Chicago born and suburb raised, Mia Rago is a classically trained operatic soprano and indie singer-songwriter. She grew up listening to her dad singing Frank Sinatra around the house while her mom shared her love of Elvis Presley. Ever since her youth, Mia has been submerged in the world of older music; it’s safe to say her roots lie in the music created before her time.

Growing up, Mia couldn’t always count on her body to support her. Diagnosed with severe scoliosis at the age of nine, she underwent a series of intensive surgeries meant to correct the painful curvature of her spine. While she was forced to give up sports and physical activity for years, music was the one thing that she could always rely on. Mia began playing guitar and writing songs during this time. Watching her onstage now, you’d never know that she has steel rods implanted in her back, but it’s an apt metaphor for the hidden strength, much of it forged through pain and perseverance, that defines her beautiful songwriting.

The subtle darkness in Mia’s music stems not only from her surgeries, but from working at her family’s funeral home and cemetery business. She crafts music with a sonic sophistication and lyrical maturity well beyond her years, layering intricate harmonies over stark, spacious arrangements. Mia calls Nashville home these days, and the city’s proven to be an ideal fit for her unique mix of evocative storytelling, rootsy vulnerability, and fierce femininity. It’s an intoxicating blend, one that calls to mind everything from Brandi Carlile to Phoebe Bridgers in its captivating delivery.

In 2020, Mia released her debut EP A Sea of Darkness. Recorded at The Bomb Shelter, Mia worked with prominent female musicians Megan Coleman and Larissa Maestro. The EP was produced by Megan McCormick, a two-time IBMA Award-winner who’s toured extensively as a member of Jenny Lewis’s band. The collection is sweeping and melodic, gorgeously written with an undercurrent of darkness that often flows just beneath the surface. Mia is hard at work on her debut album which she hopes will continue cultivating her indie-alternative sound.

Mia aims to bridge the gap between opera and alternative music through her classical training and musical intuition showing that both genres can appeal to a wider audience.

With a ‘born too late’ mentality and old soul attitude, it was inevitable that Mia would fall in love with classical music. She earned a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance as a voice student of Dr. Mark Whatley. During her time in college, she performed opera roles such as Romilda in Handel’s Serse and the title role in Ronald Beckett’s Ruth. More recently, in Sicily, Italy, she sang Gilda in Verdi’s Rigoletto and Suor Genovieffa in Puccini’s Suor Angelica. Mia has sung in master classes and coachings for David Gowland, Jack LiVigni, Kamal Khan, Stephen King, and John Holiday. Her operatic repertoire highlights her proficiency in the Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Modern eras, while she enjoys singing works from Handel, Mozart, Donizetti, Bellini, Puccini, Verdi, and Strauss.

Mia’s divergent musical background helped her become a more resilient and more determined artist than ever before. Her experience and ambition reinforce just how essential music has been—and continues to be—to her survival. Relying on music provided Mia Rago with comfort and strength and hope, and now she’s ready to do the same for us.