Niya Elan is, first and foremost, a singer/songwriter from West Palm Beach, FL. Starting at the early age of 8 Niya had a passion for writing and used it as her creative outlet. Growing up, she would write songs and raps in her free time, often times staying up late into the night. In high school she began recording herself on her mom’s laptop and would post songs online for her friends. It wasn’t until she hit college that she began to perfect her craft and find her sound. Pulling inspiration from her favorite artists (SZA, H.E.R., Jhené Aiko, and 6lack, to name a few), she began to find her home in contemporary R&B. Niya hopes to bring more LGBTQ+ representation to the music industry, because growing up there weren’t many women in music she could relate to.
In addition, Niya stays active as the captain of her rugby team in Jacksonville, FL, and is pursuing a professional rugby career with the Jamaican national team. She frequently trains on the field and in the gym. She's been an athlete her entire life, but has been active in the rugby community since 2017. She was part of the team when Jacksonville earned a spot to compete for their first state championship, and plans to take her team all the way to regionals this 2024 season.
Growing up, Niya was a bookworm and has continued to grow her love of literature. She averages a total of 50 books a year (close to one a week!) and loves to lose herself in Sci-Fi/Fantasy novels. Her favorite format is a sci-fi trilogy, but she is open to giving anything a try!
