7, 2015.
  14. ↑ Schwartz, Ryan (February 22, 2022). "Good Doctor Casts Aly and AJ michalka as Fractured Sister Act - First Look". TVLine. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
  15. ↑ "Slash Releases 'Gotten' Music Video to Benefit Homeless Youth". Loudwire. March 29, 2012. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  16. ↑ "Kim Petras has shared a new video featuring Demi Lovato, Paris Hilton, Charli XCX and loads more". Dork. May 11, 2020. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
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