The Story Behind The Sound

Hola :) I'm Valentina. I was born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela, an extremely musical, restless country where everything moves at full speed and knowing how to figure things out is a survival skill.

I've studied music since I was 4: my parents enrolled me in an arts school that was more a music conservatory than a regular school. There, I learned to read sheet music before I could read words. I grew up in classrooms where I had the chance to take private lessons in cuatro (Venezuela's little four-string guitar), piano, cello, and harp, but what truly caught me was singing. At 9, I made my debut as a soloist in front of 800 people, and I never stopped singing again. I sang in choirs all through my childhood and adolescence: with them I performed classical works like Mozart's Requiem, Handel's Messiah, and Vivaldi's Gloria with full orchestra and choir, but I also learned the folk music of my country, música llanera, gaita, the traditions of the Andes. At the same time, I was soaking up American pop (One Direction, Lady Gaga, Ariana Grande, Bruno Mars), while my dad made sure I knew the music of his era: masters like Rubén Blades, Willie Colón, Earth, Wind & Fire, and so many more.

With that blender of hundreds of influences, music had already chosen me. I never had to think about it; I have never lived without it.

After graduating high school, I decided to chase my dream of studying at Berklee College of Music and becoming a professional musician. After a year of preparation, study, and auditions, I was accepted to Berklee and won the Sofia Carson Prodigy Scholarship from the Latin GRAMMY Cultural Foundation, becoming the first Venezuelan ever to receive it. That opportunity brought me to Boston on a full ride, where I earned my degree in Music Production & Engineering and Contemporary Writing & Production. Berklee gave me the chance to be reborn, to redefine music, my friendships, and to meet people who bring me closer, every day, to who I want to become.

Now I'm beginning a new chapter in Miami, Florida, where I'm looking to be reborn once again and get to know myself a little more each day. I want to explore, connect, and make a whole lot of music.