Sophia Angelica

Along the way to her pop debut, singer-songwriter Sophia Angelica became a global human rights activist. From the tender age of 10, she directed her musical pursuits in service of her philanthropic work. Through her music and speaking engagements, Sophia has become a positive conduit for change and enlightenment. She works closely with the United Nation as a Human Rights Representative, and she has traveled internationally to combat bullying and discrimination, promote mental health issues, and share messages of hope and positivity. It seems like she’s sang and written songs for everyone but herself.

“I left my personal music in a drawer because I was so focused on activism,” the New York-based purposeful pop artist admits. “That work will always be my life, but there is so much in addition to it that I want to share.” Today, Sophia bares her soul with her exhilarating and eclectic debut, Angelica. The 10-track collection is named intribute to her fiery great grandmother. “This debut represents me, and salutes my great grandma who is always watching over me,” she says.

Befitting of her global citizen standing, Sophia’s album showcases something of a United Nations of pop sounds with sprinklings of 1980s pop and rock, house, R&B, tropical-pop, tango, Spanish language tracks, bilingual tracks, and Latin-pop influences celebrating her beloved Latina heritage. Her music has garnered favorable comparisons to Taylor Swift, Kelly Clarkson, Olivia Rodrigo, and Marc Anthony. In addition to its stylistic diversity, Angelica benefits from the cultural and collaborative visions of 5 acclaimed producers from such spread out locations as Africa, New York City, Nashville, and Pennsylvania. “There’s this radio in my head where oldies, salsa, R&B, and reggaetón co mingle with American pop. Metaphorically and lyrically, that diversity reflects my life’s work,” Sophia says. Angelica, however,is unmistakably Sophia: bursting with positive energy, unbridled creativity, and empowering messages.

Sophia is a young but seasoned entertainer with impressive credentials. She set out on her entertainment career at 6 years of age, and, by 13, made her television debut on “Good Day New York” on FOX. You may have heard her as the voice of the “singing rabbit” for Dora the Explorer on Nickelodeon. Sophia was also cast by the Cleveland Playhouse for the “Care Program Monologues,” a project created in order to help youth struggling in volatile school environments. In 2018, she wrote an original musical, The Greatest Runaways on Earth, that was presented in the renowned theater Symphony Space in New York. Sophia is also currently part of the board and writing music for the rising international nonprofit organization, Global Peace Chain, and she is playwright and teacher at minority-based New York acting school, RYBIN Studio of Drama.

During the pandemic, Sophia collaborated with acclaimed composer and producer, Juan Cristiani, on a healing song called, “Survivors.” The song was well-received and Sophia was interviewed on FOX TV to promote and talk about it. In addition to her recent accomplishments, and on a more personal note, Sophia wrote the song, “My Brother, Big Brother,” and created a national music awareness campaign for her brother who, at the time, needed a life-saving kidney transplant.

Outside of her entertainment career pursuits and responsibilities, Sophia is in-demand with the United Nations as a youth speaker mainstay, appearing as a speaker and a performer at many cause-related events. In March of 2018, Sophia, as lead speaker and performer, went on a University Human Rights Tour in Taiwan. She also participated in the 6th Asia-Pacific Human Rights Summit where she was a delegate for the United States, sang original songs, and inspired youth all throughout Taiwan. Sophia was also invited to perform at the “Youth for Human Rights Cherry Blossom Concert” in Washington D.C. in front of the Lincoln Memorial.

In 2019, she received the HOLA (Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors) Elizabeth Pena “Breakthrough Artist Award,” and the prestigious “The President’s Volunteer Service Award (PVSA)” in Washington, D.C. for her work with human rights. She’s also received letters of achievement and recognition from Governor Cuomo, Governor Murphy of NJ, the State Legislature of New Jersey, and many other political leaders.

Most recently, Sophia performed in Thailand for the International Conference on Family Planning with the Gates Foundation, and won the Marvin Hamlisch International Music Awards under the category of Contemporary Pop, presented by the legendary Clive Davis. Now, Sophia has performed and continues to do so in well-known venues and events across the tri-state area, such as Birdland Jazz Club with Arturo O’Farrill’s Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra, Duffy Square – Times Square, The Stone Pony, Rockwood Music Hall, Yankee Stadium and Meadowlands.

Sophia is a family-oriented person who comes from along line of actors, comedians, opera singers, and classical musicians that date back generations. At the age of 7, she became enamored with the theatrics and music of Phantom of The Opera. From there, she began writing her own songs, and sharpening her craft through voice lessons, and, eventually, classical training. Sophia has the rare distinction of being the first creative in her family to write songs. Her father is a classical guitarist, and her mother runs a Latino children’s acting school and actor management firm. Sophia embraced her Argentinian ancestry by learning Spanish and discovered her passion and talents for the arts through her mother’s work. Today, she carries on her mom’s tradition teaching kids acting and giving private voice lessons.

Pop music appeals to Sophia because it’s a powerful tool for activism work—it is the people’s music. In fact, her love of pop music is tied in with her emergence as an activist. At 13, she spontaneously performed her signature song, Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You,” at a family dinner. A woman attending the festivities was the head of a mental health NGO, and invited Sophia to perform at an event at the UN. Sophia did, and her experiences at the UN opened doors of empowerment and possibility for her. She felt purpose, and, from there, her associations in activism snowballed.

Her long-awaited debut, Angelica, is a chance for Sophia to redirect her music back to her personal feelings and life experiences. Here, Angelica explores a narrative-arc of a smoldering romance that begins with eyes locking together across a room, but sadly unravels in an explosion of toxicity and confusion. In the end, the album offers a feeling of empowerment and resilience.

Select album standouts include “Broken Reflection,” “Speak Up,” “Eyes That Stare,” “Here I Am,” and “As We Walked Away.” The ballad, “Broken Reflection,” features crystalline piano textured with ethereal ambience,and Sophia’s dynamically expressive voice front and center. Here, her voice takes flight skyward with soaring emotionality on a song about the abyss of emptiness you feel after a breakup. Sophia flexes her activism side on the ruggedly bumping “Speak Up,” which shines a light on a broken-hearted world and features the fierce flow of hip-hop artist TrevMoMatic. The cinematic, “Eyes That Stare,” showcases the brilliance of world-renowned violinist Nyke Van Wyk, whose inclusion in the song is an ode to Sophia’s great-uncle, one of the world’s top violinists who sadly passed away. The soulful pop track, “Here I Am,” glows with that feeling of self-rediscovery after being lost in the darkness, and Sophia’s vocals here possess a beautiful flutter. The epic, “As We Walked Away,” is a melting pot of creativity that adventurously genre bends and blends. “In the studio, we lovingly called this one my ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ because it imaginatively coursed through so many genres, including 1980s pop, R&B, hip-hop, and pop,” Sophia recalls.

For a young artist who has consistently put the needs of others before hers, it’s been a transformative journey for Sophia to write and sing about her personal life. “Themost meaningful things about making this album are exploring every part of me, and having the chance to bevulnerable and show the world things I’ve felt since I was 12,” Sophia says. “Every song here reflects a different point of my life.”