RACHEL RIVERO of GITANA MUSIC is a native of San Francisco, California. She & her sister were raised by their single mother and because of a crazy life, they moved often. However, piano lessons and church were a mainstay of her childhood years. She lived in Venezuela as a wee one but was brought back to California at age three so she is fluent in both English and Spanish; a great perk living in California!

Rachel lived her adolescent years in the Fremont area. Family struggles took her to writing poetry and sing as much as she could in church. As time moved on her poetry became songs, writing her first bluesy ditty at age 12; Froggy Had a Spider. Since that time, she has done music wherever she could; school choirs, small ensembles, church choirs, Christian bands or rock bands, and even some musicals.

Rachel is divorced, remarried and has six natural born babes and one step daughter. Through good and tough times music has remained one of Rachel's first loves.

In 1995 when she and her family moved to the Great San Joaquin Valley, Merced became her new hometown. After a few summers hating The Valley heat, she began to realize there was a deep charm and comraderie amid the people of the region. Although born in "The City", deep down, Rachel is a country girl. She loves those wide open spaces!

Rachel's relationship with God, her children and her husband, Daniel, are solid. She hopes in the coming years to continue to do more music than ever and especially be able to do her own songs along with Daniel who is a guitar, drums, pedal steel, banjo, bass and mandolin player. Oh, and he sings pretty too - Daniel and rachel lead worship at Gateway Community Church in Merced which is part of the Christian Reformed Church denom.

She has had the privilege of singing at the Merced County Rodeo Queen dinner and the honor of singing the National Anthem for the Merced County Fair Rodeo. Rachel has been a Worship Leader/Singer for the last 18+ years. 

She desires that her music excite people about The Lord Jesus, her Savior and true First Love and because she has a special love for women and the California Central Valley she hopes that as huge population growth is changing the area, to kindle renewed pride and a positive attitude of expectance and hope to Merced and the Greater Central Valley. While the Great San Joaquin Valley, "the breadbasket of the USA" is changing; God does not. The ultimate in her efforts in music are to glorify God and fire up people everywhere, whether about their community or about the world!