Born and raised in Miami, Florida, Mariela Arteaga is a mix of Cuban, Venezuelan, and Trinidadian descent. she speaks fluent Spanish, and her work experience is as versatile as her ethnicity. Arteaga has been a dancer all her life. She enrolled in magnet dance programs for both elementary and middle school. Then went on to audition for the prestigious New World School of the Arts High School where she graduated with honors in classical ballet. Mariela then enrolled at Florida International University. Soon afterwards, she started to dance for the NBA's Miami Heat. She balanced school, work, and dance for two years before deciding to leave the NBA dance team in order to start graduate school.