Tia Carrere Net Worth, Early Life,  Films, Television, Music Career, Awards, Personal Life and Husband

American actress/model/singer, Tia Carrere net worth increased with her first big break on a daytime soap opera General Hospital.

Synopsis

Born in 1967, Tia Carrere gained prominence through her role in Wayne’s World and Wayne’s World 2. Similarly, her appearances in True Lies, Lilo & Stitch and TV series Relic Hunter also increased Tia Carrere net worth as an actress.

Early Life and Education

Tia Carrere was born as Althea Rae Janairo on January 2, 1967 in Honolulu, Hawaii. Her father, Alexander Janairo, was a banker while her mother, Audrey Duhinio Janairo, was a computer supervisor. The actress claims herself to be of Filipino, Chinese and Spanish ancestry whereas, she holds the American citizenship.

Carrere went to all-girls school, Sacred Hearts Academy. As a child, she aspired to be a singer. Consequently, she even took part in 1985 Star Search when she was 17 years old. However, she faced elimination during the first round of the show.

Later, a local producer spotted Carrere while she as shopping at a Waikiki grocery store. Soon, Tia Carrere net worth increased as she became the cast in the movie Aloha Summer.

Film and Television Career

After appearing in Aloha Summer, Carrere went to Los Angeles where she worked as a model for several months. Due to her modeling appearance, she landed her first role in American television series Airwolf in 1985.

However, Tia Carrere net worth heightened with her first major breakthrough in the daytime soap opera General Hospital from 1985 to 1987. She later guest appeared on Tour of Duty and The A-Team. Carrere was supposed to join as the cast in The A-Team, but she underwent obligations from General Hospital. Due to this, she lost her casting role.

Later, she made guest appearances on shows MacGyver, Anything But Love and Married…with Children. She then landed roles in 1991 action films Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man and Showdown in Little Tokyo. Tia Carrere net worth increased with her prominence as Cassandra in Wayne’s World and its sequel Wayne’s World 2.

In the two movies, Carrere portrayed a rock singer. She is a trained singer, so it came up as an opportunity for her to perform her own songs in Wayne’s World. Similarly, she came into limelight through her film roles in True Lies (1994), Rising Sun, The Immortals (1995), High School High (1996) and Kull the Conqueror (1997).

In 1999, Carrere starred as Professor Sydney Fox in Relic Hunter which ran until 2002. After completion of the series, she did extensive voice artistry. Carrere provided voice of Nani in Lilo & Stitch (2002), Queen Tyr’ahnee in series Duck Dodgers and Snookie in Aloha, Scooby-Doo! (2005).

Furthermore, Carrere participated in the popular reality show, Dancing with the Stars where she ended up in the sixth position. She also participated in The Celebrity Apprentice, season 5 where she remained participant until 5^th week of the show.

Currently, she guest starred on TV shows including Back to You, Nip/Tuck, Warehouse 13 and Curb Your Enthusiasm.

Music Career and Albums

Passionate about singing from the very young age, Tia Carrere kept on working on her singing career. As a result, she released her first solo album, Dream, in 1993. Matt Prinz produced the first album.

Likewise, 4-times Grammy Award-winning record producer, Daniel Ho, accompanied Carrere on her slack-key guitar and ukulele for her second album. She released her second album, Hawaiiana, in June 2007.

She also released the other two albums, ‘Ikena and Huana Ke Aloha in short duration of time.

Recognition and Awards

In 1992, the year Wayne’s World released, People magazine ranked her among its annual “50 most beautiful people”. Likewise, Maxim magazine featured her in men’s magazine. In 2003 January issue of Playboy, Carrere posed nude.

In 1993, Tia Carrere net worth rose as she was featured on the soundtrack of Batman: Mask of the Phantasm. For that, she performed the ending theme song “I Never Even Told You”. Her second album, Hawaiiana, won 2008 Grammy Award nomination for Best Hawaiian Music Album.

The following year, Tia Carrere net worth hiked for winning 2009 Grammy Award for her third album ‘Ikena. Furthermore, she won another Grammy Award for the same category for her next album Huana Ke Aloha.

Personal Life and Husband

Tia Carrere married Elie Samaha, a film producer, in 1992. However, Samaha divorced Carrere accusing her of having an affair with Toronto Maple Leaf Tie Domi in 1999.

Two years after divorce, Carrere married a photojournalist, Simon Wakelin with whom she has a daughter, Bianca, born in 2005. In 2010, Carrere filed for divorce with Wakelin citing irreconcilable differences. She now lives in Los Angeles sharing custody of their sole daughter, Bianca, with her ex-husband.

Salary and Net Worth

With the number of television and movies appearances, Tia Carrere net worth rose to $3 million. Additionally, her performances and singing career also garnered a good worth for the talented singer and actress.