Lydia Luce is a

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

/ americana singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist based in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

. Brought up in

Fort Lauderdale, Florida Fort Lauderdale () is a coastal city located in the U.S. state of Florida, north of Miami along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of and largest city in Broward County with a population of 182,760 at the 2020 census, making it the tenth ...

, Luce learned how to play viola and guitar from her mother, who conducted her own symphony orchestra. Her mother was also an

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

and a

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

player, and her brother, a

cellist The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a bowed (sometimes plucked and occasionally hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually tuned in perfect fifths: from low to high, C2, G2, D3 ...

. By age 13, Luce was performing with her mother's orchestra Ars Flores. Luce is a

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 ...

graduate, who after graduation moved to Washington D.C. to work at The Smithsonian and

Folkways Records Folkways Records was a record label founded by Moses Asch that documented folk, world, and children's music. It was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution in 1987 and is now part of Smithsonian Folkways. History The Folkways Records & Service ...

. She then left for

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

where she received a master's degree from

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

viola The viola ( , also , ) is a string instrument that is bow (music), bowed, plucked, or played with varying techniques. Slightly larger than a violin, it has a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of ...

performance before moving to Nashville.

Career

In 2015, Luce released her first EP ''The'' Tides. In 2016, she finished as a finalist at the Rocky Mountain Folk Fest songwriting competition and toured with

Sam Outlaw Sam Morgan (born July 28, 1982), professionally known as Sam Outlaw, is a country music singer-songwriter and producer. Outlaw calls his music "SoCal country", country music refashioned with a Southern California vibe of the classic honky-tonk a ...

as a

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

player. In 2017, Luce performed at Merlefest and AmericanaFest, and also toured as an opening artist for Peter Bradley Adams. Her debut album ''Azalea,'' released in 2018, was produced by Jordan Lehning and Skylar Wilson. Luce has also recorded with Joe Pisapia,

Joshua Hedley Joshua Hedley, born and raised in Naples, Florida, is a country music singer-songwriter, violinist, and guitarist. His debut album ''Mr. Jukebox'' was released in 2018 through Third Man Records. Biography Joshua "Josh" Hedley was born and rais ...

Eminem Marshall Bruce Mathers III (born October 17, 1972), known professionally as Eminem (; often stylized as EMINƎM), is an American rapper and record producer. He is credited with popularizing hip hop in middle America and is critically acclai ...

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album d ...

and

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of ''Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (197 ...

Discography

Albums/EPs

* ''The Tides EP'' (2015) * ''Azalea'' (2018) * ''Azalea Strings EP'' (2019) * ''Dark River'' (2021)

Singles

* Sausalito (2018) * Helen (2018) * Azalea (2018) * Like You Do (2018) * Golden Days (2019)

References

External links

Official website

Lydia Luce on Musicbrainz
{{DEFAULTSORT:Luce, Lydia Living people American women singer-songwriters American folk musicians 21st-century American women singers Berklee College of Music alumni University of California, Los Angeles alumni Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American singer-songwriters