From the vibrant city of Chicago and now based in the musical crucible of Nashville, Bella Rios’ journey began at the tender age of five when she first began learning classical piano. Along the way, she absorbed the diverse sounds around her like a sponge, soaking up her parents’ collection of musical greats like Queen, Fleetwood Mac, and Aerosmith, along with the contemporary icons of the era, like Adele, P!NK, and Lady Gaga. This mix of pop-rock influences is imbued in the 22-year-old singer and songwriter’s fearless music today.

Rios’ lyrics, which deal with topics like the euphoria of love, crushing lows of heartbreak, and the vertigo-inducing peaks and valleys of mental health, are relatably clear-headed and exceedingly fun to sing along with. In addition to being a thoughtful lyricist, Rios is a talented musician and accomplished performer, feeling at home at the piano and on the guitar and having spent her adolescence rocking the stage with cover bands. “Music has given me a voice and a confidence that nothing else has,” she says. “I’ve never thought, ‘I’m a badass,’ but that’s how I feel every time I’m on stage.” Now that she’s combining that on-stage charisma with her own music, Rios is an unstoppable force. “I’m just so excited to share what is uniquely mine with other people,” she says, “and hope that it does for them what it does for me.”