Introducing Canadian electronic R&B/soul singer-songwriter emerging from the “Queen City" of Regina, Saskatchewan LOA, the feminine force behind the new-wave sound rising out from the prairies. In a land primarily known for folksier fare, the Canadian songstress aims to breathe new life and substance into the prairie sound. Likened to that of other dark, electronic R&B artists such as Banks, Grimes, and Purity Ring, LOA brings her own coalescence of dark mysticism to the genre, making her better known to many as the "3 Witch.”
Within the past year alone, LOA has toured nationally, as well as internationally, performing at showcase festivals such as Canadian Music Week in Toronto, ON, Breakout West Festival in Edmonton, AB and FOCUS Wales in Wrexham, UK. Following her recent UK tour, LOA was featured by renowned UK music news site, Drowned in Sound, in their festival recap article, DiS Does FOCUS Wales 2017.
I got the chance to learn a little bit more about LOA when I was given the opportunity to interview the singer which you can read on about as follows:
MHB: Can you introduce yourself to our readers?
LOA: Ayy, I’m Jessica Burnett aka LOA, the new-wave/alternative R&B singer from the Canadian prairies.
MHB: How long has music been a part of your life and how did it come to be a part of it?
LOA: Music has always been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. The first song I can recall singing was “Oh My Darling Clementine” when I was about 3 or 4 and my babysitter used to play it to me on the piano. My mother is also a singer and always encouraged my love of music. I took many lessons growing up; singing, piano, harp, music theory, and saxophone were all part of my weekly routine.
MHB: When was it that you realized your voice could be used as a special instrument and that making music was what you wanted to do?
LOA: I’d say music was always what I wanted to do. However, I only recently found my voice as LOA in 2015 when I recorded my first demo tape. That was when I really began pursuing music as a career choice.
MHB: Who were some of your biggest musical influences growing up and who are some current artists who are influencing you and your music?
LOA: Growing up I listened to a lot of 90’s hip-hop, so I was heavily influenced by Eminem. I loved memorizing lyrics and spitting them out as fast as possible. I even used to memorize TV jingles and sing them all in a run-on fashion when I got bored. I also listened to a lot of The Killers, Johnny Cash and Kanye. It wasn’t until later in life that I really fell in love with R&B and the female voice. Now, I’m heavily influenced by artists such as Banks, SZA, Halsey, Purity Ring, Sabrina Claudio, Milk & Bone, Syd, The Weeknd, 6lack, A. CHAL, Bryson Tiller, and the list goes on.
MHB: Without using any musical terms, how would you describe your sound to a new listener?
LOA: Dark, introspective, surprising.
MHB: Can you tell me a little bit about your creative process? It is typically the same or does it differ?
LOA: It’s definitely a changing process. Sometimes I’m inspired by a beat, sometimes the beat comes after the melody and is built around it. Regardless of beat or melody though, lyrics are almost always the first thing in my mind.
MHB: If you had the opportunity to collab with any artist of your choosing, who would you choose?
LOA: I have to say Kendrick. He’s been at the top of my list ever since he dropped m.A.A.d City.
MHB: Let's talk about your single 'Funeral'... How did it come together and what was the inspiration behind it?
LOA: “Funeral” really came to me all at once as I was driving around my neighborhood early one evening. I had to pull over and type the words into my notes app while I was still firmly grasping the idea. I think it came from a persona I had been suppressing… This utter deviant that arose from having suffered an extreme emotional trauma. It seems cliché, but I think she is set apart in the way she elects her own fate upon being given a choice. She then unapologetically temps her scorning lover to reconvene with her, as if to say “join me in this hell I now revel in because of you.”
MHB: What can we expect to see from you in the coming months?
LOA: I’m super excited to be doing a lot of touring for the LOA TIDE EP in the coming months. We will be playing quite a few dates across Canada this April leading up to our hometown EP release party at the Lot Club on May 4th and our showcase performance at Canadian Music Week 2018 in Toronto. From there we’ll be flying across the pond to play in the UK and Netherlands for the month of May. After tour we’ll be getting straight to work on recording our second EP this summer.
MHB: What would you like people to take away from your music?
LOA: I hope people feel a deep movement of dope energy that they can embody and take with them to the club, the streets, or just driving around with their thoughts late at night.
MHB: If you got stuck on an island and had the choice of one record to have with you, which would you choose and why?
LOA: “When the Sun Goes Down” by Kenny Chesney because it fits the beach mood and reminds me of my family cabin in the summertime.
MHB: What would you say is your life's "theme song"?
LOA: My mom says “Daydream Believer” by The Monkees was playing on the car radio when my parents brought me home from the hospital after I was born. She says it’s been fitting of me ever since.
MHB: Can you tell me one random fact about yourself?
LOA: My guilty food pleasures are spicy ramen, salt & vinegar chips, and pizza with Caribbean jerk sauce :)
MHB: What does music mean to you?
LOA: Music is the vibe. Music is the energy. Music is the memory.
The emerging singer has shared the rematered, EP version of her first single "Funeral" from her upcoming debut EP, Tide. Produced by Walt Jeworski from the world-renowned, NYC-based MSR studios and Heights Beats (producer on Shad’s Juno Award-winning album TSOL) with mastering by Colin Leonard, mastering engineer behind Bryson Tiller’s US Billboard 200 debuted #1 album, True To Self, and Migos’ US Billboard Hot 100 #1 single, “Bad and Boujee,” the track "Funeral" speaks about the death of previous identities in exchange for finding strength in a new one. The single combines LOA’s experience in a variety of genres to develop a new-wave blend of smooth, modern R&B/soul.
Check out "Funeral" which can be heard here and be sure to watch out for LOA's debut EP, Tide dropping in spring of 2018:
Lyrics to “Funeral”
I’ve been waitin’ in my grave
Patiently since the day
You put a price on my head
Looked at me and said
I’d be dead
Dead if I stay
So won’t you come to my Funeral, come
Save the date
Tell your baby she’s not welcome
‘Cuz I’ve been hot down here
It’s the party of the year
Won’t you come to my funeral
Come to my place
Where forever more I stay
Won’t you fall to your knees
Pray to the birds and bees
Won’t you come to my funeral
Yeah ‘neath the sea is where I lay
Drinkin’ in the salty waves
So won’t you bring your bottles down
And together we can drown
Come to my funeral, come
Come to my place
Where forever more I stay
Won’t you fall to your knees
Pray to the birds and bees
Won’t you come to my funeral
Yeah everybody that you know
Is comin’ to the show
Put on your best black duds
Bring some of those good drugs
Won’t you come to my funeral
Come to my place
(Come on down)
Where forever more I stay
(You made my bed)
Won’t you fall to your knees
Pray to the birds and bees
(You did)
Won’t you come to my funeral
(Now lay your head)
‘Cuz I’ve been waitin’ in my grave
Patiently since the day
You put a price on my head
Looked at me and said
I’d be dead, if I stayed
To hear more from LOA visit her website and, be sure to follow her
on SoundCloud, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.