Massima Bell on Coming Out, Gender, Identity, and Building Her Chosen Family

In this episode of Identified, Nabil Ayers speaks with Massima Bell—music producer, model, activist, and co-creator of Transa—about her journey through gender, place, and chosen family.

Massima grew up between two vastly different worlds: a 100-year-old farmhouse in rural Iowa and a life on the move with her mother, a PhD who brought her to urban and suburban spaces from Maryland to Buffalo. Her relationship with place—particularly the tension between the beauty of nature and the discomfort of rural social spaces—forms a backdrop to her story of coming into her identity.

Massima shares how coming out as nonbinary and later as a trans woman shaped her relationships with her parents, especially the profound moment her father responded to her transition with just one word: “Congratulations.” She opens up about estrangement and reconciliation with her mother, the challenges of early transition, and the emotional weight of building a life where her body and spirit could align.

This episode explores themes of gender identity, ancestry, estrangement, reconciliation, rural vs. urban America, and the power of chosen family—especially the trans women she calls her “sisters,” who form the heart of her most meaningful bonds.

Guest: Massima Bell

Host: Nabil Ayers

Executive Producer: Kieron Banerji

Production Company: Palm Tree Island

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