Draft:Giovanni Niubo

Giovanni Damien Niubo (born February 19, 2004) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. He first gained recognition in the late 2010s with his lead role on the XIX Entertainment teen drama SKAM Austin. In 2022 Niubo released his debut single Bets On U and he followed it up with DayDream

2004–2019: Early life and acting
Giovanni Damien Niubo  was born on February 19, 2004, in Miami, Florida to a Cuban mother and a Puerto Rican father. Niubo is of Cuban and Puerto Rican descent and he grew up in Hialeah where he was raised by his single mother, Gisela de Cardenas Niubo.

Niubo made his on screen debut at just 7 years old appearing in a music video for the Kidz Bop version of Lady Gaga Born This Way. In December of 2017, Niubo was cast as a series regular on the Simon Fuller produced teen drama series SKAM Austin which premiered on April 27, 2018 and ran through May 24, 2019. During his time on the show, Niubo wrote several songs for the series’ soundtrack earning him his first professional songwriting credit followed by 4 more. Niubo would perform these song back home to promote his name while the series was still airing, earning him a cult following outside of the teen drama. Still a high school student throughout all this, Niubo attended Christopher Columbus High School, an all-boys Catholic school which he then dropped out of just a week after turning 16 to focus solely on his music and acting career.

2020-2022: Musical endeavors and Bets On U
In 2020, Facebook Watch axed all its scripted originals from the streaming service, and SKAM Austin was cancelled after two seasons. Niubo took this as an opportunity to prioritize his music career a bit more than acting, and moved to Los Angeles where he spent his time auditioning, networking and using the songs he wrote for the teen drama as a tool to secure his spot in the music scene by sending the material to music industry executives. After being faced with COVID-19 lockdowns, rejection and trepidation by many, the songs eventually caught the attention of an entertainment executive. However, after a two month trial run, the executive felt it was too risky to take Niubo on and he was let go. Niubo returned to his hometown where he would use his assets to network around Miami, sending his material to Miami-based entertainment executives this time. One being Bruno del Granado, head of the global Latin Music touring group at leading entertainment and sports agency Creative Artists Agency (CAA). Niubo credits Granado as one of his mentors. After receiving a thumbs up on the music from Granado and being advised to record newer material with no ties to the scripted series, Niubo worked to improve his artistry by performing self-written unreleased material at local venues and inserting himself in industry events that would benefit his musical endeavors. This would eventually lead him to cross paths with Bryan Norcross, who Niubo credits as his primary mentor.

In January of 2021, Niubo and Norcross became business partners and formed “BNGN Publishing” to properly launch Niubo’s music career. In June of 2021, after 5 months of reaching out to producers around the country with no response, Niubo received a response from Grammy-Nominated and NAACP Award-Winning Producer Emile Ghantous. Niubo sent Ghantous acoustic versions of three unreleased songs he wrote, and shortly after, Niubo made a comeback to Los Angeles where he met with Ghantous and singer-songwriter Brandyn Burnette. Niubo and Burnette wrote a batch of songs together, one of them being Niubo’s debut single “Bets On U”  which he states was a “Thank you letter to Bryan and Bruno” for believing in him. He then filmed a music video for the song in November of 2021, and premiered it on February 17th 2022.

 2023-present: METAMORPHOSIS 

On June 6, 2023 Niubo introduced a new sound coined as “Party-boy Pop” and marked the start of a new era, releasing WHAT’S THE POINT?, the first single off his debut album “METAMORPHOSIS”. The music video was Niubo’s directorial debut. The song was followed up by another up-beat dance track, “MORE!”.

Influences
When it comes to artistry, Niubo credits Britney Spears and Michael Jackson as his primary influences, while also praising artists Lady Gaga, The Weeknd and Prince for having additional influence on his artistry.

When it comes to songwriting, Niubo cites Taylor Swift and Chester Bennington as his primary songwriter inspirations, while also praising songwriters Ryan Ross, Isaac Slade and Gerard Way for having additional influence on his songwriting. Niubo has also shown admiration for Imogen Heap and her music, expressing he’d want to work with her.

When it comes to acting, Niubo admires the works of Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Tom Sturridge and credits them as his primary acting influences.

Filmography
 Television