photo credit: Elaine Torres
About
Sonia Barcelona is both a musician & photographer. With music featured in Netflix, she has also been named Best of Las Vegas by the Las Vegas Weekly & Desert Companion. She has opened for Imogen Heap, Japanese Breakfast, SALES, Deap Vally, and Pearl Charles. Her music has been featured on Netflix’s “The Brothers Sun,” VICE TV, Fox5, and ABC networks.
She sites her upbringing as her main influence. Born in Guam half Indian & half Filipino, she was raised by her Filipino mother and Mexican stepfather in North Las Vegas. “On weekends I’d help my mom sell at the Broadacres Flea Market. It kept me from making bad decisions. It’s those memories that inform my perspective on life. I told myself then that I’d do my best to uplift my family.” It wasn’t until after graduating college that she discovered she had any musical talent. After a few years performing at open mics she took a leap of faith and quit her job to become a full-time musician. Her 2019 debut album "Bitter Melon" touches on her perspective as an Asian woman in America, bringing a new and bigger sound reflective of her 90s grunge rock influences. As an independent musician, all music is written by Sonia and produced under her direction. Her latest single “Indian Girl” speaks to her Indian & Filipino heritage. Watch her on YouTube at http://youtube.com/soniabarcelona
Sonia plays a Gibson Firebird & Gibson M2.
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Additional Endeavors:
Sonia has successfully funded Kickstarters for her albums and music videos, each project showcasing a variety of artists from Las Vegas. Her recent crowdfunded music video, "Violent Water" has won nationwide Film Festival awards. In 2019 she and the Love Yourself Foundation along with Fergusons Downtown curated an All Ages music festival in the heart of Downtown called Farside Wonderfest. As a photographer she created Photos 4 the People, an affordable portrait event for the Vegas community. Her mission as an artist is to uplift and connect with others through her art.
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