Carlos Pena, Jr.

Early Life

Carlos Roberto PenaVega was born on August 15, 1989, in Columbia, Missouri. He grew up in Weston, Florida, where he was actively involved in the arts, participating in local productions of *Grease* and *Man of La Mancha*. His passion for singing and dancing blossomed during a production of *Titanic* at the American Heritage School, which he attended before moving to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career.

Career

PenaVega's career began at the young age of 15 with guest roles on popular TV shows like *ER*, *Judging Amy*, and *Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide*. While studying musical theater at the Boston Conservatory, he was encouraged to audition for the Nickelodeon series *Big Time Rush*. After a lengthy audition process, he landed the role of Carlos García, becoming a member of the boy band of the same name. The band, which included Kendall Schmidt, James Maslow, and Logan Henderson, released several albums, with PenaVega contributing as a co-writer on multiple tracks, including "Oh Yeah" and "Lost in Love".

Personal Life

In 2012, Carlos began dating actress Alexa Vega, whom he met at a Bible study. They got engaged in 2013 and married on January 4, 2014, in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The couple shares a YouTube channel, La Vida PenaVega, and are proud parents to three children. In 2023, they announced they were expecting their fourth child, although they faced the tragedy of a stillborn daughter in April 2024. The family moved to Nashville, Tennessee, in 2023 after living in Maui since 2017.