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No mean girls here: Alessia Cara shows her soft side during Dallas gig

Alessia Cara knew what she was doing when she went for a few backbreaking notes during her show on Friday night.

The 20-year old singer has been a risk-taker from the beginning: Her break-out song was an atypical single about not wanting to party.

The warm and relatable artist performed her entire 2015 debut record, Know-It- All, at Verizon Theater. She dedicated a lot of time to walking through the stories behind the words.

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Her rich vocals matched the recordings and gave each song a clean, unaltered feel. Cara soared in emotionally charged songs like "Overdose" with a bold voice and raw sentiment that gave the large show a quieter, coffeehouse feel. Her simple denim ensemble straight out of the '80s and understated stage match to the outsider's stance she represents, much like her current single "Wild Things."

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Her band introduced the playful song by pounding on the kick drums for a heart-swelling stomp that electrified the energetic track. This rebellious and unapologetic spirit encapsulates Cara as an artist and has built her loyal fan base largely made up of young, doe-eyed girls singing along to every word.

Most of Cara's catalog is surprisingly quiet, with an emphasis on her lyrics over anything else. Her gorgeously tragic song, "River of Tears," embodies this poetic aspect; the captivating number quietly swept over the room with its graceful ivory melody and sobering notes that go beyond her 20 years.

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This is an artist who knows where she's going. Her journey leapt to life in syllables, colors and textures.

Cara is a welcome curveball in today's pop scene, making it more about the stories she tells instead of the stardom. Even the cover song she chose was more cerebral than most; she strapped on her guitar for a hushed version of Frank Ocean's "Swim Good." Although it lacked the swagger and silky-smooth stylings of the famed hip-hop artist, Cara form-fitted the track with authentic sentiment and an unyielding confidence that showed her admiration.

Not surprisingly, she held out on her breakout track, "Here," until the encore, sharing how much the single meant to her. But instead of delivering the song word for word, like the audience, Cara added an updated verse to bring the song full circle and show everyone just how far she's come in three years.