YOU(TH) – Lea G

If you are a fan of Sigrid and Florence and The Machine then you have to check out the new EP from Austrian-born, London-based singer-somgwriter Lea G. The five tracks showcase Lea’s blend of catchy pop hooks with acoustic moments along with her angelic, effortless vocals. With twists and turns of pop-influenced production from producer BROOKFIELD, the EP is doused in classic analogue instrumentation from warm glowing guitars, bright drums and steady bass lines and each song leaves a lasting imprint.

We recently caught up with Lea to find out more about the EP and how she got into the music business.

Hi Lea! How’s everything going right now?
Hi! Everything’s good thank you. I am very exhausted but super happy 🙂 The release of my debut EP YOU(TH) took it out of me this year. The process was super fun to do, and I enjoyed every minute of it, but I am looking forward to going back home to Austria for Christmas in a week, so I can chill out for a bit before releasing new music. 
What classic album cover is your current mood?
I instantly thought of Adele – 19, for me it sounds like what autumn and Winter feel like. Cozy, stripped back, reflective and just the right album to make a cup of tea to. 
You’ve just released your new EP ‘YOU(TH)’ – tell us a bit about the songs and the inspiration behind them
All the songs on YOU(TH) are songs I wrote when I was 17 and 18, just about to do my A-levels in Austria and thinking about moving to London. I wanted to capture those feelings I had at the time, and the more general feelings of people around me, like trying to find yourself and what you want to do with your life, confusion and wondering about the future as well as falling in love for the first time. MIDYOUTH CRISIS very much plays into that feeling of uncertainty about your future and trying to stay young and free, when everyone expects you to be an adult. MISSING OUT was the last song I wrote for the EP, just after I moved to London in 2019. It’s about how I just sometimes feel like I’m missing out on stuff people my age do, who have normal jobs or go to University, instead of choosing the road of pursuing my passion on my own. CRAZY is my favourite song on the EP and it’s about falling in love by going on adventures with that person you really like and kind of connects to the last song on the EP – PERSPECTIVE, which is a love song I feel like came from a very „old and wise“ part of my soul. Lots of people who meet me for the first time say that they feel I am an old soul, so having that song on there, written from that perspective just felt right. 

How did your time at the Notting Hill Academy of Music help with how you approached writing and recording the record?
I wrote all songs, except MISSING OUT before starting my course at NHAM, so I think writing wise it didn´t influence it that much. I however learnt a lot about myself on the course, about how the music industry works, and how you need to find „your sound“ if you want to be an artist. So in that sense it really helped me know that every producer I worked with, before meeting BROOKFIELD who produced YOU(TH), never really got me or my sound, and that I had to keep searching for the right people to be part of my projects.
If you could only listen to one record, what would it be?
This is such a hard one as I am a proper old school “album listening person“  but if I had to choose one record right now, to listen to forever ,I would probably choose White Ladder by David Gray. It´s one of my favourite albums ever. 
You were born and raised in the Austrian Mountains – how did you get into music? Did you always want to be a pop artist?
I grew up singing in my school choir from the age of 6 and did lots of classical music for years. I played the violin and listened to classical music only until I was maybe 12 when I started playing guitar so I could accompany myself singing. I was never really interested in pop music until I found Ed Sheeran. I thought if he can play guitar and write songs on his own, maybe I can do it. I remember just starting to write songs for fun and how I just loved doing it. It was and is still just like therapy for me. When I was 16 I then went on a 10 month exchange year in the south of the UK in a town called Bexhill on Sea. I attended a 6th form college there and did a BTEC in music performance as well as As Level courses in English Literature and Psychology. That´s when I fell in love with performing. When I returned to Austria I started busking all across Europe and played small gigs at pubs in my hometown whilst finishing my A-levels. That was when it became clear to me that I wanted to do music for the rest of my life. So I went on a few songwriting retreats to learn more about how the industry works, and shortly after decided I wanted to do a course at the Notting Hill Academy of Music in London. 

How are you liking living in London? Do you miss home much, especially with everything that’s been going on in the last 18 months? 
I moved to London because there are more opportunities for me and my music over here, than back in Austria. Where I am from is still a very conservative place, compared to the Uk. That’s why I love how London is just the biggest melting pot for people and culture from all across the globe. It inspires me to share the city with so many different, interesting people from all kinds of places. What I miss most about home is nature and silence. In Austria I live in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by fields and forrests. The business of London is a lot sometimes and I find it hard to relax because of it sometimes. I also really miss my family and not having been able to see them for the whole year during the worst parts of the pandemic, was super hard. I am very close with them and can´t wait to go home for Christmas next week. 
What would go on your signature pizza and what would it be called?
I am vegan so it would definitely have mushrooms on it. I will call it the G Supreme – tomato base, chargrilled veg, artichokes, oyster mushrooms and lots of vegan cheese. 
What can we expect in 2022? Live shows? More new music?
I have got a really cool support slot show coming up on the 25th of February with a band called Polo. And I will hopefully be touring Europe with my friend Jenem. We had planned a whole tour and organised all the venues for a tour in April 2020 before the pandemic hit. So hopefully we´ll be able to do it in Spring 2022 now instead. And then there will be way more gigs besides that. If you want to hear about it you can visit my website www.lea-g-music.com or follow me on Instagram @lea_g_music 
2022 will be big! I can tell you now that there will be a new single in January which I am very excited about sharing with you. I have also been working on another big project which will be out next year. I am incredibly proud of it and can´t wait for you to hear it.