At 19, sophomore Rayna Marie has become one of the most recognizable voices on campus, but her journey began long before she was asked to sing the National Anthem for university sporting events.

She still remembers the pit in her stomach as she stood before a local crowd in a Westminster dive bar, unaware that the moment she stepped up to the mic would become the moment she found her voice. A voice that would carry a dream bigger than she ever could have expected.   

Marie’s passion for singing blossomed at a young age. Growing up in Thornton, Colorado, her house was always filled with music.

“I’ve been singing my whole life and playing the guitar as long as I can remember,” Marie said. 

That love for music became more than just a casual pastime when her mom eventually pushed her to sing at her first-ever bar. After that first performance, the dive bar offered her a regular spot and paid her to sing for them.  One bar quickly turned into a handful and soon enough her weekends were spent playing for new crowds and different faces. 

Her time in high school was coming to an end and her focus shifted to where her ambition was going to take her next.

“My dream was always to go to the University of Tennessee in Knoxville,” explains Rayna. “I fell in love with Nashville, and Knoxville is only 2 hours away. If I could make it to Nashville, I knew it would help my chances of being discovered.”

It wasn’t until Rayna toured CMU that she changed her mind.

“Between the scholarships they offered me and the location, I really fell in love with it here,” she said. 

Just as she learned how to do it back home, she began making connections and getting her name out there. Soon her spot was secured in wineries and bars in Palisade and across Grand Junction. In the meantime, she worked on releasing her first EP, which debuted on Jan. 9 of this year.

“If I had told high school Rayna that I would be releasing my first EP, I would be in shock,” Marie reflected on this huge milestone.

Shortly after this breakthrough, Director of Campus Recreation, Michael Hughes, asked her to perform the National Anthem at the university’s Men’s Basketball game.

“I was so nervous. I had finally become confident singing at my gigs, but the National Anthem was the one thing that still really freaked me out,”  Marie said.

She said that the National Anthem is one of the hardest songs she performs, not just because it’s sung a cappella but because its wide vocal range demands absolute control. After that first game, something shifted. She quickly became a staple at the university’s basketball match ups, her voice rising over packed arenas. Before long, baseball, hockey, and wrestling teams were asking for her, too. What started as a nerve‑wracking challenge soon became something she slipped into naturally; her performances carrying her name across campus.

Looking back, she remembers how nerve‑wracking those early performances were, a feeling that quickly turned into a love for performing the song.

“It was something that I was really intimidated to do, but it helped me grow so much, and of course, I love supporting the Mavs,” Marie said. 

Although she has come so far on her journey, this is just the beginning for her. 

“I constantly remind myself that no matter how many no’s I get, that is one step closer to a yes,” she said. 

As she makes the most of her time in Grand Junction, Rayna Marie is working on shaping a musical identity she hopes will follow her all the way to Nashville.

“I am so grateful for how much people have done for me to get where I am. If it weren’t for my mom, I wouldn’t have my first EP, and if it weren’t for Michael, I wouldn’t have the opportunity to sing for the school.” Marie said. 

While her time at Mesa is one stepping stone in a much bigger story for her, it’s a chapter she knows she’ll look back on with gratitude. These stages, these crowds, these early chances to be brave; they’re the foundation of the dream she’s preparing to chase all the way to Nashville. The dream that first sparked on a tiny stage in Westminster.