She Sang, She Modeled, She Showed Up… Meet Katie Roeder of SZN 4
If your mom has ever told you to watch something and been completely right about it, you already understand how I ended up down this rabbit hole. My mom told me I had to check out this girl on Netflix’s Building the Band, and I am so glad I listened. Because plus size singer and model Katie Roeder , Boston born, full of soul, ridiculously talented, is exactly the kind of woman this space was built to celebrate.
Roeder is one quarter of SZN 4, the group formed on the Nicole Scherzinger-produced Netflix series Building the Band, and she just wrapped the twelfth stop of her first-ever tour when we sat down together in Atlanta.
Twelve cities in and having the time of her life and honestly, after spending time with her, that tracks completely. Plus size singer and model Katie Roeder has the kind of presence that makes you feel like you have known her for years within about four minutes.
A Boston Girl Who Never Needed Permission
There is something about growing up in a city that takes no mess that follows you everywhere. Katie grew up in Malden and went to school in Everett, both just outside Boston, in a community with a rich Latino presence that let her stay connected to her Hispanic roots even when most of her Hispanic family lived elsewhere.
“Boston is a very sports city,” she told me, laughing. “My brother loves all things sports, so I was always watching all the games and going to all the parades when all the sports teams would win. And like, that was so much fun to just be in a city that has so much pride for the city itself.”
But more than the sports pride, Boston gave her something else: the confidence to simply not care what people think. “Everyone says that people in Boston are muscles,” she said. “And I feel like that’s mostly just people not caring at all. And I think that definitely carried over. I’m just going to do whatever I want. It is what it is.”
That is an energy, and Katie Roeder has carried it onto every stage she has stepped on.
Musical Theater Kid Turned Neo-Soul Artist
If you thought Katie came to singing in some complicated, winding way, think again. Her parents used to take her to local community theater, and her mom even went when she was pregnant with her. By the time she was old enough to watch a kids’ production and see the girls on stage, her mind was already made up.
“I saw the girls who were in it afterwards, and I was like, I want to be like that when I grow up,” she shared. “And my parents were like, great, let me put you into musical theater.”
She ran with it. But musical theater was only the beginning. Her sound started pulling her somewhere else toward pop, R&B, neo-soul, and soul-forward music. And Adele, of all people, is who lit that fire.
“I think Adele was like, what really made me want to sing for real and not just do musical theater,” Katie said. “I was just addicted to seeing Adele every time.”
And then there is her grandmother. Her paternal grandmother, who passed away when Katie was in second grade, left her with what might be the most meaningful creative inheritance imaginable. “She told my dad, literally, like, some of the last words she ever said were make sure Katie keeps singing and that she never stops.”
She wears a ring from that same grandmother every single day. When you understand that, you understand why Katie Roeder does not take a single performance for granted.
Building the Band Changed Her Relationship With Her Voice
SZN 4 completed by members Donzell, Aaliyah, and Cameron is a group that has been intentional about celebrating their individuality even while building something together. That specific creative approach has done something real for Katie as an artist.
“My relationship with singing has definitely changed in a good way because I’m learning more about myself through different songs that I’m singing and different songs that we’re writing as SZN 4,” she explained.
“We’re also, as a group, putting a big emphasis on individuality because the four of us are very different people who happen to come together and have a really good blend, but we’re still our own individual people.”
She also stepped into songwriting for the first time something that pushed her well outside her comfort zone. “Songwriting is a very scary thing because it’s very vulnerable,” she said. “But having my mirror to help me through it has also been nice.”
Their single “Closer” was dropping that same week we spoke, and she was already calling it her favorite to perform on tour. She pointed to a line from Donzell’s verse “I only need you patient and not obligated” as the lyric that stops her every time. Girl has taste. And that taste is exactly what makes her such a compelling artist to follow right now.
A Modeling Career She Never Planned For
Now, here is the part of Katie’s story that I love to talk about, because it did not start with a plan. It started with a viral TikTok.
Lizzo posted asking people to take on a Karen Clark Sheard run, Katie did it, and then her phone blew up while it was on silent because Lizzo reacted to it on her own page.
“I had my phone on silent, and everyone was blowing me up,” Katie recalled. “And I opened my phone and I’m like, oh my gosh.”
Her first modeling agency found her because of that video. She thought it was a scam. It was not. She flew to LA, did test shoots, and realized she was genuinely good at it and genuinely loved it.
That led her, eventually, to Nike. And not just any Nike shoot… a full campaign, on set with other plus size models, working for one of the most recognizable brands in the world. The full-circle moment was not lost on her.
“I used to work retail at Nike,” she said, laughing. “So it was very full circle.”
On set, she was surrounded by other plus size models, and she made a point of naming that as something meaningful. To be in that room, all at once, working for a brand that big, that mattered.
Let’s Talk About What Is Actually Happening in the Modeling Industry
Here is the part of our conversation that I want to sit with for a second, because it is important and it deserves to be said plainly.
The modeling industry had a moment. Plus size women were getting booked. Brands were making space. And then, quietly, that started to shift. Katie noticed it and she is not the only one.
“I think it’s changed, but I think it’s low-key reverting back, unfortunately,” she said. “I think when I first started, I had so many opportunities all the time. And the past like year or two, I’ve still been working, but not nearly as much, and I’m not the only person who’s been having that issue.”
She described a pattern where plus size models who might wear a size 16 through 20 were being passed over in favor of models who wear an 8 or a 10. The demand for representation has not gone anywhere. The consumer need has not disappeared.
Market research shows that approximately 67% of women in the United States wear a size 14 or larger. The market has not shrunk. The need has not gone away. A portion of the industry has simply decided, quietly, to look the other way.
But here is what we know: the audience is watching. The consumer has a long memory. And the women building careers in this space, like Katie, are not going anywhere.
Her Wish List Is a Whole Mood
In case you were wondering where Katie wants to go next with her modeling career, she did not hesitate.
“Savage X Fenty,” she said. “They’re on my list. Rare Beauty is one. Fabletics. Those are probably my top three.”
And then, because she is who she is, she went one further: “I need Rihanna to, one, come out with Arnott. But then also, I need her to do another one of their shows. And they bring it back, and you need a group to perform, SZN 4 is one.”
Consider this our formal submission on their behalf. Because if anyone deserves that stage, Katie Roeder does.
Style, Nails, Rings and the Art of Being Comfortable and Cute
Katie describes her personal style as “L.A. dancer style, but make it a little bit more girly.” Low-rise pants, comfort as a non-negotiable, and always, always some kind of nail design.
Her nails on the day we spoke were silver – her tour nails, she called them – a departure from her usual gold. She prefers gems, 3D elements and full-on artwork on her fingertips. And her rings? She has one on every finger, including the one from her grandmother that she never takes off.
Her mom tried to get her into jewelry years ago and she resisted. Then a birthday gift of rings changed everything. Now she does not leave home without them.
It is one of those small details that tells you a lot about who Katie actually is when the cameras are not rolling.
“I love to have artwork on my nails always,” she said. And honestly, same.
What She Is Leaving Behind
We closed our conversation the way all good ones should close with legacy. I asked Katie what she wants to leave behind, and she took a breath and thought about it the way you do when a question actually lands.
“I feel like the legacy I want to leave is definitely that you can do whatever you want to do,” she said. “It doesn’t matter your size. I want girls who are younger than me, or even girls who are older than me, to see me and be like, if she’s doing that, I can do it, too. If I want to sing, I can sing. If I want to be in a space where there’s not typically people that look like me, I can be the person to inspire other people.”
That answer is exactly why Katie is so much more than a great voice or a stunning campaign. She is a whole reminder that the space belongs to you if you decide it does.
What Is Coming in 2026
SZN 4 has an album on the way. Roeder is continuing to model, continuing to grow her individual artistry, and continuing to show up in rooms that have not always made space for her.
She is doing it with her grandmother’s ring on her finger, a Kehlani playlist running in the background, and the kind of quiet confidence that does not need anyone’s permission to exist.
She sang her way onto our screens, modeled her way into a Nike campaign and is now writing songs that are going to make you feel something. If you are not already following the journey of plus size singer and model Katie Roeder, this is your sign. Go find her – you will not regret it.
Want to keep up with Katie Roeder? Follow her on social media and stream Season 4’s music wherever you listen.
