Following the release of her fourth EP, Something is a shell ., SOFIA ISELLA stopped by the latest episode of AltPress: In Session.
The 21-year-old singer, songwriter, and producer, who’s opened up for Taylor Swift, Florence and the Machine, and Melanie Martinez, has carved out a place in pop usually reserved for clean-cut, formulaic stars. It’s a mold that ISELLA has clawed her way out of, pushing back to create music that feels intimate, defiant, and often uncomfortable to listen to because of the sheer bluntness and criticism of modern society. With dirt on her face, she spits out lyrics about blindly following religion, the sexualization of young women, and the powers that be.
Read more: 26 of the most exciting rising artists to watch in 2026
Ahead of the EP release, ISELLA sat down with Editor-in-Chief Anna Zanes in a run-down and gritty building in LA for her AP cover story, discussing everything from being homeschooled to the albums that are resonating with her right now (“I’m going through Nine Inch Nails’ catalog a lot recently”).
“Oh, there was nothing to prove,” she says, touching on what her goal was when starting to make music. “I didn’t understand the concept of proving. I was 8, and I was not around peers my age a lot, so I was very much fucking around and not having a real concept of things that… I had no concept of being mocked. My parents also never asked me to prove anything. There was no supplemental message of trying to be impressive. And anything I did, they’d clap. Even if I look back now, I’m like, “I was 8. How much shit can you give it?” So I had no concept of proving. I had no concept of trying to walk any line.”
Stream In Session with SOFIA ISELLA below, and revisit previous episodes of the podcast here.
