kenzie

Though she’d been recording and touring since she was a preteen, pop singer Mackenzie Ziegler introduced the mononym kenzie on 2020′s “Exhale” featuring Sia. Also a dancer, actress, and model, she was already known to millions for her six seasons on the reality show Dance Moms, as well as for teen pop issued under her full name and as Mack Z. More tracks arrived with 2020′s “Donuts” and 2022′s “100 Degrees,” both of which found her further embracing a sophisticated disco and electronic dance-influenced sound.
Born in Pittsburgh in 2004, Mackenzie Frances Ziegler began dance lessons at the age of two. Her older sister, Maddie, was also a dancer. Along with their mother, Melissa Ziegler-Gisoni, Mackenzie and Maddie appeared together on the Lifetime series Dance Moms, which premiered in July 2011. During her time on the hit cable show, Mackenzie performed music under the alias Mack Z, releasing the teen pop album Mack Z as a nine-year-old in April 2014. Featuring the single “Girl Party,” it was a streaming success, leading to further singles and an acting debut on Nickelodeon’s Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn. Meanwhile, Maddie starred in Sia’s video for the mega-hit “Chandelier.” The family left Dance Moms during its sixth season in 2016.
Using her full name, Mackenzie Ziegler collaborated with singer/songwriter/actor Johnny Orlando on late 2016′s “Day & Night.” The song garnered tens of millions of plays across streaming services, and the pair worked together again on the web series Total Eclipse. A teen drama, it debuted in April 2018 and ran for several more seasons. In November 2018, Ziegler presented her second studio album, Phases. It featured the Sia-penned “Wonderful,” which Ziegler had premiered on an episode of Dancing with the Stars. She signed with Arista Records the following year.
Released under the mononym kenzie, her Arista debut, “Exhale,” appeared in June 2020 and featured Sia. That same year, she also issued the disco-infused “Donuts” featuring Yung Bae. In October 2022, she returned with the single “100 Degrees.” ~ Marcy Donelson