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Marian Renta (born August 8, 1986) is an American singer-songwriter, music producer, and pianist. She rose to prominence with the release of her debut studio album One of a Kind in 2011. She went on hiatus from recording in 2014, and upon returning, revitalized her career in early 2021 with the release of her career defining extended play (EP) Headfirst. Renta is known for her minimalist sound and unique vocal tone in addition to her signature blend of pop, indie rock, soul, and subtle incorporation of new-age elements into her music.
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Renta was raised in the Hampton Roads city of Newport News, Virginia by her disc jockey single father. She received formal music training as a pianist in middle school and was classically trained in piano and composition in high school throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s. She would eventually gravitate towards her school’s music lab and begin learning how to engineer audio and produce music. As a hobbyist songwriter up to that point, Renta started producing demos and distributing them around her school and to other musicians and performers. One of the demos got the attention of the school’s music director, John Boyles, and in response, he allotted studio time for Renta to further her work. Throughout high school, she was an influential member of the school's choir and served as pianist of the Woodside High School Jazz Ensemble.
In 2004, Renta established a home recording studio and started releasing cover songs and original works to social media platforms. She experimented with various genres such as blues, reggae, and electronica at the time. In 2010, Renta began working on music for a studio album and sought to make a mainstream pop-R&B concept album with dance elements. Fourteen songs were chosen, and the album was promoted with the digital release of her debut single—"Leave You", released on May 22, 2011, and her second single, "Eye for an Eye", released on August 11, 2011. The debut studio album One of a Kind was subsequently released digitally on November 15, 2011 under her pen label, Hail Stunna. Three years following the album's release, Renta went on hiatus to tend to personal matters and pursue an outside career. She also used this time to improve familial relationships and to alleviate writer's block.
In 2020, Renta began writing songs and producing music again. Inspired by social and personal setbacks she experienced during that year, Renta began working on material for a new recording project. She sought to incorporate ambient elements and sounds akin to new-age German bands like Enigma and Tangerine Dream, and opted to blend a soulful, sultry vocal and melody into this sound to invent a unique style to her sound. She abandoned the formulaic R&B motif and birthed a stripped down, bare bones, ambient, expressive signature genre. By early 2021, four songs were selected, and Renta ultimately released her first extended play (EP) and first album since her return to music, Headfirst on January 13, 2021. The EP reinvigorated her music career and reinstated her place in the music industry. Released independently under her new label Marian Renta Co., Headfirst spawned a music video for the EP's title-track and garnered positive reception from general audiences for its lyrical depth and powerful vocal performance. Renta followed up immediately with the EP Great Deep six months later, accompanying the release with music videos for "Linger", "May", "Headfirst", and the album's title-track. Both EPs worked together to carefully craft a reworking of Renta’s sound and image, and aided in establishing Renta as a permanent fixture in the pop, indie, and alt-pop arenas.