Niia was born in Needham, Massachusetts, and was trained by her mother in classical piano and began singing and performing at the age of 13.

[1] Bertino's mother hails from Italy and is the daughter of an opera singer, while her extended family boasts many vocalists trained at the Juilliard School.

Backed by a 14 piece orchestra, Niia paid homage to the soundtrack of James Bond films including classics "Goldfinger", "Thunderball", and "The Spy Who Loved Me".

In February 2013, Niia self-released her single "Made For You" and premiered the video, directed by famed American History X director Tony Kaye, on The Fader.

In October 2013, Bertino was the presenter of a TED Talk titled Beauty Overcomes Fear at the annual TEDxOrangeCoast event.