Pia Mia is putting an end to the misconceptions.
As an actress, model, part-time designer and multi-platinum recording artist with nearly one billion global streams—all at the age of 23—one could easily surmise that Pia relied upon industry connections to jump start her career. However, that couldn't be further from the truth!
"A lot of people think that I come from the music industry. I don't," Pia said in this clip from an all-new episode of Qubi's Close Up by E! News. "I come from a normal family. I come from a very small island."
In fact, Pia only moved from Guam to Los Angeles in 2010. She eventually landed a yearlong production deal with Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, but it was actually her YouTube-uploaded cover of Drake's "Hold On, We're Going Home" that really put Pia on the map.
"I just think that my career, my situation, my life just proves that it doesn't matter where you're from," Pia told co-hosts Will Marfuggi and Courtney Tezeno.
She continued, "It doesn't matter what connections you have...if you have the passion, you have the drive and you really believe that this is what you're meant to do, and you work for it, then it can become a reality."
Watch the whole interview on Close Up by E! News. You can download Quibi and catch the new episode here.