Come one, come all.
I’m here to tell ya’ about Aria Lanelle.
She sings from the heart, pushes creative boundaries as a producer, and explores genres like she’s searching for gold. She’s already got the stripes that put her next to the elite singers you know and love— ranging from Spotify and Pandora editorial playlist listings to amassing more than four million streams. Yep, that’s millions.
Put some respect on this songstress’ name. You’ll come for the stirring melodies and stay for the hints of house, soul, and hip-hop that keep her listeners wondering what she’ll drop next. I’d say she’s the future of R&B, but I don’t want to give her a title — and once you listen to her, you won’t either. She’s aiming to be, quite literally, the future.
Before you get to her future, I’ll tell you about her past.
Before she could walk, she waddled. Before she could waddle, she was singing. Family footage places her in front of a TV singing her heart out as an infant, and it only got even more musical from there.
Since her mother was in the army, Lanelle spent a lot of time traveling with her grandmother who made a living as a church leader. She was exposed to the musical world of the choir from an early age and traveled across the country, taking inspiration from her grandmother and the art she experienced in those years.
Outside of the church, Lanelle learned all about expression through art’s different mediums. Art. Poetry. Paintings. Films. One moment, she was performing with the Boston Children’s Chorus — the next, she’d be walking in a fashion show. After realizing she had what it takes to make it on her own, Lanelle decided to become a musician.
Finding early inspiration in Daft Punk, the Clark Sisters, and Beyoncé, she dropped her debut EP ULTRAGIRL in 2015. With its retro aesthetic influenced by the music of Prince, the vaporwave movement, plus Jai Paul’s leaked album, she found an immediate fanbase and network of creatives that wanted to become a part of her world — one of them being Susan Rogers, Prince’s right-hand engineer.
Instead of striking the same spot twice, her follow-up EP My Name Is dropped the next year and went completely left field. In an effort to make sure people didn’t categorize her as a one-trick pony, she replaced the retro aesthetic with a modern musical style.
In doing so, she pushed the boundaries — shocking her growing fanbase once again and positioning herself as a musical force dedicated to consistently changing things up at a moment’s notice.
The years following saw Lanelle continuously tease new sounds, taking inspiration from house music as well Doja Cat, Tyler, the Creator, and Ty Dolla $ign. Tracks like “WYM,” “Read Your Mind,” (produced by Derek Simpson — known for his work with Odd Future and Kevin Abstract) and “Found It” intrigued scores of listeners as they joined her world in time for her to release The Shock Tape EP in 2022.
Lanelle’s gearing up for the release of her debut album now that serves as a zenith point for her journey so far.
From graduating from the Berklee College of Music and collaborating with popular artists like Durand Bernarr and Zimmer, to having her song “Last Lovers” be featured in the culture-defining TV show All American and even getting coverage from popular platforms like Hypebeast, Afropunk, Okayplayer, and PopDust, it’s time for her to take the next level by storm with this project that’s been in the works since quarantine.
It’s the perfect time to either introduce or reintroduce yourself to her bold, genre-amorphous work. In an age defined by musical trends, Lanelle’s music is a refreshing glimpse of what creative expression can look like. Tap in today and get ready for her future. The fact that no one can predict what it’ll sound like is what you should be most excited about.
- Trey Alston
