A CONVERSATION WITH... LUSAINT
With the release of The Apothecary (PT. 2), Lusaint sat down with us to reflect on the last few years of her artistry and look to the future with all that it holds for this soulful singer.
Photo by William Blakesley-Herbert
I’m Lusaint and we’re here at Oslo in Hackney doing my headline show.
I remember when we did the show at Paper Dress Vintage in Hackney, which was one of my first shows that I did. I remember that feeling of performing that show and being absolutely terrified. I remember looking over my lyrics constantly and freaking out. The person I've become and the artist I've become since, it feels like a whole new person that's overcome so much. I've never really had stage fright, but that feeling of not really knowing who you are as an artist quite yet is quite an unnerving feeling. So, to now be able to navigate that feeling and understand who I am a lot more, it's very cathartic to feel that.
How would you describe who you are as an artist now?
At the moment, I'd say calm. There's been so much going on over the past couple of years with a lot of touring and a lot of performances. I've had about a month and a half off because I knew I still had a lot to do. But I'm ready to get back into work again, and I'm ready to do everything I possibly can to make the career tick and make it all happen.
What have you been working on since we’ve last caught up with you?
I have my new EP out, Apothecary (Pt. 2), and I have a new single coming out called ‘Tib Street’, which has a lot of similar vibes to everything that I have released before. But there's more of a ballad aspect to this track that feels really emotive and has a lot of Manchester memories. There’s a jazz club called Matt and Fred's that was the first show I did when I was about 16. I continued playing there for a good few years, and it's where I met my band. It's where I have so many incredible times that of when I'm in Manchester.
It's dedicated to that. Performing there, even at that age, definitely gave me an incentive that it was what I wanted to do. It always sticks with me.
Is there a reason why you wanted that one to be the last single from the EP?
I think because it is so sentimental for me, it felt like a good song to finish on. And even though it's definitely not an upbeat or fast tempo track by any stretch of the imagination, it's something that feels calming, really nice to sing, and has amazing memories that I think of when I sing it. And with my upcoming releases, there are definitely more ballads that I have created that I'm really excited to eventually release. There's a mix of neo-soul, more ballads, and I’m always incorporating jazz and soul. There's a slightly different edge with this new music that I can't wait to dig into a bit more. I'm still working on it, still writing it, but there's definitely a change that I feel excited about.
Photo Credit to Dawbell/Lusaint
How are the two parts of the EP related and separated to you?
The second part of the EP definitely has parts of it that the first doesn't in terms of emotion and how the songs were written. Going into that first part after the Self-Sabotage EP, at the beginning there was still a lot of uncertainty. You can hear in that first part, as there's elements of that through the lyrics and the emotion of the music.
Moving into the second part, there's more of a raw approach to it. And even with ‘Tib Street’, it's laying so much emotion on the line but feeling confident with it rather than feeling you're beneath yourself or doubting yourself. It's not there when I sing it. I hope that you can hear that. There's definitely a lot of improvement within myself that I feel when I sing that second part of the EP. Moving into the next part of my music, I’ll be bringing a lot of that emotion into those songs too. It’s more emotional but in a good way.
Has that been a good comfort zone for you now to be in? To be giving more emotion to yourself?
I’m a person that's quite uptight in terms of emotion. I find it very hard to let go. But I find it very easy to do when I sing. If I go through a bad time and then I perform a gig the next day, it's like I'm okay again. It's definitely a way of expressing yourself that feels very good. There’s a subtle difference between me as Lucy and me as Lusaint, because there's a lot of me as Lucy in Lusaint. My experiences that have gone into Lusaint and Lucy make me the person that I am and it’s important that I recognise that.
Has there been anything happening in your life, whether personally or professionally, that you feel has guided you towards wanting to write more ballads and explore more of that sound?
There's been so much learning about myself as an artist over the last couple of years like when it comes to performing more shows and when it comes to how you deal with everyday life as an artist. Every day is different. There's good days and there's bad days. Sometimes it's not a very nice place to be in your head as an artist. I learn so much about myself through that and it’s given me this opportunity to open up that other box in my mind that’s allowing me to create this new music that feels really special.
Was there any particular song, whether off the EP or anything that you've written so far, that you struggled with in some way that you're glad is now out there?
For sure more of the ballad jazz songs: my first single, ‘Dark Horse’, and others like ‘Summertime’, ‘Dream Life’. There's clearly something in that that I love to perform. Stripping it back to an acoustic guitar and a voice, there's something really unique and special about that. So as much as I obviously love to play with my band, there's something very special about having a very stripped-back ballad. That's something that even when I was supporting Callum Scott in stadiums, we only had an acoustic guitar. There was no band, no backup.
It was very much your voice to sometimes 10,000 people, which was the scariest experience of my life. But then once you start doing it over and over again and you feel that rapport with the crowd, it’s so scary but so rewarding when you do.
Have you had any moments where, whether it is after supporting slots or after your own shows, you've had people come up to you and tell you how much their music means to them?
I actually got given a postcard at a show I did in Milan. This lady came over to me and gave me a postcard with an essay of how much my music means to her, specific parts of a song that I'd written and what she was going through in her relationship and divorce. It was a very sweet part of my journey where it made me realise that what I do is helping people, and that is everything to me.
What does it feel like when you're in the audience versus being on stage?
It depends on the artist but there is so much emotion that I feel for them, because I understand what it feels like to do it. There's so much in that, because when you're performing on stage, you're so exposed and you're giving your diary, your life to these people who can feel something with it. They feel your lyrics and they've been through so many experiences that they can resonate with. It's a very unique experience being an artist, and I would love to get in the minds of more artists. I'm around a lot of musicians, but I'm not really around a lot of other singers that are in the same situation as I am at the moment, so that's quite difficult to navigate. Sometimes you can feel slightly lonely when it comes to this job, but then the reward is you speak to people that have come to watch you and realise how much it's helped them, so that's an amazing feeling.
Do you enjoy feeling like you're baring your soul through your music and through your performances, or do you want to have more of a separation?
It depends on the crowd. You can feel the energy of a crowd straight away, and if they're really feeling it and they're into it, you get so emotionally involved. It’s only me thinking about this, but even if there's one person that I can see speaking or on their phone, my mind is on that one person. It will take me away from my performance. Realistically, they’re probably getting their phone out to take a video, but I’m exposed again and in my head. It’s something I need to get over, really.
are there any certain emotions that you feel like you're bringing onto stage with this new ep especially?
With ‘Tib Street’ especially, I'm really looking forward to feeling that with my band, because I've only really performed it acoustically. So having that experience tonight, and being with the band, it is a whole different feeling completely. I know that emotions will be running high, and it will be hopefully great.
is having the band on stage Almost like a security blanket?
It is a security blanket, actually. You get so used to playing with a guitarist. But even when we were in soundcheck before, and I had the band behind me, it felt like such a reprieve. You do have them as your sounding board, literally and figuratively. Like tonight, I chose to use the wedges rather than in-ears, because I want to experience the music for what it is and hopefully let it breathe and let myself emotionally go. I am worried about my voice going or things going wrong, but I’m letting tonight happen.
What do you have planned for the rest of the year and into 2027 that you can share?
We have the October tour in France, which is going to be a five-day tour, which I'm really, really excited for. And then in the meantime, we're writing completely fresh new music.
There are other things that are coming up in the pipeline that I can't say yet but it's going to be a really exciting time now moving into this next side of the project. There's something different and unique coming, but it still feels very Lusaint. And I can't wait to get more music out there.
I also have a 12-inch vinyl coming out as well of the EP. Because when I worked on this EP originally, it was another transition from more jazz and soul into more of a pop world, which I'm really glad that I experimented with. But it's definitely given me a sense of accomplishment. We're still going to bring that into the next part of what I'm creating, but I don't want to go down that lane as much, and that's okay.
As an artist, you’re constantly figuring out who you are and what you want. This is a whole new learning curve for me. Creating your own music is such a unique thing and you’re constantly learning about yourself, so I'm very excited to release the next set of music.