Lia Marie Johnson

Lia Marie Johnson (born November 23, 1996), also known mononymously as Lia, is an American singer-songwriter, actress, and YouTuber. She began her career on YouTube in 2007. She was formerly a member of Pink Army (2009-2010).

Early life[]

Lia Marie Johnson - November 23 2016 — Johnson at a young age

Johnson was born on November 23, 1996, in San Diego, California, and moved to Wahiawa, Hawaii, when she was six months old. She grew up in a military family, resulting in them living in Florida, Port Hueneme, and Virginia Beach, before residing in San Diego.^[1] Her father served in the army, struggled with alcoholism, and her parents separated.^[2] Her mother remarried after the separation. Johnson has four sisters and one brother.

Career[]

Johnson's YouTube account was created in 2007, with videos uploaded by her mother that featured her performances at talent shows and church recitals. After two years, Johnson began to control the output of the channel, creating content that has come to include personal commentary, sketch comedy, and musical performances.

In 2010, Johnson became a recurring guest for the Fine Brothers Kids React series.^[3] This exposure increased the traffic to her own channel and became an early source of her online fame.

In 2011, Johnson was added to the recurring cast of the spin-off series Teens React, and in 2014 was moved again to the newly established YouTubers React, which featured herself and various well known YouTube personalities. In 2014, Johnson appeared at the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards, and starred in Terry the Tomboy, a spin-off film based on the eponymous character she portrays on the Nickelodeon sketch comedy series, AwesomenessTV.

In 2015, she covered the 2012 single "Latch" by Disclosure, singing with Alejandro Luis Manzano of Boyce Avenue, and released it on YouTube. Johnson has also been featured on the covers of Adweek and BYou Magazine. On January 9, 2015, Johnson released her first single, "Moment Like You," along with its music video. She appeared in the music video for Post Malone's single "Go Flex," which was published on April 28, 2016. On September 28, she explained to her fans that she had signed to Capitol Records, and was continuing to work on the music album she had been recording for the previous two years. The following month she released her debut single through a major label, Capitol Records, entitled "DNA;" the song is based on her personal life, growing up with an alcoholic and absentee father.

On February 17, 2017, Johnson released her second single "Cold Heart Killer." The music video for the song was released on March 10, 2017. A year later, Johnson released her third single "Champagne" on May 17, 2018.

In mid-November of 2019, Johnson teased a new project on her Instagram page, with one promotional photo being posted everyday. Seven days later, Johnson announced her fourth single, "Moonflower," on November 23, 2019. Johnson released her fifth single, "Like a God," on March 12, 2020. She appeared on multiple songs as a featured artist later that year, primarily in collaboration with her boyfriend at the time, Ryan Bowers.

In the first half of 2021, Johnson began posting personal videos and covers on her YouTube channel again after four years of inactivity. She released the single "Lifts" on January 1, 2021, followed by "Nectar" on March 19 and "Venus Sunrise" on April 30. An accompanying music video was issued for all three songs. She ended the year with the song "Euphoria." In January 2022, she collaborated with Hues on "Wandering (Don't Go)".

Personal life[]

On July 19, 2020, it was announced of her then-boyfriend Ryan Bowers committing suicide over the weekend.^[4] Her song "Nectar" was written for him and on September 19, 2021, she performed in tribute at Ryan Bowers Day: A Celebration of Life. She is currently in a relationship with Charlie Hudson.

On January 4, 2023, she uploaded the video "This Is My Story" to her YouTube channel. It detailed her experiences with mental health, substance abuse, and domestic abuse; it revealed two previous abusive relationships and addressed her producer at the time, Steven Weatherbee, who took advantage of her whilst she was inebriated on an Instagram livestream. During 2020, when her partner died by suicide, a friend stepped in to help her regain sobriety. Johnson added, "I've had a lot of people tell me 'I'm glad that you're alive' because the way I was living I shouldn't be. Now I can tell you that the one thing that saved me was love, real love. That's why I'm here, because love is so powerful. Love is the reason I'm alive."^[5]^[6]