Mia Perez

Mia Perez is a singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Perez is best known for her eclectic musical style which fuses elements of Soul, R&B, Jazz, Gospel, and Hip-Hop alongside her vastly unique and distinct voice. Mia Perez was born Mia Michaela Johnson on May 23rd, 1995 in Edina, Minnesota as the first and only child of Thomas Johnson, a marketing entrepreneur, and Gwen Mangiamele, a sales executive. The name Perez was derived from Perez's paternal grandmother, whose maiden name was Nora Perez. Johnson and Mangiamele were never married and separated when Perez was just two months old. At the age of seven, Mia inquired about vocal lessons but was instead advised to learn the piano, she then trained classically for 10 years. Her favorite composer is Bach. At the age of 10, Mia began writing songs after teaching herself to play the guitar. Early influences were artists such as Avril Lavigne, Jewel, and Dido. Perez has since dismissed those artists as “white people music,” and claims that her only saving graces musically were Prince and Whitney Houston. Perez began performing her original compositions around the Minneapolis area in venues such as First Aveune & 7th Street Entry, the old Guthrie Theater, the Walker Art Center, and the Fine Line Music Café, all where she was highly praised for her composition skills and musical vocal style. At the age of 18, Perez moved to Chicago to study music and literature at the Columbia College Chicago, where she was presented a prestigious scholarship regarding her musical compositions. Johnson recounts having a mental breakdown after only a month of living in Chicago; “Being from an affluent, mostly white community and then being dropped in the middle of downtown Chicago was… not an easy transition” Perez claims to have witnessed highly traumatic events; “Seeing extreme poverty, homelessness, and addiction was difficult for me at first. Now I am thankful for that experience. I lived in a sheltered little bubble and had no idea of what most peoples' realities were. Then I moved to the city and it was as if someone just went pop! It was emancipating. As much as it was disturbing (and still is), It opened my eyes, instilled compassion in me, and forced me to start tackling the imminent issues [racism, poverty, addiction] at hand, and hands on." It was in Chicago that Perez was also exposed to the Hip-Hop and Gospel genres which led her to retire her previous musical background. Excited by these fresh genres of music, but not knowing what to do with them herself, Perez grew frustrated trying to write any kind of music. After failing to write any music for six months, Mia turned to Jazz for inspiration. Perez associates the change of heart to Amy Winehouse, whose jazz background intrigued her to listen to the genre and discover artists such as Chet Baker, Miles Davis, and “the most important artist of all time,” John Coltrane. Winehouse also led her to great singers in other genres of Soul such as Marvin Gaye and Donny Hathaway. After being discouraged by the events that transpired in Chicago, Perez sought out some form of a fresh start. She decided to apply to the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston to study Jazz where she was admitted and studies Songwriting. It was at Berklee, a friend introduced her to Neo-Soul artist, D’Angelo; “Someone played me Brown Sugar by D’Angelo and it was like my entire musical world changed right then and there. All of my favorite pieces of my musical puzzle came together. The complexity of the Jazz harmony and the attitude of the Hip-Hop beat came together as one. It was everything I was searching for in music in terms of what I wanted to hear and write. I was introduced the 'the groove.'" Since then, Perez has spent nearly two and a half years completing two brand new songs in collaboration with producers Chris Plante and Daniel Alvarez de Toledo. Many will consider Trane's new material as an artistic rebirth due to an obvious dramatic difference in sound & genre. The highly anticipated debut single, "In A Sentimental Groove" and follow-up, "Illusions of Love" are now available everywhere music is digitally sold and streamed. Perez is also currently working on a highly anticipated full EP, which will be available in the winter of 2017. A title, tracklist, and official release date among other details are TBD. Soulful, ethereal, and infectiously genuine, Mia Perez's fresh songwriting and distinct voice provide a harmonious magic that will immediatley and forever enchant you.