Taylor Swift surprised fans with a duet with pop singer Gracie Abrams, but who is the star’s famous filmmaker father?
Taylor Swift and Gracie Abrams delighted fans with an unexpected duet of their Grammy-nominated hit, Us, during Swift’s third Eras tour night in Toronto on November 16. The pair, who are good friends, have been a hit since the start of the tour in 2023, with Abrams known for her own successful music career and Hollywood connections.
Abrams, a 25 year old singer-songwriter, is the offspring of Star Wars director J. J Abrams and film and TV producer Katie McGrath.
Despite her attempts to keep her career separate from her famous parents, her father’s career is hard to ignore.
J. J Abrams, known for his work on the Star Wars franchise, was born to TV producer parents Gerald W. and Carol Ann Abrams. The 58-year-old filmmaker made his industry debut at just 16, composing music for the sci-fi horror film Nightbeast, reports Surrey Live.
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His portfolio includes popular films such as Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Star Trek and Star Trek Into Darkness.
Additionally, J. J is the producer behind the acclaimed drama Lost, which earned over 50 Emmy Award nominations during its six-season run and boasts a near-perfect 90% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Singer-songwriter Gracie opened up about her musical journey, confessing that being raised in a creative environment shaped her as an artist. Chatting with IHeartRadio Canada in 2022, she explained, “I think that having that [her dad] in my childhood solidified my love and appreciation for storytelling […] and influenced the fact that I did it all the time.”
While she acknowledges the significant influence her father has had on her passion for music, the ‘I Love You, I’m Sorry’ hitmaker has also shared how she initially sought to carve out her own path away from her parents’ celebrity status.
In a candid interview with the Independent in 2022, Gracie mentioned, “In previous years, I’ve tried really hard to keep them as far away as possible, and they’re really respectful of that. I definitely was really insecure at the idea of anyone thinking that […] I was afraid for people who didn’t know me to know that my dad works in entertainment.”
She further reflected, “The older I’ve got, the more I see my parents as people and not just my parents. I should have asked them for advice more often than I did.”
Yet, despite amassing a formidable following including 35.9 million monthly listeners on Spotify, Gracie has faced criticism for her ‘nepo baby’ label, a term suggesting that offspring of celebrities might leverage their family connections to gain an unfair advantage in the industry.
In a candid interview with Rolling Stone, she acknowledged the perks of her lineage, saying: “Obviously we can’t control where we are born into, and there are a million visible and even more invisible advantages to having family members who are in any entertainment industry.”
“I know how hard I work, and I know how separate I’ve kept [my parents] from every conversation about anything career wise, but of course you can understand what it looks like from the outside.”
Gracie’s sophomore album, ‘The Secret of Us’, dropped this summer to critical acclaim, snagging a four-star review from NME.
Fans across Europe and the UK can catch her live in 2025, with tour stops including London, Manchester, and Glasgow.
