Leonard Christophere' Walston III (born October 17, 1981), is an American-born singer-songwriter, composer, musician, producer, and

audio engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproduction, ...

. In 2013, his independent release, "You Should Be Here" spent more than three months on the UK Soul Charts and was named 2013's #1 Song of the Year by the Soul Discovery Radio Show and Podcast on Solar Radio.

Biography

Leonard Walston was born on October 17, 1981 in Anderson, Indiana to Leonard Jr. and Harrita Walston. His appreciation for music began at an early age; playing the piano at age four and singing in church and school at age five. In the spring of 2000, Walston left Anderson to attend the

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...

in Boston, MA, where he majored in Music Business & Administration. After graduating in the spring of 2003, he moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota to further his education at the Institute of Production and Recording (IPR) and pursue a career as a music producer and audio engineer.

Recordings

The breakthrough for Leonard Walston occurred with his independent recording, "You Should Be Here", which was written, produced, performed, mixed, and mastered by Walston himself. "You Should Be Here" was released August 13, 2013 on

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

CD Baby CD Baby, Inc. is an online distributor of independent music. The company was described as an "anti-label" by its parent company's Chief Operating Officer Tracy Maddux. The CD Baby music store was shut down in March 2020 with a statement that "C ...

, Google Play, and

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. Within two days of its release, the single became a top seller on CD Baby's Urban/R&B charts. ‘You Should Be Here' was well received internationally, gaining its first notoriety in the UK. The single gained favorable reviews from online Soul and Jazz music reviewers. Sonic Soul Reviews said that Walston "lets his true destiny run free" and that 'You Should Be Here' is a "great song. . ." with "great production, great voice." During an interview with Walston and Soul Discovery's Mick O'Donnell of Solar Radio, O'Donnell refers to Walston and his song 'You Should Be Here' as "an amazing voice, amazing production and lyric content. You can't beat it." Roger Williams of SoulSorts on the HotFM called it "five and a half minutes of the finest soul music release this year"."SoulSorts on the HotFM, Smooth Grooves Radio – Sunday, August 18, 2013"
August 18, 2013. "PodOmatic , SoulSorts on HotFM" Retrieved February 12, 2014.

Discography

Singles

References

External links

UK Soul ChartSoul Discovery

Reviews

Soul Discovery's Top 20 of 2013 on Sonic Soul ReviewsSoulSorts' Top 50 Songs of 2013 on Sonic Soul ReviewsSonic Soul Reviews – Len Walston's "You Should Be Here"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walston, Leonard Living people American contemporary R&B singers Writers from Anderson, Indiana 1981 births Musicians from Anderson, Indiana African-American male singer-songwriters 21st-century African-American male singers Singer-songwriters from Indiana