Lio was born in Minnesota, USA, and grew up in Sacramento, California. As a child, they were a competitive ice skater. They gave up competing at age 16, but has taken part in charity skating events. In 2008, Lio appeared on cycle 11 of America's Next Top Model (2003). They finished third in the competition. In their modeling career, they were signed with Ford Models. They were very fond of writing and then went on to modeling. They began studying film at Marymount College in Palos Verdes, California. They were writing a zombie movie in their spare time.