Image Source: Getty / Cindy Ord
Music is, simply put, in Ella Travolta’s blood. “It’s always been a big part of my life,” she tells POPSUGAR. “I’ve grown up around music.”
Of course, the 22-year-old didn’t just grow up around music — she was raised by the star of one of the biggest movie musicals of all time. Her dad, John Travolta, famously starred in “Grease” alongside the late Olivia Newton-John, whom he recently paid tribute to at the 2023 Oscars. During her childhood, Ella recalls spending a lot of time bonding over music with both her father and late mother, Kelly Preston. “He was always singing a lot or just improvising song and dance,” Ella says of her dad. “Same with my mom. That was always a big part of my life — playing music, and him singing along, and me singing with him. It’s definitely been a huge inspiration.”
Now, Ella is following in her father’s footsteps and gearing up to release her first EP, titled “The Colors of Love.” “It’s definitely been a learning experience and a long time coming,” she says. “I’ve learned so much. I’ve been doing it without a label, just to see how it works and really get my hands into it. It’s been a lot of fun.” Each track on the six-song EP is based on a color, she says, and each paints a portrait of a different type of love. “Each song is really a different take and different viewpoint on the subject, whether it’s a relationship with a partner or a family member or a friend or unrequited love,” she explains.
In addition to inheriting her love of music from her dad, she’s also taking after her mom, who died of breast cancer in July 2020. Ella is participating in Silk Nextmilk’s Next Gen campaign, which puts a modern spin on the iconic ’90s “Got Milk” campaign — which Preston herself was a part of. “It’s absolutely amazing. To see that she did that back then — it’s just so beautiful,” Ella says. “They’ve put such a cool twist on it. For my generation, so many more people are going plant-based and using plant-based products, and it’s been great to be a part of it and rep the plant-based ‘stache.”
Image Source: Silk
Between her music and modeling ventures, Ella is busy, but she still always manages to stay close to her family. In February, Ella accompanied her dad to Las Vegas for his 69th birthday. “The trip was amazing. It was a dream of his to re-create that old TWA poster of Vegas,” she laughs, referencing a Las Vegas–themed Trans World Airlines poster her dad had loved as a child. “He definitely brought it to fruition. It was lovely.”
From her early days performing impromptu musical theater shows for her family, to weathering tragedies and launching her professional music career, her dad has remained a constant in Ella’s life. “It’s amazing,” she says of their relationship. “He’s my best friend and my biggest fan, and I’m definitely his. Having that support is just very important, and I’m so lucky to have that from him.”
Below, watch Ella play a snippet of her first single, “Dizzy” — complete with a brief cameo by her dad.