Lesedi Lofi is a musician based out of Hollywood, California. He draws influence from artists such as Jimi Hendrix, Nirvana and Eric Clapton. Throughout his youth, Ledesi took music classes and began to form his musical ideas. At the age of 18, Ledesi met producer Greg Townley by chance whilst busking in Hollywood. Following this meeting, Ledesi received an opportunity to record his first album, “Street Faces”. Townley set Ledesi up to record at the world famous East West Studios in Hollywood, and they successfully raised $15,000 on kickstarter to fund this project. Currently, Lesedi is working on a new EP which showcases his growth into his own unique style.
“Break” is the latest single by Lesedi Lofi. This song is super catchy; the first thing you’ll notice is how great and natural sounding the groove is from the get go. The beat is punchy, the bass is nice and grounded, and the guitars are lush and rhythmic. All of this is the perfectly produced backdrop for Lesedi Lofi’s sincere and heartfelt vocals and lyrics. The overall energy of the song seems quite positive and sincere. The guitar solo is used to great effect, dividing up the song in the middle very nicely. The solo itself is simple, tasteful, and so effective. The arrangement of the song itself is nicely paced also, with some synth-like elements appearing towards the second half. The chorus then drops to a whisper and then builds up to the final chorus which acts as the climax to the song. Lesedi Lofi uses simplicity to his advantage here and has managed to create a song that is quite uplifting. We recommend you give “Break” a listen, as well as the rest of Lesedi Lofi’s EP!
Listen to "Break" here and get to know more about Lesedi Lofi below!
Thank you for answering a few of our questions! So to start off here, can you tell us a little bit about your background and how you took your first few steps into the musical world?
My musical background is rooted in family and the church. My grandfather is a pastor and was actually a recording artist waaaayyyy back when. He taught my mother to sing who in turn taught me. As long as i or anyone else can remember i wanted to play guitar and sing. I got my first guitar at 13 and have been writing and performing original music since. I met Greg at 19 and recorded my first album at east west studios. After that ive been working closely with live ice house records to continue developing and releasing music and videos through their outlets. I had the honor to meet jared leto and work with 30 seconds to mars on their "city of angles".
Can you talk a little bit about your writing process? How do you take your ideas and end up with a finished product?
My writing process is largely a product of 2 things; meditation and raw emotion. Not exactly the Buddhist type: but moreso those moments of clarity in between chaos. Conversely, raw emotion and unbridled feelings usually spark the first lyrics or melody and gives me substance to reflect upon and refine. My writing process is relatable to a marble slab being chiseled.
Here’s an interesting one for you. You’re on a desert island, and you can only listen to three artists for the rest of your life. Who are they and why?
3 artists forever? Fela kuti, queen, and stereolab just to keep it interesting. Fela kuti for the mornings, he was a great composer and a big influence to keep a nice rhythm in my music. Queen because...well.... QUEEN! Lol those guys won. Period. Case over, there will never be another band even close, queen rules the day. Lastly, the french- british funk jazx experimental band stereolab. Not a lot of people know of them and thats cool. However no-one is as unique, original, and badassas these cats. I love listening to then to be in a good mood before bed. Id have that island lit asf
Your new single, “Break”, seems to have a very positive energy. Is this something you had worked out before, or does that mood just come naturally to your music?
My music is melancholy, deceptively so. "Break" is actually a dark ass suicide ridden song lyrically. I tried to balance such a heavy load by writing overly poppy chord progressions, its a motif throughout the first album. Its like," yeah this really sucks, lets sing about it" lol. So i definitely think alot of the happy feeling waa planned. When i met with the producer Greg Townley, he caught that pretty quick and amplified it. The result is like chocolate covered chili pepper. It looks sweet until uou bite into it and taste the fire.
What can we hope to see from Lesedi Lofi in 2019 and beyond?
So 2k19 is my year. I got a whole new e.p. recorded being mastered and some really cool visuals. Between "BREAK" and now, I've had the pleasure of working with live ice house records for my A&R needs over the last few years. Using the resources and work ethic from their has shaped lesedi lofi into a legitimate force! Im excited to get all this awesome music out and hopefully tour.
Connect with Lesedi Lofi on social media
Instagram: www.instagram.com/@lesedi_lofi
Facebook: www.facebook.com/lesedilofi
Twitter: www.twitter.com/lesedilofi