Tara was born in Gander, NFLD but moved frequently during her developmental years. She first moved to Malton, ON, when she was 10 years old and then later to Brampton, ON, where she attended high school at Bramalea Secondary School.

During her school years Tara always participated in the school's choir. To this day, Tara credits her music teachers Mrs. Joy Cookson (William Mercer Academy), Mr. Tanny Gibson (Dunrankin Elementary School) and Mr. Chris Arthurs (Bramalea Secondary School) for giving her the discipline and know-how to be successful in the music business.

At 16, Tara was signed to an indie label and released her first country music single. She later toured with a local agency called Performerz, which allowed her to sing in theatres, malls and festivals.

At 19, Tara joined her first real band. She and her band mostly played the bar/club circuit around Ontario for the better part of four years, performing a mix of country, top 40, rock, R’n B and retro.

Tara first hit Canadian television screens when she auditioned for Canadian Idol in St. John's, NL. During her run on the show, Tara excited fans and judges alike, covering artists such as Michelle Wright, Martina McBride, Shania Twain and Dwight Yoakam Tara breached the top ten mark but, much to the dismay of her fans, was voted off Canadian Idol in August, 2007. In early 2008, Tara could be seen in Pantene commercials promoting the product as well as the new season of Canadian Idol. More recently, she can be seen starring in her own television series on CMT, called The Tara Diaries.