Lulu: No, No, No
by Molaundo Jones
Lulu and I met 7 or 8 years ago in Brooklyn. My memory of the day is a bit foggy because it was at a brunch in Park Slope with a bunch of friends and bottomless mimosas. But the vibes were good so we exchanged info and stayed in touch on social. A couple years later, the Clever crew decided to go to Stockholm for our first international retreat. We had a ton of connections there from a mix of our days of having a Swedish intern and our large number of Scandinavian friends. While there, it was our first time experiencing Lulu’s artistry. We attended a studio listening session for her EP “What If” and were blown away by her beautiful voice. That EP is sung all in Swedish but we still connected to the music. The Clever crew ended up hanging out with her crew for the entire night and we all became fast friends. Since then, Lulu returned to NYC to live in Brooklyn. She was always at the top of my list of talented artists in our circle that we should work with. It took a while but it was awesome to have Lulu as one of our first studio session recording artists.
Where are you from and what was it like growing up where you grew up?
I’m from Sweden. I grew up in Sweden, but I'm actually from Eritrea. My parents migrated from Eritrea to Sweden. I grew up a third of my life in the little small town called Borås, which is on the west side, right outside of the Gothenberg. And then a third of my life was spent in Stockholm before moving to New York when I was 18. Borås is a small town versus multicultural Stockholm— two different worlds for me, going from being the only person that looks like me and comes from Eritrea and it's just like in a Swedish town, which was still amazing. When we moved to Stockholm it was kind of like a culture shock for me. But that's the beauty of being able to live in different countries and cities. So I'm just grateful for that.
What music artists would you love to work with?
So the first one is a producer and writer: Max Martin. He’s Swedish pride and joy. I would also like to work with Max Martin, Babyface, H.E.R., Toni Braxton, Avery Wilson, and Daniel Caesar. And I'm a huge fan of Sade.
“What drew me to New York is the creativity there. I mean, there's no other place in the world like it. The energy and ambition that people have— the drive. People are hustlers out there. “
What did you love the most about being in New York or America?
What drew me to New York is the creativity there. I mean, there's no other place in the world like it. The energy and ambition that people have— the drive. People are hustlers out there. And that's what I love about New York. It's like you have your job, but then you have like three sides jobs, and a dream career that you're working hard on, and then you have a business on the side! It's so inspirational. I don't really see that as much here in Sweden. And just the vibe and the people and there’s so much to do there. And the music scene is ridiculous.
What's the music scene like in Stockholm?
So the Swedish music scene is very interesting. I'm actually learning it as I go now. I just came back from the States and am learning a lot. There's a lot of good writers and artists here that I'm discovering and rediscovering. When you're in your own little world as an artist, sometimes you don't really pay attention to other artists. But the music scene is really big here. I’m looking forward to learning more about and connecting with the Swedish music scene. I've just been concentrating on the U.S. music thing for such a long time. But that's my plan now. It's huge. It's exciting— there’s so much talent here!
Outside of Eritrea, Sweden, and NYC, what's your favorite place in the world and why?
I think the Caribbean is my favorite place. I've been to Trinidad a lot of times. I kind of love that vibe over there. But I appreciate home so much more now because I've always been in the U.S. for such long stretches of time. I think I took Sweden for granted for a long time cause I kind of wanted to get away from it for a very long time. It was kind of like, I just want to be in New York and nowhere else. But I've opened my eyes and seen and appreciated home more. Maybe it's because of the quarantine time. But right now I'm just loving being here in Sweden. It's just peaceful. It's way more peaceful than the New York. New York can get very stressful.
Is there anything that you've been doing in particular that's helped you cope during this time of self isolation?
I've really gone deeper into my meditation practice, my yoga practice, and just being mindful. I think when you're inside for such a long time— if you don't have a passion— that it can be a little hard because you're inside all day and you're also working. So for me music has been like my savior. I'm writing more but I'm also making sure that I'm taking this time to just really get deeper into my practice. Like, okay, what are the things that I need to work on even more? Like how can I go even deeper? And now we have all the time in the world. It's really humbling to see what's going on in the world with people. I've been writing and recording, creating art, doing yoga, and meditating. So that's what's keeping me safe.
Clever’s own Charles Vincent Burwell setting up the audio components for Lulu’s studio recording
Now that we've worked together a couple times, what's one thing that you have taken away from working with Clever?
Y'all are awesome! Y'all already know that you guys are super professional. And then there's the vibe. You walk into The Clever Agency’s studio and the vibe is just amazing. You made me feel at home for both of my visits. You cooked food for us, we were chilling, talking, and then we went into recording and it was just a vibe. It never felt like, okay, I'm here to work and it's going to be in out, and then never hear from y’all again. We really talked about the process and you guys did your research beforehand. You were like, “I would like you to sing this song.” You guys are super professional and I want to work with you again.
If you had to give some advice to another emerging musician, what would it be?
Make sure that you're knowledgeable on the business side of music. Make sure that you know what you're doing. Don't sign anything that you haven't been viewed first, that you haven't had somebody look at. Also make sure to work really hard practice every single day. Even if the opportunities aren't there right now, they will be. Just make sure that you're prepared for it and be authentic. Be as free as you can. That's something that I'm still working on. I just want to be even more free in my music. And have fun and never give up. If you love it, you'll never get tired of it and the opportunities will come.