Published December 10, 2025
BY OLIVIA FORT
The Hollywood Times calls her “a name that the world will soon know.”
Carmel High School junior Naima Nascimento, who performs under the name NAIMA, has performed at California festivals, local venues and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., with her ever-growing resume including a national feature in Rolling Stone magazine at just age 10 after going viral online for her original song supporting the Black Lives Matter movement.
Under her stage name, NAIMA, Nascimento performed one cover and five original songs at the BottleRock festival in 2024. courtesy of NAIMA NASCIMENTO
Earlier this fall, Nascimento performed at the Sunset Center’s Terrace Hour concert series, presenting both original songs and covers. Some of her original singles, such as “Blood, Sweat, and Tears” and “Bite Me,” opened for a number of artists, including Grammy award-winning artist Rhiannon Giddens. Additionally, in 2024, she had her solo debut as NAIMA at BottleRock, a multi-day music festival in Napa Valley, California.
“Honestly, I’ve kind of always known what I would end up doing,” says Nascimento. “By the end of elementary school, going into middle school, I was definitely like, yeah, I want to do music.”
As a part of Oakland Rising, a collective of Bay Area artists, through the group, Nascimento performed at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass and later at the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage.
“The Kennedy Center was one of the coolest shows I’ve ever done,” the songwriter says. “We went there to represent Oakland and the Bay Area, and we did.”
Nascimento lived in Oakland from age 4 to 13 before moving to Carmel Valley. She also frequently visits family in Brazil, where she says the culture and music have shaped her life and perspective.
“Oakland definitely influenced my music style a lot,” explains Nascimento, who is fluent in English, Portuguese and Spanish. “The scene there is really big, with all different kinds of culture. And when I go to Brazil, I love listening to music on the street. I haven’t written anything in Portuguese yet, but I’m working on it.”
Nascimento performing at the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage in Washington, D.C., alongside Oakland Rising artists. courtesy of NAIMA NASCIMENTO
Attending Oakland School for Arts in middle school, Nascimento helped confirm her commitment to music and also brought together her band, Salty Sally. The group of four girls have performed at a number of folk and bluegrass festivals across California, supported by parents who help organize gigs. Though the members are now spread out in college or different cities, they still reunite on occasion for performances.
“It’s been amazing to watch the band grow,” says Nascimento’s mom, Sequoia Chappellet-Volpin, “especially now that they’ve matured into this seamless unit that sounds incredible live.”
At CHS, Nascimento co-founded the Bluegrass Club with fellow junior Milena Meyers. She also participates in chamber choir and orchestra and plays varsity field hockey and soccer.
