“Without You” is a vulnerable new track from Rio Romeo, honoring grief and identity through music.
Queer LA-based artist Rio Romeo releases “Without You,” a deeply personal new single taken from their forthcoming debut album Good Grief, arriving July 18 via AWAL.
The stripped-back, piano-driven track highlights Rio’s intimate songwriting and emotionally rich vocals. “‘Without You’ is one of the heavier songs on the record,” Rio says. “I wrote it about one of my friends who ended up dying in a suicide by cop incident… That’s so weird—he’ll always be the same person, but that sameness also lives inside me.”
Rio’s lyrical honesty carries through the entire album, which reflects on the artist’s past five years—including homelessness, a traumatic accident, and healing through community. Musically, Good Grief fuses dramatic theatrical elements with raw, punk-inspired energy. 
“Today, more people talk about things,” Rio notes. “Back in 2015, I really could have used somebody saying that it was going to be okay… I want to be able to be that person for the many young Queer fans that I have.”
Rio will embark on the Good Grief! Tour this fall, playing iconic venues like the Bowery Ballroom in New York and the Lodge Room in LA.
With over 713,000 TikTok followers and a breakout hit (“Nothing’s New”) that’s been streamed over 308 million times, Rio Romeo continues to redefine what modern Queer artistry looks—and sounds—like.
