MEET OUR TEAM
Kaitlyn Nicole
Founder/Owner
Kaitlyn is an experienced music blogger, singer/songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist. She is a student at Berklee College of Music pursuing a Bachelor's of Fine Arts with a focus on Vocal Performance and Songwriting. She's been a singer since she could talk, participating in several advanced and professional choirs throughout her life. She's a huge Swiftie and has been since she was six years old. She also enjoys musical theatre and teaching private lessons.
Instagram: @kaitlynnicole.music
Melina Darlas
Review Writer
Melina is a student at Santa Barbara Community College studying business. She enjoys reading, fashion, going to concerts, and traveling to new places. She also has a podcast titled "i've been thinking..." that she started with one of her college roommates, Gillian! Melina hopes to start a career in the music industry and to continue pursuing creative projects!
Instagram: @melinadarlas
Jane Katryn
Review Writer
Jane is currently studying English and Psychology at the University of South Carolina. Being creative is her life; choosing to spend her free time writing their manuscript, researching/creating art, adopting new plants, and traveling the world in search of new recipes.
Instagram: @janekatryne
Giavanna Gradaille
Review Writer
Gia is currently studying English at Columbia Basin College with plans to transfer to a University in the future. She's a Jersey package that was accidently delivered to Washington state, but the happy accident has gotten her accustomed to backyard concerts and the underground music scene.
Instagram: @gia.gradaille
Kyle Stiver
Review Writer
Kyle is a student at Duquesne University studying for a BA in Music and Theatre. He is the host of "Sticky Sweet" through WDSR at Duquesne, a show that focuses on bringing brand new pop music into the spotlight. He is an avid singer/songwriter and is currently working on his debut music! Artists that are currently inspiring him include Tove Lo, Hayley Kiyoko, Halsey, Kim Petras, and Charli XCX, to name a few. He is an avid lover of anything and everything that deals with pop music, and is working towards a career as a recording artist.
Instagram: @lapalmfruits
Gillian Mena
Review Writer
Gillian is a Communications major at UC Santa Barbara. She is passionate about music and has been playing various instruments since she was a child. She enjoys reading, traveling and co-hosting her podcast "i've been thinking..." with Melina! She hopes to eventually further her career within the music industry.
Instagram: @g.illy.m
Adelae Norwood
Review Writer
Adelae is a student at Santa Barbara City College studying psychology and film. She loves to travel and hopes to study abroad for the remainder of her college years. She has been passionate about everything within the arts from a young age, such as art, music, film and writing, and intends to pursue as many facets of it as possible within her career while positively impacting those around her. She is very spontaneous as says yes to every adventure and new opportunity, and is excited to see where life takes her.
Instagram: @adelaenorwood
Jenna Barton
Review Writer
Jenna is a graduate from Eastern Illinois University, where she studied psychology as an undergraduate. Music has always been a part of her life for as long as she can remember. In her free time, Jenna makes playlists on Spotify and enjoys discovering and listening to new music. She loves any opportunity to share her passion for music with the world.
Instagram: @jenna_bartonnn
Zewdi Cass
Review Writer
Zewdi is a graduate of the University of Oregon and is from Portland, OR. She loves to listen to music and discover new artists, while also staying up to date with the biggest names in music, such as Taylor Swift. She loves attending all types of concerts and is excited to discover even more music through Pop Passion Blog.
Instagram: @zewdi
Mia Mangione
Review Writer
Mia is an alumni from Towson University in Baltimore, Maryland with a degree in Psychology. Mia is a devoted lover of music who as a child would wake up at 6am every morning to watch vh1 top 20 countdown and spend endless hours on YouTube researching different genres and artists. One of her favorite pastimes is attending live music events; she has seen over 40 artists live in concert! She also dabbled in singing and has joined multiple choirs and acapella groups. She is working to release her own single in the near future. She keeps her heart in music through several avenues such as singing, songwriting, writing music reviews, and contributing to local music events through crew support.
Instagram: @masdmang
Sarah Curry
Interviewer
Sarah is a senior at the University of Central Florida studying Advertising and Public Relations. Music has always been her main passion in life and she dreams of one day being involved in the industry herself. She is known for following her favorite artists, like Harry Styles and Greta Van Fleet, across the country on tour. To this day, she is just as obsessed with One Direction as she was back in 2011 and is stilling holding out hope for that reunion!
Instagram: @itbesarahc
Karlee Smith
Review Writer
Karlee is a graduate from Arizona State University. She likes spending her time reading, listening to music and attending concerts. She is very active online with her favorite artists and enjoys finding new music to fall in love with. Her music taste ranges from Taylor Swift to any and all sad indie songs. However, she appreciates all good music with an impressive hook and meaningful lyrics.
Instagram: @karleesmith13
Megan Cao
Review Writer
Megan is currently studying Communications at the University of Michigan with the hope to minor in Performing Arts Management. She's always loved music and is always excited to expose herself to new genres and artists. She's also a huge film buff.
Instagram: @meg_caoooo
Andy Mockbee
Review Writer
Andy is currently a Senior undergraduate student at the College of Wooster studying English and Education. He loves writing about music, attending concerts and playing the piano. He also is a host for his college radio show, Woo91.
Instagram: N/A
Troy Sica
Review Writer
Troy is a Junior at Hofstra University in New York, studying Music Composition and Theory. From a young age, Troy always had a passion for music, his main instrument being viola and later on picking up the piano, trumpet and alto saxophone. He is honored and please to be granted this opportunity to write and work with these wonderful people at Pop Passion Blog, sharing and spreading our love for music!
Instagram: @troysica
Kendall Koval
Interviewer
Kendall is a blogger, multi-instrumentalist, and an avid music lover. She is a student at The George Washington University majoring in Psychology and English. She has been playing guitar since she was a kid and is always trying to broaden her musical interest. She also loves to read in her free time and has an interest in literature!
Instagram: @kendallkoval
Tessa Brainard
Social Media Manager
Tessa is a senior at Arizona State University pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communication and Media Studies. She grew up in Sedona, Arizona listening to every genre of music, though she started going to punk and hardcore shoes at age 11. Now she primarily listens to indie pop. She once wrote a 20 page paper on fangirl culture and can usually be found at a concert or travelling to one!
Instagram: @thxrosewoods
Alyssa Gallardo
Review Writer
Alyssa is an English major at the University of Alberta. She's been surrounded by music her entire life, having had musicians for relatives and growing up in choir and music related activities. Some of her favorite artists include Mitski, Kendrick Lamar and Steve Lacy. She hopes to become a screenwriter or an editor of some sorts in the future - or at the very least stay within the writing community.
Instagram: @alyssa2gallardo
Stephanie Berning
Review Writer
Stephanie is an English major at California State University of Los Angeles, with hopes of becoming a high school English teacher. She grew up in Los Angeles playing the piano and reading. She loves going to concerts and buying vinyl records. Her favorite types of music are alternative indie pop, Beabadoobee and Beach Bunny. Ultimately, she loves music and is proud to be a writer at Pop Passion Blog.
Instagram: @stephanieisberning
Emma Kimberli
Review Writer
Emma is an aspiring freelance writer with a niche for music! She is taking a gap year before starting college and gaining writing experience while she does so. Some of her favorite artists include Conan Gray, Doja Cat, Mitski, Megan Thee Stallion, and The Neighborhood. She was in choir for six years where her love for music and singing flourished and continues to grow.
Instagram: @emmakimberli