Lea Luna
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Lea Luna

North Hollywood, California, United States | INDIE

North Hollywood, California, United States | INDIE
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"Triple Threat: Lea Luna"

Playing with words is in Lea Luna’s blood. Little is known about the Denver singer/songwriter/DJ’s biological father (she was conceived in a Manhattan sperm bank) except that he was a grad student in the writing department at Yale (and apparently hard up for cash). Although her mother just revealed this detail on Mother’s Day, Luna’s been putting ink to paper for as long as she can remember.

"I still remember the poetry contest my kindergarten boyfriend won. I even remember the poem verbatim. I’ve always fraternized with people who had bigger vocabularies ’cause I’ve always been into puns and language. When I was going through my more painful, adolescent, rebellious phase in high school, writing was my outlet. Most people write in diaries; I wrote poetry and lyrics. I still have fifty or sixty books worth."

Plenty of pubescent teens are prolific poets, but recent Beatport action proves Luna’s got a penchant for the pen (not to mention the pun). "Thrill of the Chase" and “Leaving for Mars”, each sprung from their beat labs earlier this spring, both registered on their respective genre charts. B.Rich, headlining Luna’s birthday weekend kickoff tonight at Cervantes, is behind the dubstep re-rub of the latter. Although his remix is one of Luna’s most successful releases to date, B.Rich is but one of a veritable laundry list of collaborators and producers that includes Mike Hiratzka, Cold Blank, Mike Balance and Soren LaRue, along with locals Jontron, Silas Mera and pianist Michael Scherr. AcidPlanet.com plans to give everyone and their MILF the opportunity to rework Luna’s tune “Mo’ Money” soon.

"Upcoming, I get to work with Quivver and a producer at Universal Records. I’m more stoked about working with a Universal producer than I’ve been stoked about anything in my entire life."

In the meantime, birthday spankings are in order. Don’t forget Luna’s Self-Inflicted tag team partner Adam Consigli.
- 303 Magazine


"Lea Luna: Under Fire"

A simple conundrum plagues the relationship between pop music and electronic dance music: Most DJs would have nothing to spin if the mainstream music industry didn’t mass produce an endless stream of pop singles, but the vast majority of chart toppers are painfully formulaic until a DJ remixes them anyways. Amid the growing popularity of electronica, artists who can deliver the whole package are in higher demand than ever- and Denver native Lea Luna does exactly that. In October, (Strictly Rhythm Recordings sister label) Raid Recordings releases her first full-length album, Rock Show¸ whose songs ride the ever-fine line between dance music and pop music, likely propelling her into the mainstream music spotlight.

Now living in Los Angeles and gigging all over the country, Luna has familiarized herself with both sides of the scene. “I come from the underground, at least professionally,” she explains, “but at the same time I’m inspired by pop stars- which is very taboo. A lot of people in the underground like to stick to their roots for the sake of street cred, and most pop stars don’t want to be as daring as underground music typically has been, so I’m trying to find a happy medium there. The result is pretty, girly pantythrower vocals with dirty, manly basslines.”

Rock Show’s self-titled track is a party anthem that Luna wrote five years ago with another producer’s guitar hook. ”‘Rock Show,’ believe it or not, was an accidental pop song I wrote on day,” she says. “I wrote it a really long time ago; it’s pretty much one of the first songs I ever wrote as a vocalist, even though I’d been writing lyrics my whole life. I sat on that song for years and years. I’ve written a lot of things since then that I consider to be more advanced but still to this day, ‘Rock Show’ gets a lot of attention every time I play it.” Her label has assisted her in rehashing the pop-electronic-rock fusion track to sound more current, and a music video is also scheduled to release around the same time as her album. “Hopefully it opens the door for a lot more,” she says. “I have a whole library of these that I hope to release one after another.”

And despite her Marilyn Monroe-esque looks and sultry voice, Luna doesn’t exude the personality you’d expect from a budding pop star. At Jax Fish House in LoDo during a trip back home to play this year’s Pride Fest, she allows her quirky cleverness to show through, doodling on her table’s paper covering with the restaurant’s crayons. “For some reason, I drew an eyeball that’s also a time bomb,” she says with a laugh. “I’m the Lunabomber.” A few minutes inside Luna’s head also reveal a self awareness atypical of the flighty entertainment princess stereotype you might expect her to embody. ”I care about making something that reaches people in the way that I’ve been reached by the people who make the music that’s inspired me,” she explains. When finding the exact melody, sample or lyric that conveys the emotion she’s set out to convey, Luna also remains mindful of her audience and the industry as a whole.

Concerning the people who have reached her with their music, she cites an array of icons with collective appeal as broad as the demographic she intends to reach with her own. “I think lyrically, I really appreciate Fiona Apple a lot,” Luna says. “She’s probably my favorite lyricist of all time, although she’s a little depressing. I think Skrillex is really killing it. Everyone is gonna say that he’s the best because dance music and electronic music are finally coming out of the underground altogether. Also, Lady Gaga. Although I think I write better lyrics than her, her message and daring image- I think what’s important right now is people pushing those boundaries.” Luna points out that the list goes on and on, but the three mentioned offer a snapshot of the general sound and style that she encapsulates in her recordings.

As everyone knows, though, a true artist is influenced primarily by their own experiences- and about a year ago, Luna underwent a transition that prompted a measure of introspective discovery that reflects strongly in her music. Not only did she orchestrate a move from Denver to Los Angeles, but she began to plan her relaunch as a pop artist with the new album. “It was a complete meltdown,” she explains. “I pretty much left everything that I had- I spent every penny to my name moving out there, I left half my belongings behind, I broke up with my boyfriend, some of my friends haven’t even heard from me and I just took a huge leap because I figured if it’s going to happen, it needs to happen now. And that was right at the time that I got my album deal, which was huge.” In addition to her geographic change of scenery, Luna also had to leave behind the comfort of just being a DJ, learning how to sing and perform her songs onstage as a pop musician.

“I just felt the whole world shift,” she says. “At some point when I was in Denver, I felt l - LoDo Magazine


Discography

http://www.discogs.com/artist/Lea+Luna

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Bio

In an industry of one-trick ponies, Luna has it all: Looks that kill, a dedicated underground following, extensive skills with the tools of the trade, and, last but not least, timing.??In response to electronic dance music (EDM)'s recent presence under the mainstream spotlight, pop music artists incorporate the beats and progressions popularized by the former genre into their productions now more than ever. Such trends invariably backfire, however, when purist fans of the producers from which pop artists borrow their sound challenge their street cred in any kind of open forum. Luna's career, on the other hand, resonates with the long-time supporters of the EDM community as she's been creating music within the genre for much longer than she's been a pop singer. ??Electro/dubstep singles such as "Hearts Under Fire" and "Leaving for Mars" gained her recognition on the Beatport charts around the same time dance music started to hit the mainstream airwaves. This right-place-right-time back story - coupled with her stunning looks, sexy voice and girl-your-parents-warned-you-about mystique - affords her the opportunity to reach a wide audience that ranges from underground music fans to top 40 teenyboppers.??Still an avid DJ/producer, Luna commands an expert grasp of the skill sets required to create music across the entire spectrum of dance music; she's just as comfortable throwing down a bass-heavy dubstep set as she is an uplifting house set. She has performed at legendary nightclubs like Hollywood's Vanguard, NYC's Limelight, Denver's Beta and LA's Avalon as well as festivals such as the esteemed Burning Man.??Luna's most recent releases include collaborations with Sydney Blu, Manufactured Superstars, Revolvr, Quivver, Helicopter Showdown, Jontron, and Dragon. Make sure to check out her new music videos on youtube for her singles "Rock Show" and (coming soon) "Arrest the DJ." For up-to-date information on releases and tour dates, visit www.facebook.com/lealunamusic , www.twitter.com/lealuna , or www.soundcloud.com/lea-luna