Nicole 'Little' Lencioni

Nicole “Little” Lencioni, an award-winning LGBTQ activist, writer and musician, is featred in the touching and groundbreaking docuseries Time of Death, produced by acclaimed production company Magical Elves for Showtime. Time of Death takes an unflinching look at several terminally ill people, including Little’s mother, Maria Lencioni, who was diagnosed with stage-three breast cancer, and the ways in which others are affected by the impending loss, such as the staggering challenges that Little and her two younger siblings faced. Little and Maria hoped that in sharing their experience in the oft-unspoken world of death and dying, they would help families facing similar situations know what to expect and give hope that it’s possible to come out of the other side without losing yourself along the way. Time of Death premiered Nov. 1, 2013.

Little was born in Santa Cruz, Calif., in 1986, and her early life was a struggle, with the constant stress of poverty and a fragmented family. Little turned to drugs and the streets to escape the abuse at home. At age 15 she was institutionalized for a year after being charged with grand theft auto. During that year, Little successfully got off drugs and alcohol and has successfully maintained her sobriety since then.

Never one to keep secrets, Little has a generous spirit that has always compelled her to share her experience with at-risk youth to show that transformation into a better life is possible. Putting her knowledge into action, Little devotes much of her time to activism on behalf of the LGBTQ community. Her work as an event organizer and activist garnered her the 2010 Ally to Queer Youth award. She continues her outreach efforts by speaking publicly with such courageous programs as Be More Heroic, a campaign against bullying, among others.

Little’s lifelong dream of having a career in music brought her to Los Angeles in 2007. Always having written poems, short stories and lyrics, Little was excited to start creating her own sound to accompany the dreamscapes of her words. This journey was cut short in 2009 when Little received the phone call that her mother had stage-three breast cancer. Little quickly returned home, stepped in and served as her mother’s primary caregiver until Maria passed away in April 2013.

Since her mother’s death, she has returned to her creative passions of writing and music. Little puts her sincere and poignant experiences into the songs that she writes and performs for her band, The Switched. She is currently writing an honest memoir about her childhood, from the depths of her darkest moments to her recovery from her inner demons.