L.E.
Gig Seeker Pro

L.E.

New Orleans, Louisiana, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2019

New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
Established on Jan, 2019
Solo R&B Pop

Calendar

Music

Press


"L.E. Is Buiding A Musical Empire On The Foundation of Her Family Church"

L.E. would be the one in your friend group that has it together. Upon our first meeting, she offers to pick me up from hotel. I stand outside the NOPSI Hotel and close my eyes as I allow the New Orleans heat envelop me. All of a sudden a small two-door white Mercedes pulls up to the front. I see a girl, probably no taller than 5’3″ smile from the car. It’s L.E. She gives me a hug like we are old friends and we instantly start talking like we are.
We talk men, relationships, being a woman focused on her career. It’s hard to believe I’m talking to a 26 year old because she has the wisdom and thoughts of someone who has lived. Like really lived. I met L.E. by chance. In order to even allow Ms. Richard’s old dance studio to be in the documentary, I had to track down the home owner, which turned out to be L.E.’s. She told me off handedly, as if home ownership is easy, “I wanted to own my own place in New Orleans.” It spoke to the determination and resilience of L.E. She’s a woman if she wants something to happen, she makes it happen. There is no, “but, what if?”

L.E. is what the industry would call a triple threat: she can sing, she can dance, she can play instruments. Upon meeting her, you instantly get lost in her smile. She’s warm and welcoming, which makes it no surprise she also teaches voice lessons to students. We talk about this and she says, “It really just started by word of mouth…and it just grew into a full fledged business.” Talent.

The artist is well known in NOLA, with her family owning a historical church in Treme for generations. This is the location she chose for her photoshoot. As the camera clicked, L.E. gave me a series of poses in the pew of her father’s (once grandfather and yes, great grandfather’s church), including sexy poses. It was refreshing…and surprising to see someone so comfortable in a religious space. As if she was reading my thoughts, she laughs and says, “I spend a lot of time here.”

Her brother is also a musician, a well-known drummer. He’s currently out of town for a gig. He calls during our shoot, “We talk every day,” she reveals. Her family is close and they are all involved in the church, which is located on a beautiful street surrounded by colorful homes in NOLA. As I’m shooting L.E. outside, a second line marches and dances by in honor of Juneteenth. Though I’d been to NOLA over seven times by this point, it was my first second line. Together, we chase it for a few blocks, dancing and taking some photos. L.E.’s focused, yet carefree nature is a characteristic that seems rooted amongst all New Orleanians.

Though L.E.’s ex-boyfriend is a popular hairstylist in New Orleans, she does her own hair and makeup for the shoot. “We’re still really close,” she tells me and adds, “He does my hair all the time. He believes in me.” Once you hear her music, you instantly will believe in her too. As we cruise down the road, her soulful voice belts through the speakers. I look over in slight shock that this voice is coming out of this petite woman.

“I’ve loved music all my life,” she tells me with a dreamy smile, “It’s me.” - Hello Beautiful


Discography

Savage Habits 2019

Photos

Bio

American singer and songwriter L.E. synthesizes classical, gospel, RnB, and jazz in her self-released debut EPHe Loves Me, He Loves Me NotBorn Joel Callonia Dyson in New Orleans, Louisiana in 1992, L.E. has perfected the art of softly blending the edges of sexy vibes and effortless style.  

Affectionately known as Ellie, the intimate relationship Dyson shared with her late grandmother, Rose, inspired the origins of L.E.  Similar to the relationship with her grandmother, L.E.'s musical influences all stem from women who have stirred the music industry in dynamic ways with their gutsy voices, beauty, and emphasis of black culture style and performance.

L.E.’s devotion to creating timeless projects pay homage and continue the work of the women who have cemented a space for her in the global music industry. The legacies of Leontyne PriceKathleen BattleBillie Holiday, Sarah Vaughn, Whitney HoustonDiana RossChaka KhanCeCe Winans, Brandy, Aaliyah, and Beyoncé, are gracefully stitched in the fabric of her sound and the framework of American culture.

L.E.’s love for music led her to the New Orleans mecca of art, The New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, paving the way to Rochester, New York, where she excelled academically, receiving numerous awards, scholarships and performance opportunities at the Eastman School of Music.

Dyson has appeared in a vast array of performances and venues, representing global cultures and prestige, such as the New Orleans Opera Association, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and her role as Ti Moune in the Tony Award Broadway production, “Once on this Island”.

Dipped in the sweetness of southern charm, L.E.’s lyrics entice music lovers to reflect on the beauty of love and the veracity of pain with the unfeigned divinity of her voice. The multifaceted mogul, Dyson, currently owns Beyond the Stage LLC, which provides private vocal coaching and an intensive voice summer camp in New Orleans for youth across the United States.



Band Members