Karen Dió isn’t here to play it safe. The rising Brazilian punk rocker just dropped a bold new cover of Chappell Roan’s “Casual,” and it’s anything but casual. Gritty, emotional, and packed with attitude, her version flips the original’s heartbreak into a cathartic burst of fury—because, as Dió puts it, “There is nothing more punk than Drag Queens and queer love.”
The cover, which premiered as part of Amazon’s Artists to Watch 2025 series, sees Dió channeling raw energy into a sound that’s entirely her own. But she didn’t stop there. Alongside “Casual,” she also released a Portuguese-language cover of Pitty’s “I Wanna Be,” a song she’s loved since her Walkman days at 13. “Pitty is one of my inspirations as to why I got into music in Brazil,” she says. “I know ‘I Wanna Be’ is not one of her most famous songs but the song is so good and the lyrics are so real!”
The double release comes off the back of a massive year for Dió, who recently supported Limp Bizkit across the UK and Europe. She’s not slowing down anytime soon either—this summer, she’s hitting the stages at Download Festival and 2000 Trees, cementing her status as one of punk’s most exciting new voices.
Her breakout single “Sick Ride,” which went viral in 2023, marked a turning point. “It was quite out of my world and I really didn’t know what it was going to be,” she recalls. “When I saw all the great feedback and millions and millions of people watching…it’s just crazy.” That momentum has caught the attention of legends like Sum 41, Incubus, KennyHoopla, and Fred Durst—an unlikely but fitting collection of fans for someone whose style refuses to be boxed in.
Now signed to Hopeless Records, Karen Dió is using her platform to spotlight Brazil’s often-overlooked punk scene, all while staying grounded in her Latin roots. “If I can open that door for Latin American artists, then I’ve accomplished my goal,” she says.
Unapologetically loud and fiercely proud, Karen Dió is carving her own lane—and the world’s finally paying attention.
