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Kelsey Lu

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kelsey Lu
Birth nameKelsey Elizabeth McJunkins
Born (1989-05-12) May 12, 1989 (age 35)
Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.
OriginBrooklyn, New York, U.S.
GenresAvant pop,[1] baroque pop[2]
Occupations
  • Singer
  • cellist
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • cello
Years active2016–present
Labels
Websitewww.kelsey.lu

Kelsey Elizabeth McJunkins (born May 12, 1991), known professionally as Kelsey Lu, is an American singer and cellist based in Los Angeles, California.[3]

Early life and education

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Kelsey Lu was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, and had a strict Jehovah's Witness upbringing.[4] Both of Lu's parents are musicians: their father is a percussionist, their mother a pianist.[5] Their father's family hails from Nigeria.[6] Lu began studying classical composition at age 6, learning piano, violin, and cello.[4] At age 18, Lu left their family home to attend the University of North Carolina School of the Arts on a scholarship.[5] A year later, they dropped out of the school.[7]

Career

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Kelsey Lu recorded their debut EP, Church, in a church in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.[8] During this time, they toured with the band Wet as their opening act.[4] They released Church in 2016.[9] They released their debut album, Blood, in 2019.[10] In that year, they also released Blood Transfusion, a collection of remixes of tracks from Blood.[11] Lu uses they/them pronouns.[12]

Discography

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Studio albums

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Title Details
Blood
  • Released: April 19, 2019
  • Label: Columbia Records
  • Format: Digital download, streaming

Extended plays

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Title Details
Church
  • Released: July 8, 2016
  • Label: True Panther
  • Format: LP, digital download, streaming

Remix albums

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Title Details
Blood Transfusion
  • Released: November 15, 2019
  • Label: Columbia Records
  • Format: Digital download, streaming

Singles

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Title Year Album
"Shades of Blue"[13] 2018 Non-album single
"Due West"[14] Blood
"Morning Dew"[15] 2020 Non-album single
"let all the poisons that lurk in the mud seep out"
(with Yves Tumor featuring Kelly Moran and Moses Boyd)[16]
"Ride or Die"
(with Boys Noize featuring Chilly Gonzales)[17]
2021

Guest appearances

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Title Year Artist Album
"Where or When"[18] 2020 Onyx Collective Manhattan Special
"Manchild" 2022 Neneh Cherry The Versions

References

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  1. ^ url=https://www.anothermag.com/fashion-beauty/12238/kelsey-lu-musician-interview-profile-2020-grounded-blood-transfusion
  2. ^ url=https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/music/kelsey-lu-review-a-beautiful-bewildering-piece-of-performance-art-a4197106.html
  3. ^ Easter, Makeda (August 20, 2019). "Solange. Blood Orange. Kelsey Lu. There's a new wave of genre-bending black artists". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 29, 2019.
  4. ^ a b c Gore, Sydney (February 15, 2016). "Cellist Kelsey Lu Will Have You Under Her Spell". Nylon. Retrieved April 29, 2019.
  5. ^ a b Hager, Emma (July 15, 2016). "Kelsey Lu Doesn't Sound Like Anyone Else". Elle. Retrieved April 29, 2019.
  6. ^ Maitland, Hayley (March 24, 2019). "Front Row Regular Kelsey Lu On Her Jehovah's Witness Upbringing And Stunning Debut Album". Vogue. Retrieved April 7, 2022.
  7. ^ Frank, Alex (August 12, 2016). "Kelsey Lu's Dreams Are Better Than Yours". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  8. ^ Nikas, Joanna (August 25, 2016). "Kelsey Lu McJunkins, Hitting the Stages of Afropunk and Barclays Center". The New York Times. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  9. ^ Lobenfeld, Claire (November 10, 2016). "Kelsey Lu is the maverick cellist whose loop experiments have wooed Blood Orange and Solange". Fact. Retrieved April 29, 2019.
  10. ^ Mokoena, Tshepo (April 24, 2019). "Kelsey Lu Had to Manifest Hopeful Pop from Pain". Vice. Retrieved April 29, 2019.
  11. ^ Bruce-Jones, Henry (November 15, 2019). "Kelsey Lu enlists Lafawndah, Omar S and Skrillex for Blood Transfusion remix EP". Fact. Retrieved April 29, 2019.
  12. ^ Joshi, Tara (5 September 2020). "Kelsey Lu: 'The white, cis, male hetero-patriarchy, it's all being deconstructed'". The Guardian.
  13. ^ "Shades of Blue - Single by Kelsey Lu on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved June 16, 2021.
  14. ^ "Due West - Single by Kelsey Lu on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved June 16, 2021.
  15. ^ "Morning Dew - Single by Kelsey Lu on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved June 16, 2021.
  16. ^ "let all the poisons that lurk in the mud seep out - Single by Kelsey Lu, Yves Tumor, Kelly Moran and Moses Boyd on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved June 16, 2021.
  17. ^ "Ride or Die - Single by Kelsey Lu, Boys Noize and Chilly Gonzales on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved June 16, 2021.
  18. ^ "When or When - Single by Kelsey Lu and Onyx Collective on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved June 16, 2021.
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