18 Things to Know About Alana Haim

Baby Haim made her acting debut in Paul Thomas Anderson's "Licorice Pizza."

By 
Alana Haim
Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Haim is the perfect band — and no, we will not be entertaining dissenting opinions at this time. Seriously, what’s not to love? In 2021, the Jewish trio of sisters updated Adam Sandler’s famed “Chanukah Song.” They sold Hanukkah merchandise to support the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh after tragedy struck. And in everything they do, they’re leading the way for Jewish women.

But we’re here to talk about one Haim sister in particular: Alana, who has recently crossed over into the realm of acting.

Here are 18 things to know about Alana Haim.

1. Alana was born in Los Angeles to a Jewish family.

A Humble Request:
Hey Alma's content is free because we believe everybody deserves to be a part of our radically inclusive Jewish community. Reader donations help us do that. Will you give what you can to keep Hey Alma open to all? (It's a mitzvah, ya know.)
Support Hey Alma

2. Her parents are EXTREMELY interesting.

Her father is Mordechai “Moti” Haim, a former Israeli soccer player and drummer whose family has roots in Bulgaria. And her mother is Donna Haim, who won an episode of “The Gong Show” in the 1970s by singing a Bonnie Raitt song. Respect.

3. She has two older sisters, Este and Danielle.

Here they are looking PERFECT:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CABJ6fLF-jx/

And another one because we just can’t resist:

4. Growing up, Alana and her sisters had some very Jewish interests.

“We all wanted to be Barbra Streisand in ‘Funny Girl,’” she told the New York Times. “That was our Bible growing up. Like, ‘Oh, we might not be the most gorgeous person in the seventh grade, and no one wants to make out with us, but we could be the funniest!’”

5. In 2007, Alana and her sisters formed their band, Haim. Alana is responsible for guitars, keyboards and vocals.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CRCatNws3dt/

Pre-Haim, the sisters and their parents played in a family band called Rockinhaim — and naturally their first gig was at Canter’s Deli in LA where they were paid in matzah ball soup. You can read more about Haim’s extremely Jewish origin story here.

6. Alana graduated from Los Angeles County High School for Arts in 2010.

7. As the youngest in her family, Alana’s nickname is Baby Haim.

Honestly we couldn’t think of a better nickname for Alana if we tried.

8. In 2013 Haim released their first album, “Days Are Gone.”

 

9. Haim’s second album, “Something to Tell You,” came out in 2017.

10. Alana is a self-described Valley Girl.

“I’m a Valley Girl through and through, all day every day,” she told Vanity Fair.

11. Haim’s single “Hallelujah,” which was released in November of 2019, has deep personal meaning for Alana.

You can read her thoughts on it in this Twitter post:

And watch the music video here:

12. “Women in Music Pt. III,” Haim’s third album, came out in 2021.

To quote wise prophet Smash Mouth, “the hits start coming and they don’t stop coming.”

13. And, the song “Another Try” has meaning for Alana as well…

14. Alana thinks she was a better dancer when she was 8 — but you can be the judge of that:

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-P4JKelftY/

We don’t know, it seems like she’s still got it.

15. Alana is very close with Taylor Swift!

Exhibit A — their joint birthday party:

Exhibit B — Haim’s feature on Taylor’s song “no body no crime”:

Exhibit C — Taylor’s feature on Haim’s song “Gasoline”:

16. Alana was “incredibly nervous” to do a solo interview on “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.” You can watch here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufLJVD2cnLY

We think she did great!!! And we love the mini hora she did around 45 seconds in!

17. Alana made her film debut in Paul Thomas Anderson’s 2021 film “Licorice Pizza.”

You absolutely need to stop what you’re doing and watch this trailer (and then go see the film):

18. Despite having minimal acting experience prior to “Licorice Pizza,” Alana received a Golden Globe nomination and a Critics Choice Award nomination for her role in the movie.

Mazel tov, Alana! We can’t wait to see what you and your sisters do next!

Evelyn Frick

Evelyn Frick (she/they) is a writer and associate editor at Hey Alma. She graduated from Vassar College in 2019 with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature. In her spare time, she's a comedian and contributor for Reductress and The Onion.

Read More