Sofia Reyna
Blind Singer-songwriter
Sofia Reyna is a 19 year-old Austrian singer-songwriter who recently released her debut album, Half a Girl. She has been blind since early childhood due to a benign brain tumor. Her work draws from pop and singer-songwriter traditions and centers on themes of identity, connection, and growing up visibly different.
I was introduced to Sofia through Laura of A11y News. This conversation focuses on Sofia’s experience of disability, her creative process, and the making of Half a Girl, which is available on all major streaming platforms.
This interview is also distinct in that the portrait featured here is not one I took. While photography is often central to this project, the focus remains on documenting disabled people’s lives and work. In this case, that documentation takes place solely through conversation rather than through my lens.
Would you mind sharing about your disability?
Sofia: I’ve been blind, since my childhood. I wasn’t born blind. I had a benign brain tumor, which crushed my nerve, so that’s why I can’t see. That’s when I was about one and a half, so I can’t remember anything before that, which is good. I never felt like I lost something, you know? I just remember the time after that. I think it was harder for my parents than for me, actually.
Laura: Can you tell me a little bit about growing up without vision in Austria?
Sofia: My parents tried to give me as normal of a life as possible. I went to a normal school with other kids and no special school for blind people. There is one in Austria, but they didn’t think it would be necessary. I had a blind teacher who always was with me and taught me how to read braille for example, and also to use the laptop. She stayed with me through my entire time of school, but also the other teachers really tried their best to make their teaching as accessible for me as they could. It was actually really nice.
What motivates or inspires you?
Sofia: A great motivation for me is my family, my friends. I have a lot of blind friends as well. I have a lot of contact with them, and they motivate me, they inspire me. My friends also like singing and music and sometimes we just jam together. Music, of course, which I think we’ll talk about later, is a great motivation for me, just to express myself, or listen to and draw strength from it.
What do you like to do for fun?
Sofia: Listening to and making music, of course, that’s the obvious thing. I really enjoy listening to audiobooks or podcasts, meeting up or having phone calls with friends.
Laura: Do you have a book that you recommend, or a podcast?
Sofia: English listeners would not be interested because I listen to German podcasts, of course. I’ve also listened to all the Game of Thrones books.
What change would you like to see for disabled people in the future?
Sofia: That’s a good question, I think there’s already a lot happening, you know, but what I always struggled with was connecting to other kids my age, because they weren’t really used to dealing with someone with a disability and weren’t sure how to address it or how to talk to me. I can’t just look at who’s around me, and go to them and start a conversation, and I won’t do it, because I don’t know who I’m talking to. Sometimes it’s hard for kids to just go with it naturally, and not be scared of addressing it, and I think maybe that’s something that parents can help normalize. Like you don’t have to treat people with disabilities different.
Music
Laura: I was so impressed by your ability to be so vulnerable in your music. Especially as a person with a disability, singing about how you want a relationship and how important that is to you as someone who’s had your own set of unique challenges. How do you find the courage to be so vulnerable in your music?
Sofia: I write about different topics, and of course, not every topic I’m writing about is making me vulnerable, I wouldn’t like that either. Yeah, it’s not all about being disabled, either, but I try to pick topics that I have a relation to, and other people might have a relation to. Last year, I was working with a songwriter and he said, why don’t you write a completely personal song about how you were doing in your school time when kids were not really treating you like other kids? And I was like, not a bad idea. But I try to keep a balance between songs like that and songs that are more light-hearted and positive, and then some that just… Yeah. On what I’m… Filling and what I’m feeling when I’m not in a good state and yeah, I try to keep a balance between that.
Laura: I think that would just be so hard to access those deep emotions, like, when the person said, why don’t you write about what if felt like to be disabled and different in school?
Sofia: Yeah, it was a challenge, definitely. At first, I was like, yeah, let me think about it, but the funny thing is, like, as soon as I was back home, I was like, yeah, okay, but actually he’s right, why don’t you just start and try? It really took me long to write that song. Usually, I’m finishing a song if I’m concentrated on it in maybe 2-3 weeks, and that was definitely longer, I think, one and a half months or something.
Also, because I play guitar as my main instrument and I’m studying music right now, so I’ve been learning piano. So I said, okay, why don’t you try to write that song on piano, which didn’t make it easier.
Laura: I’m glad you brought up the guitar, because I was going to ask, when did you first start playing?
Sofia: When I was in primary school. I started with the flute, like most people do and I didn’t like it because I always liked singing, but I couldn’t sing and play the flute. And that actually my parents started to get me into music school, and I learned classical guitar there for a few years and also played in an ensemble. Then I started focusing more on singing, and I thought, like, okay, well, it would be nice to learn chords and accompany myself with guitar while singing, and yeah, that’s why I kind of switched away from playing classical.
Laura: Is anyone in your family musical?
Sofia: No, not really. I don’t know where I have it from. I mean… I don’t know, no, I don’t have any more, like, who’s a great musician or something. I always listen to music, like, a lot, like, basically all day. That’s kind of my safe space, you know, that’s where I go when I’m not feeling good.
Laura: Who are your favorite musicians?
Sofia: I really like a lot of different styles, and also artists. Nico Santos, for example, he’s from Germany, Austrian radios play him really often or Teddy Swims. I’m not writing rock music, but I like to listen to rock, so, the Rasmus, it’s a Finnish rock band. I always like people who get a message across with their songs and if the voice of a singer touches me or moves something in me, then it’s always a good sign.