Nella

For Nella, Venezuela has never been simply where her story began. It is embedded in her music, from the folklore that shapes her sound to songs about distance, family and leaving. In 2026, that connection took on unexpected weight when “No llores más,” originally conceived around the experience of Venezuela’s diaspora, found a new meaning after the devastating earthquakes of June 24.

The song had been written months earlier with Jorge Luis Chacín and Nico Ramírez, imagining a mother crying for children who had left the country. Nella recorded it with Chacín and cuatro player Jorge Glem after the earthquakes, which killed more than 1,700 people. Without changing the lyrics, the song suddenly spoke to another kind of separation and grief.

© Marcus Ingram

Born Marianella Rojas in Porlamar, on Margarita Island, Nella left Venezuela at 17 and graduated from Berklee College of Music in 2015. Her breakthrough came with Voy, produced by Javier Limón, and in 2019 she won the Latin Grammy for Best New Artist. The title track was also selected by The New York Times among its best songs of the year.

In February 2025, Nella returned to Venezuela as Andrea Bocelli’s guest at Caracas’ Estadio Monumental Simón Bolívar, where they performed “Vivo por ella.” Later that year, she released “tu amor me da paz” with Mexican singer-songwriter Marco Mares.

Her 2026 collaborations brought another personal reference with “Margarita o San Juan,” recorded with Puerto Rican actor and singer Carlos Ponce. Then came a long-held wish: recording with Gilberto Santa Rosa. Their ballad “Hilo Rojo,” released August 6, grew from a goal Nella had written in her diary.

© Jason Koerner

Just weeks later, she joined Carlos Vives, Natalia Lafourcade, Beck and other artists at the Hollywood Bowl for A Concert for Venezuela, a benefit supporting earthquake recovery and Gustavo Dudamel’s farewell concert at the venue as music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. She is now touring with Kany García, with dates continuing through December in Puerto Rico.

For an artist who left the Margarita island as a teenager, home continues to appear in unexpected ways: in a cuatro, a duet, a song title or a stage thousands of miles away. Nella has built a career that can travel without losing its point of origin.