Gen Z Musician, Mia Giovina's Rise to Stardom
A young artist by the name of Mia Giovina is slowly taking the internet by storm. Within the past year, she has amassed over 100 thousand followers on the platform of TikTok, where she has created a space to showcase her work covering beloved songs from your favorite artists, with a little twist. Each of her covers is rewritten, whether that be sonically or lyrically, to present the track in a new perspective. At the age of only nineteen, Mia has created a community of fellow fangirls (and boys) to share a love and passion for music with. Prior to the release of any original music, I have had the chance to speak with Mia to gain a bit of insight on the life of this rising star.
Where did you find your beginnings in writing music, but more specifically, in writing your own songs?
Mia: Songwriting has been a part of my life for a really long time, I just haven’t always been good at it. When I was younger I would constantly be writing little pieces of songs in my notebook during class. Looking back, the lyrics were always way too melodramatic for a nine year old to be writing, but it wasn’t until a little over a year ago that I wrote my very first, full song called ‘Handprint’. I wrote it for my best friend the night that we said our goodbyes before college. My emotions were so high that it seemed like writing a song was the only way to deal with them.
You've seen some incredible success within the past year making videos on TikTok, especially on your short covers of popular songs. Where have you found inspiration to make these videos?
Mia: TikTok has become my favorite platform to share my music and I couldn’t be more thankful for the people and opportunities it has brought me in such a short amount of time! My favorite thing to do when I was younger was record myself singing on my family’s computer and pretend I was Justin Bieber or Ariana Grande filming a Youtube video! So I’ve been doing these covers for a while now, but to see people showing them love and support now is what I’ve always dreamed of!
What was your first TikTok that really “blew up”?
Mia: I downloaded the app with the mindset that it was strictly for dancers and that, although it would be cool, I probably would never “blow up” on it. But one morning, I was in my home studio messing around on the piano. I pulled up an audio of Harry Styles’ isolated vocals from my favorite song of his called ‘Cherry’. I ended up putting it into the music program I use (Logic Pro) and added my own piano, strings, and vocals. I put together a little video of the process and posted it on TikTok, thinking nothing would come of it. I was proved wrong when I ended up getting almost 300k views and comments asking me to do more videos like it!
It seems like you’re a big fan of Harry Styles, as we all are. Considering this, how do you feel we can break the disconnect between fangirls and artists in the industry?
Mia: I always do my best to like and reply to comments, repost fan art/covers, follow supporters, and answer DMs because I know exactly what it’s like to look up to an artist and want that connection that goes beyond just the music. I freak out when artists I look up to like or comment on my videos so I will always do the same for the people who support me! I just think it’s important to show the people who love you the same amount of love back.
As a musician of Generation Z, what would you say to rising artists working to leave an impact on the community?
Mia: I think the biggest advice I can give is to literally just do what makes your soul happy. Don’t worry about the number of views you get or how many followers you have. Worry about actually connecting with your audience, no matter how big or small. If even one person tells me that I’ve inspired them to write a song or pick up a guitar, then I know I’ve made an impact on at least one life.
CONNECT WITH MIA
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