# Nessa Barrett

Janesa Jaida "Nessa" Barrett (born August 6, 2002) is an American singer-songwriter and social media personality. She rose to prominence on TikTok and began uploading covers, which led her to sign a recording contract with Warner Records. She released her debut single, Pain, in 2020. She has released two studio albums, Young Forever (2022) and Aftercare (2024). Barrett has also released two EPs, Pretty Poison (2021), and Hell Is a Teenage Girl (2023).

## Early life

Barrett is of Puerto Rican descent. She was born and grew up in Galloway Township, New Jersey. During adolescence, Barrett felt alienated, being the only Puerto Rican, and one of the few children being raised by a single mother, following the divorce of her parents. Barrett said she has been writing songs "since [she] could walk and talk".

## Career
### 2019–2021: Career beginnings and Pretty Poison

In 2019, Barrett began posting videos on TikTok, which led to a recording contract from Warner Records. In July 2020, she released her piano-based ballad debut single "Pain".
In October 2020, she released her second single, "If U Love Me". In December 2020, Barrett released a dark interpretation of "Santa Baby". In February 2021, Barrett released the track "La Di Die", which explores the downfalls of fame with Jxdn, produced by Travis Barker. Barrett and Jxdn, along with Barker, performed the single live for the first time on the April 7, 2021 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live! and performed the song again on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on April 12, 2021.
On June 25, 2021, Barrett released "Counting Crimes", a song said by Barrett to be "about moving on from something toxic". In August 2021, her song "I Hope Ur Miserable Until Ur Dead" debuted at number 88 on the Billboard Hot 100, Barrett's first entry on the list. Her debut EP, Pretty Poison, containing seven new tracks, was released on September 10, 2021, coinciding with World Suicide Prevention Day.

### 2022–present: Aftercare

Barrett released the single "Dying on the Inside" in February 2022.
In June 2022, Barrett released "Die First" as the lead single from her debut studio album. The song is dedicated to her both her Mom, and her best friend, Cooper Noriega, who had recently died as a result of an accidental drug overdose. In the track, Barrett sings about hoping to never go through the pain of losing her mom, praying that she will be the first to die out of the two of them.
On September 9, 2022, she released "Madhouse", the second single on the album. The song addresses mental health problems along with slut-shaming and bullying. In October 2022, she released both "Tired of California", the third single on the album, and the entire album, Young Forever. In December 2022, she announced her Young Forever Tour featuring Isabel LaRosa, playing twenty shows starting in February 2023.
In February 2023, she released the single "Bang Bang!" followed by "American Jesus" (which was previously performed acoustically on the Young Forever Tour) in April 2023 and "lie" in June 2023. All three singles ultimately became tracks on her EP titled Hell Is a Teenage Girl, which was released on July 14, 2023. On September 8, 2023, she released the single "Sick of Myself" featuring Whethan. On October 6, 2023, she released another single dedicated to Cooper Noriega, titled "Club Heaven".
On December 8, 2023, she released the single "Girl in New York", which she had previously performed. On January 18, 2024, she released "Club Heaven" (Live from Spotify Green Screen). Barrett's second album, Aftercare, was released in November 2024. It was preceded by the lead single "Passenger Princess", released in July 2024. Two other singles were on the album, "Disco ft. Tommy Genesis" and "Dirty Little Secret". The deluxe edition of Aftercare, containing six new tracks, was released February 7, 2025.

## Artistry

Barrett cites Arctic Monkeys, Lana Del Rey, Melanie Martinez, and the Neighbourhood as influences on both her sound and her aesthetic as a musician.

## Personal life

Barrett has been open about her mental health issues, including depression, borderline personality disorder, suicidal thoughts, and eating disorders, including anorexia and bulimia. She started therapy at the age of 6 and first attempted suicide at 14 by overdosing on an analgesic, after which she was admitted to a psychiatric hospital. At 17, after initial objection from her parents, she ran away from home to live in Los Angeles, where she expected more career opportunities. At 18, she was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder. She attempted suicide again in 2022 following the death of her best friend Cooper Noriega, a fellow TikTok star, of an accidental drug overdose on June 9, with her manager then admitting her to a psychiatric hospital. Barrett has since written and released her 2022 and 2023 singles "Die First" and "Club Heaven" about Noriega, writing the former initially about her mother but dedicating it to Noriega following his death.
In an interview with Zach Sang, Barrett proclaimed that her Christian faith helped her through her mental health issues and the death of Noriega.
Barrett identifies as bisexual. She began dating fellow social media star Josh Richards in November 2019; they broke up in March 2021. She then dated Jxdn and later confirmed engagement rumors before breaking up in May 2022.

## Tours

* Young Forever Tour (2023)
* Church Club for the Lonely Tour (2023)
* Aftercare World Tour (2025)

## Discography
### Studio albums

List of studio albums, with selected chart positions shown :
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions |
| Title | Details | US | US Rock | AUS | BEL (FL) | CAN | IRE | NZ | UK |
| Young Forever | Released: October 14, 2022 Label: Warner Formats: CD, cassette, LP, digital download, streaming | 80 | 13 | 63 | 94 | 45 | 49 | 39 | 89 |
| Aftercare | Released: November 15, 2024 Label: Warner Formats: CD, LP, digital download, streaming | 98 | — | — | 124 | — | 91 | — | — |

### EPs

List of EPs, with selected chart positions shown :
| Title | EP details | Peak chart positions |
| Title | EP details | US Heat. |
| Pretty Poison | Released: September 10, 2021 Label: Warner Formats: CD, digital download, streaming | 4 |
| Hell Is a Teenage Girl | Released: July 14, 2023 Label: Warner Formats: CD, digital download, streaming | — |
| "—" denotes items which were not released in that country or failed to chart. |||

### Singles

List of singles as lead artist with selected chart positions :
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album or EP |
| Title | Year | US | US Rock | BLR Air. | CAN | CIS Air. | IRE | NZ Hot | RUS Air. | UK | WW | Certifications | Album or EP |
| "Pain" | 2020 | — | — | * | — | — | — | 21 | — | — | — | | Non-album singles |
| "If U Love Me" | 2020 | — | — | * | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Non-album singles |
| "La Di Die" (featuring Jxdn) | 2021 | — | 11 | 29 | — | 8 | 45 | 9 | 2 | — | — | RIAA: Gold MC: Gold | Non-album singles |
| "I'm Dead" (featuring Jxdn) | 2021 | — | — | * | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Non-album singles |
| "Counting Crimes" | 2021 | — | 46 | * | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Non-album singles |
| "I Hope Ur Miserable Until Ur Dead" | 2021 | 88 | 11 | * | 53 | — | 38 | 5 | — | 75 | 120 | RIAA: Gold MC: Gold | Pretty Poison |
| "Dying on the Inside" | 2022 | — | 23 | 30 | — | 5 | — | 14 | 3 | — | — | | Non-album single |
| "Die First" | 2022 | — | 14 | * | 86 | — | 81 | 15 | — | — | — | RIAA: Gold MC: Gold | Young Forever |
| "Madhouse" | 2022 | — | — | * | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Young Forever |
| "Tired of California" | 2022 | — | 49 | * | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Young Forever |
| "American Jesus" | 2023 | — | 48 | — | — | — | — | 16 | — | — | — | | Hell Is a Teenage Girl |
| "Lie" | 2023 | — | 41 | — | — | — | — | 18 | — | — | — | | Hell Is a Teenage Girl |
| "Club Heaven" | 2023 | — | 47 | — | — | — | — | 14 | — | — | — | | Non-album singles |
| "Girl in New York" | 2023 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 19 | — | — | — | | Non-album singles |
| "Passenger Princess" | 2024 | — | 46 | — | — | — | — | 17 | — | — | — | | Aftercare |
| "Dirty Little Secret" | 2024 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 26 | — | — | — | | Aftercare |
| "Disco" (featuring Tommy Genesis) | 2024 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Aftercare |
| "Mustang Baby" (featuring Artemas) | 2024 | — | 39 | — | — | — | — | 39 | — | — | — | | Aftercare |
| "Pornstar" | 2025 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Aftercare |
| "Does God Cry?" | 2025 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Aftercare |
| "Love Looks Pretty on You" | 2025 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 11 | — | — | — | | Aftercare |
| "—" denotes items which were not released in that country or failed to chart. "*" denotes the chart did not exist at that time. ||||||||||||||

### Other charted songs

List of other charted songs with selected chart positions :
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Peak chart positions | Album or EP |
| Title | Year | BLR Air. | CIS Air. | NZ Hot | RUS Air. | Album or EP |
| "Keep Me Afraid" | 2021 | 187 | 157 | — | 121 | Pretty Poison |
| "Pins and Needles" | 2024 | — | — | 40 | — | Aftercare |
| "—" denotes items which were not released in that country or failed to chart. |||||||

## Awards and nominations

Barrett was named to Billboard's "21 Under 21" and was featured on Ones to Watch's list of "25 Artists to Watch in 2022", Uproxx's "Next Hitmakers List" and People's Emerging Artist List.
| Year | Award | Category | Recipient(s) and nominee(s) | Result |
| 2021 | iHeartRadio Music Awards | Social Star | Herself | Nominated |
| 2022 | MTV Video Music Awards | Push Performance of the Year | "I Hope Ur Miserable Until Ur Dead" | Nominated |
| 2022 | MTV Europe Music Awards | Best Push | Herself | Nominated |
| 2022 | BreakTudo Awards | International Best New Artist | Herself | Won |