Vanessa Calton belongs to a mixed ethnicity, Norwegian, Swedish, and Ashkenazi, since her mother is Ashkenazi Jewish and father is a Norwegian, Swedish.
Carlton’s mother comes from a Jewish family in Queens, New York. Her interest in music began at an early age. At the age of two, she visited Disneyland and played “It’s a Small World” on the piano when she came home. Her mother then began to tutor her.
Vanessa Lee Carlton is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. Upon completion of her education at the School of American Ballet, Carlton chose to pursue singing instead, performing in New York City bars and clubs while attending college.
Three months after recording a demo with producer Peter Zizzo, she signed with A&M Records.
Her debut single, “A Thousand Miles”, reached the top five on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2002. Her debut album, Be Nobody, followed and received a platinum certification in the United States. On June 19, 2010, Carlton came out as bisexual