Dundas-born singer Maggie Szabo is working her way up in Hollywood

Maggie Szabo has been trying to make it as a singer-songwriter for a decade.

The Dundas-born artist has been building up her fan base for years, releasing EPs and singles, writing songs for other artists and TV shows, and exploring a slew of disparate genres along the way.

For Szabo, the grind and the journey are worth it because she is getting to live out her childhood dreams.

I've always wanted to sing," said Szabo, who is currently located in West Hollywood, California. I've always wanted to write songs. I don't know a part of my life where music wasn't in it. So, there's just really been no other option for me."

After high school, as Szabo's peers started to go to college and begin their careers, she decided to drive down to Nashville. She grew enamoured with the city, and felt at home in the community of songwriters and musicians that she found herself alongside.

I really like fell in love with the idea of being surrounded by people who love music like I did," she said.

She ended up staying there for a year-and-a-half and recorded a five-song EP which caught the interest of a Toronto record label, that offered her a deal. Excited at landing her first record deal, she signed it. At around the same time, her work visa expired, and she was forced to return to Canada.

Her album made the rounds in her home country, and she even had a single, Lovesick," get some radio airplay. But she said she knew she wasn't where she was meant to be.

I kind of knew I wasn't going to stay in Canada," she said. I wanted to check out other places and I always had like a special affection for California."

She took a trip to Los Angeles to write songs, and fell in love, just as she had fallen in love with Nashville. Of course, history repeated itself. And I was like, Damn, I really love L.A. and I don't want to go home.' So, after a week of me being here, I remember calling home, and I was like, I'm kind of obsessed with it here and I don't really see myself leaving.'"

And she didn't. It's been seven years since that call, and Szabo still hasn't left. She left her Toronto record contract behind and has been an independent artist since. She's found success in songs for television and film, and her music has been featured in Criminal Minds" and in the recent films Polaroid" and Sierra Burgess is a Loser."

She started her own record label, Blue Daisy, where she releases her own music. For me, as an independent artist, it makes me feel like I'm putting on my power suit and going to work every day and I'm treating this like a business," said Szabo. It really does feel like I'm part of something a little bit bigger than just me putting out like a song on my own."

But Szabo isn't afraid of using her songwriting abilities to shed light on important issues. The video for her 2017 single Don't Give Up" features the story of a young girl who is struggling with her gender identity. She has also performed the song numerous times with the Trans Chorus of L.A., including at Los Angeles Pride and in a video performance.

I live in West Hollywood, which is one of the probably the biggest LGBTQ communities in the world," said Szabo. It exposed me to a lot of like the harsh realities that a lot of members of the LGBTQ community face, especially the trans community."

Szabo has since become a fierce advocate for LGBTQ2+ issues. She has a single, Rebuild," coming out in June, and the video for the single will tell the story of TKTKTK, a trans woman who Szabo met through her work with the Trans Chorus of L.A.

She's the most positive, wonderful person I've ever met and her story is just so inspiring," said Szabo. And I thought, What better story to share than hers?'"