On October 11th, 2025, I saw Sofia Isella at the Varsity Theater in Minneapolis. 

Isella is an alternative indie artist who writes and produces her own work that speaks on the horrors of women and what they live through. Two of the biggest artists she has opened for in previous tours were Melanie Martinez and Taylor Swift. Isella has 1.1 million monthly listeners on Spotify and 1.2 million followers on TikTok.  

Her style of music has been called out by people who hate her message as being “demonic.” Still, fans and those who listen to the words being said understand it’s about the women, not just in the U.S., but across the world, who fit that 1 in 4 statistic of women being sexually assaulted or harassed.  

Ayleen Valentine, who has 87k monthly listeners on Spotify, was her opener. I was unable to see Valentine’s performance very well, and will talk more about that later, but she was a very good singer and had an angelic voice. She is also in the alternative music genre.  

Isella opened with “Out in the Garden” and was followed by her newest release, just two weeks before the show, “Muse.” Both songs are very strong starters, and very quickly, we got to see her skills on the electric guitar and violin.

Isella is known for her violin skills, as she has been playing it since she was three years old, and writing since she was 8 years old. She calls herself “a slut for words” and has a

history of being musically inclined, being able to play multiple instruments, not just to create her music but to play live while performing.  

Throughout the night, Isella put on an outstanding performance. During “All of Human Knowledge Made Us Dumb,” she walked among the crowd, touching hands with the crowd, and made it a point to come to the ADA section to make sure we were included. At a later song, she crowd surfed.  

Isella is known for being very active during her performance. No matter where you are in the venue, you are bound to have a moment where she could be in front of you on stage or potentially face-to-face during the interactions.  

My favorite two songs, both of which are among her most popular, “Everybody Supports Women” and “The Doll People,” were a part of my favorite ones she performed, but the one that was not previously a favorite of mine but became one after hearing it live was “Us and Pigs.”  

I left the concert happy that I decided to go, even though I was on my own, as it was an experience I feel anyone who can relate to any of her songs would leave feeling better about themselves and knowing there is a community of people that feels the same way. I left with new connections I made.  

Now, to my earlier point I made about not being able to see the opener, this is on the concert venue, and what they do for ADA accommodations. We were told that if we could stand, we would have to be with the general audience, as anyone in ADA section they asked to remain seated. This is an understandable rule.  

The part that is a negative is that we are on the same floor, in the front corner, sectioned off from the general audience. If a performer does not move from the center area or is short, there is a chance of not seeing them, as we cannot see over the people standing. I feel that if we were on a raised platform on the ground, even just one foot in height, we would probably have a better chance at seeing performers.  

I would suggest that the venue invest in a temporary ramp platform that can easily be stored, so when they host DJ parties, it would not be a tripping hazard. I also had a problem when needing to go to the bathroom, as the GA had moved into the pathway multiple times, which led to the stairs/elevator that could take us to the second floor, where the bathrooms are.  

I would not recommend this venue if you are someone who requires an ADA unless you know your performer is like Isella and tries their best to use the whole stage during their performance.