The singer and songwriter opened for Joshua Bassett at Hammerstein Ballroom, where she delivered a magical performance that included her latest singles.
You are fresh off a new single release. What was the inspiration behind “Bad News / Good News” and how long has this song been in the making?
LL: This is probably one of my sassiest songs ever, and that’s why I love it so much. But I wrote this about not really knowing much about the person you're talking to. I was talking to this person and I knew they had been in a serious and long relationship previous before, and I didn't know their friends, I didn't didn't know their situation, their hometown, anything. So I just kind of selfishly and bitterly hoped that they just had a horrible, awful relationship and that they both hate each other and will never speak again. I think the line that sums it up the most is, “no, I'm not your first love, but I want to be your best.” That’s me saying, I know you've had a past, you have history, but I'm still going to be better than all that. It's like very selfish and bitter, but I love it. That's why you get it out through songs. So I'm not selfish or bitter in real life.
You’ve been on tour with Joshua Bassett for a while. How’s the tour been?
LL: It’s been so good. This one’s bigger than the last go, which was really nice to be able to meet the fans previous to this entire tour because I've been opening for the past couple of years for all sorts of different artists and never have I experienced as dedicated of a fan base as this one. Someone was out here since 3 AM, waiting in line. It's crazy. But not only are they dedicated, I feel like for me, as an opener, I expect no one to care and know nothing about me, obviously. And this crowd wants to be a part of the show and they really want to support and that to me is just the most magical feeling in the world as a performer. To be able to just know that people are actually listening, taking it in, and getting to speak to them afterwards is so much fun. Obviously [Hammerstein Ballroom] is a lot bigger of a room tonight, which I'm not thinking about. No, I'm kidding. But I think that's like the magic of his fans is even if it's bigger rooms, you still feel like you can connect to the back of the room because they're just so attentive and they're just so ready to be a part of the show and that is the most unique experience part of all of this.
This time I wanted to step out of my comfort zone and really perform and put on a show. And a lot of the music that I'm putting out right now in this next EP is just bigger and so I wanted people to be able to hear it the way that I envisioned them hearing it. So, yeah, that's kind of the difference with this one. It's been so fun so far. I feel like I've gotten to really connect with so many people and getting to even say hi to people after at the merch table, that's my favorite part. So it's been awesome.
I had never seen that response before. I remember the entire venue was singing back your lyrics to you. It was amazing to watch.
LL: Totally. And that's definitely the first time I've really experienced that too. In general, I feel like especially us doing those few shows, a lot of the same people are coming to this show that were at the Bowery One, so they've already been introduced to me and they are like, supporting me then and are continuing to support me now. And that's the coolest thing ever. I've never been able to really see a crowd singing my words back to me. And the other night there was like the whole front row was doing it and I was just like, I want to hug you all right now and stop the show to hug you and tell you how much I love you. But obviously you can't do that. But it feels really good, of course.
Throughout the tour, obviously, who are you listening to? Who's like, inspiring you this day?
LL: Some artists that have absolutely changed music for me recently are Child with Three Eyes. It's this duo. They're absolutely insane. And there was a point in time over this past summer where I was like only listening to their music, and they just came out with a new album. So, I've been listening to that a bunch. I am really inspired by Madison Cunningham. She shreds on guitar and also comes up with the most timeless, insane melodies and her lyrics are just so unique to her, and I am so in awe of her. I feel like for this show, in prepping for how to perform to bigger audiences and with a band, this is my first time getting off my guitar and actually moving around, which I thought was going to be hard to adjust to, but it's felt so natural. And artists like Remy Wolf and Maggie Rogers, they've really inspired me. I saw Maggie like the week before we left for tour and I was like, oh, shit, this is how you do a show. And so I've been really inspired by them as well. As far as the live show goes.
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