Pop Levi (born Jonathan James Mark Levi, 22 September 1977) is an English

singer Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

multi-instrumentalist A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays two or more musical instruments at a professional level of proficiency. Also known as doubling, the practice allows greater ensemble flexibility and more efficient employment of musicians, where ...

and

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

Biography

Levi grew up in the suburbs of

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

and attended

Shrewsbury School Shrewsbury School is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 13 –18) in Shrewsbury. Founded in 1552 by Edward VI by Royal Charter, it was originally a boarding school for boys; girls have been admitted into the ...

, a

public school Public school may refer to: * State school (known as a public school in many countries), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government * Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging independent schools in England an ...

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to th ...

between 1991 and 1994 where he would skip church to write songs in the basement. In 1997 Levi re-located to

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

to study at

LIPA Lipa or LIPA (Cyrillic: Липа) may refer to: Acronym *Liquid Isopropyl alcohol *League for Independent Political Action, a former American progressive political organization *Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, a performing arts school in ...

and formed the experimental instrumental band

Super Numeri Super Numeri were an English instrumental avant-garde group based in Liverpool and signed to the Ninja Tune label in 2002. The band was formed by Pop Levi (Jonathan Levi), Snap Ant (James Morgan) and Karl Webb and was based at Adlington Hous ...

with Karl Webb and James Morgan who signed to

Ninja Tune Ninja Tune is an English independent record label based in London. It has a satellite office in Los Angeles. It was founded by Matt Black and Jonathan More (better known as Coldcut) and managed by Peter Quicke and others. Inspired by a visit ...

in 2002 and released albums "Great Aviaries" in 2003 and "The Welcome Table" in 2005. During this period, Levi also played bass for

Ladytron Ladytron are a largely British electronic band formed in Liverpool in 1999. The group consists of Helen Marnie (lead vocals, synthesizers), Mira Aroyo (vocals, synthesizers), Daniel Hunt (synthesizers, guitar, vocals), and Reuben Wu (synthesize ...

live and on the album

Witching Hour In folklore, the witching hour or devil's hour is a time of night that is associated with supernatural events, whereby witches, demons and ghosts are thought to appear and be at their most powerful. Definitions vary, and include the hour imm ...

. In 2004, Levi released singles "Rude Kinda Love" and "Reindeer In My Heart" on the independent "Invicta Hi-Fi" label set up by

Daniel Hunt Daniel Hunt (born 25 July 1974) is an English musician, songwriter and producer. He is a founding member, principal songwriter and producer of the electronic band Ladytron. Biography Hunt met Reuben Wu in Liverpool in 1995 and formed Ladytro ...

of Ladytron. A planned follow-up single in 2005 entitled "Kissed Her Sister" was shelved along with the album "Foxwatch", and Levi formed The Emergencies with organ player Jake Field and Zukanican members, rhythm guitarist Dominic Lewington (AKA Domino), bass player Harry Sumnall and drummer James Pagella. The band played regularly around Liverpool as "Pop Levi & The Emergencies" including slots at the Merseyside Unity Music Festival and Unite Against Racism Festival. Now backed by The Emergencies, Levi released "Blue Honey", his last single on "Invicta Hi-Fi", before signing to

. After signing the new deal, Levi moved to

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' ...

which resulted in The Emergencies disbanding. With Lewington still on board, Levi recruited drummer Marius Simonsen and bass player Luke Muscatelli (AKA Lucky Beaches) and the band moved to the US, living together in the same house in

Echo Park, Los Angeles Echo Park is a neighborhood in the east-central region of Los Angeles, California. Located to the northwest of Downtown, it is bordered by Silver Lake to the west and Chinatown to the east. The culturally diverse neighborhood has become known ...

. The new backing band was named "Woman". In February 2007, Levi released his debut solo album on Counter Records, an imprint specifically created for Levi by Ninja Tune. ''

The Return to Form Black Magick Party ''The Return To Form Black Magick Party'' is the first full-length album by the musician Pop Levi (former Super Numeri member, Ladytron Ladytron are a largely British electronic band formed in Liverpool in 1999. The group consists of ...

'' was self-produced and recorded over several years, solely on a

lap top A laptop, laptop computer, or notebook computer is a small, portable personal computer (PC) with a screen and alphanumeric keyboard. Laptops typically have a clam shell form factor with the screen mounted on the inside of the upper li ...

& D16 recording machine, at Liverpool studio/rehearsal space The Kif (where a previous Super Numeri album was recorded) and whilst on tour with Ladytron in a number of different locations in "England, China, France, Greece, LA, New York" such as "on trains, in planes, in warehouses, on the top of Cathedrals, at the beach, in bathrooms, hotel rooms and tombs. I made sure to capture the first take of everything I recorded and then took the tracks to

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

to be mixed". The album was toured extensively across the US, UK, Europe and Australia, and was listed as one of

Lauren Laverne Lauren Cecilia Fisher (née Gofton; born 28 April 1978), known professionally as Lauren Laverne, is an English radio DJ, model, television presenter, author and singer. She was the lead singer and additional guitarist in the alternative rock ba ...

's favourite artists to make it big in 2007 on

BBC Two BBC Two is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It covers a wide range of subject matter, with a remit "to broadcast programmes of depth and substance" in contrast to the more mainstream an ...

's ''

The Culture Show ''The Culture Show'' is a British magazine programme about books, art, film, architecture, music, visual fashion and the performing arts. The show was broadcast weekly on BBC Two between 2004 and 2015. Early history Launched in November 2004, th ...

''. In July 2008, Levi released the follow up album '' Never Never Love'', which was preceded by the

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

"Dita Dimoné" which made

BBC Radio 6 BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC, specialising primarily in alternative music. BBC 6 Music was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years. It is available onl ...

's 'Record Of The Week'. Levi set out to make the follow-up, in contrast to the loose feel of the debut, sound artificial and soulless, that it sounded "like Japanese toys falling in and out of love with each other". The album was recorded at

Westbeach Recorders Westbeach Recorders was a recording studio in Hollywood, California famous for recording punk rock groups, such as Bad Religion, Avenged Sevenfold, NOFX, Rancid, The Offspring and Pennywise. History It was established in 1985 by Bad Religion g ...

and

Westlake Recording Studios Westlake Recording Studios is a music recording studio in West Hollywood, California. History Westlake Recording Studios was founded in the early 1970s by the American audio engineer Tom Hidley under the name Westlake Audio. Hidley was experienc ...

, in the same room

Quincy Jones Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...

recorded

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

's Thriller and

Off The Wall ''Off the Wall'' is the fifth studio album by American singer Michael Jackson, released on August 10, 1979, by Epic Records. It was Jackson's first album released through Epic Records, the label he recorded under until his death in 2009, and t ...

albums. Following the recording of the album, Lewington was asked to leave, returning to England to pursue solo projects, while Simonsen returned to Norway and joined pop band Montée, leaving Levi with no band to tour the album. Levi and Muscatelli played sporadic shows across LA as a duo, with Muscatelli shifting from bass guitar to synth bass. Aside from a handful of solo acoustic shows in London, there was also no tour to support the album in the UK either. 2008 also saw the emergence of Levi's World Empire, Inc. film and music production company. In September, the 37th Festival Nouveau Cinema in

Montréal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-p ...

held the world

premiere A première, also spelled premiere, is the debut (first public presentation) of a play, film, dance, or musical composition. A work will often have many premières: a world première (the first time it is shown anywhere in the world), its first ...

of ''You Don't Gotta Run'', a surreal 37-minute docu-

featurette In the American film industry, a featurette is a kind of film that is shorter than a full-length feature, but longer than a short film. The term may refer to either of two types of content: a shorter film or a companion film. Medium-length film ...

directed by

auteur An auteur (; , 'author') is an artist with a distinctive approach, usually a film director whose filmmaking control is so unbounded but personal that the director is likened to the "author" of the film, which thus manifests the director's unique ...

Lucky Beaches and starring Levi. A planned double album of home demos and outtakes entitled "Micro Sex Tapes", which was originally set for release in 2009 was never released. A stand-alone double A-Side single "Police $ign/Terrifying (For Kenneth Anger)" was released in June 2009, with a new lineup featuring drummer Hayden Scott. An early version of Police $ign was featured in the in-game soundtrack of

Gran Turismo 5 is a 2010 racing video game developed by Polyphony Digital and published by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was released for the PlayStation 3 on November 24, 2010 in Europe and North America, and November 25, 2010 in Japan and Australasia, and ...

. In 2009, Levi travelled to Norway where drummer Simonsen was now based to record his third album, tentatively titled "Records", which was intended to be live and raw sounding. The album was recorded in a mountain-top converted barn and re-titled "Smack Musick", however, after being left in a state of limbo for 2 years, with the last scheduled release date being March 2011, it was eventually shelved. In April 2011, "Levitation Vol. 1" was temporarily made available as a free download via worldempireinc.com. The 14 track

mixtape A mixtape (alternatively mix-tape, mix tape or mixed tape) is a compilation of music, typically from multiple sources, recorded onto a medium. With origins in the 1980s, the term normally describes a homemade compilation of music onto a cassette ...

was recorded and mixed mostly in 2010-11 at The White Arc, Levi's studio in Los Angeles. The release was followed up by "Motorcycle 666" in July 2011, recorded during the "Smack Musick" sessions in Norway. The b-side "Rock Solid" was recorded at The White Arc. The single was backed by select dates in London and Liverpool, with a new lineup with Muscatelli now on guitar. Levi has also produced and performed with Canadian-born artist and

American Apparel American Apparel Inc. is an online-only retailer and former brick-and-mortar stores operator based in Los Angeles, California. Founded by Canadian businessman Dov Charney in 1989, it was a vertically integrated company that ranked as one of the l ...

model Bunny Holiday in

and on a five-city tour of China. In 2010 Pop Levi and Bunny Holiday directed the

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

for former

N.W.A N.W.A (an abbreviation for Niggaz Wit Attitudes) was an American hip hop group whose members were among the earliest and most significant popularizers and controversial figures of the gangsta rap subgenre, and the group is widely considered ...

star

Arabian Prince Kim Renard Nazel (born June 17, 1965), better known by his stage names Arabian Prince or Professor X, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and DJ. He is best known as a founding member of N.W.A. Early life Nazel was born i ...

's "Let's Hit The Beach" single on

Stones Throw Stones Throw Records is an American independent record label based in Los Angeles, California. Under the direction of founder Peanut Butter Wolf, Stones Throw has released music ranging from hip hop to experimental psychedelic rock. ''LA Weekly' ...

Records. The duo also directed a music video for "The Look" to promote the 2010

Vans Vans is an American manufacturer of skateboarding shoes and related apparel, established in Anaheim, California, and owned by VF Corporation. The company also sponsors surf, snowboarding, BMX, and motocross teams. From 1996 to 2019, the comp ...

X Stussy shoe collaboration. Levi's song "Sugar Assault Me Now" was used in the trailers for the 2010 film, ''

Get Him to the Greek ''Get Him to the Greek'' is a 2010 American comedy film written, produced and directed by Nicholas Stoller and starring Russell Brand and Jonah Hill. Released on June 4, 2010, the film is a spin-off sequel of Stoller's 2008 film ''Forgetting Sa ...

'' and his music has also been featured in numerous television shows including

Chuck Chuck is a masculine given name or a nickname for Charles or Charlie. It may refer to: People Arts and entertainment * Chuck Alaimo, American saxophonist, leader of the Chuck Alaimo Quartet * Chuck Barris (1929–2017), American TV producer * ...

Entourage An entourage () is an informal group or band of people who are closely associated with a (usually) famous, notorious, or otherwise notable individual. The word can also refer to: Arts and entertainment * L'entourage, French hip hop / rap collecti ...

and 90210. In November 2012, Levi released his third solo studio album ''Medicine'', his last for Counter Records. The album was preceded by single "Strawberry Shake", featuring a remix by

Tom Vek Thomas Timothy Vernon-Kell (born 10 May 1981) is an English self-taught multi-instrumentalist musician who works under the name of Tom Vek. Career Born in Hounslow, London, England, he signed to the small label Tummy Touch Records in 2001, hav ...

, and followed by 5-track EP "Starlight & Wonder Vol. 1". An album showcase gig set to take place at The Lexington, London was cancelled at the last minute due to change in artist management. In November 2013, Levi released "Secrets" under the pseudonym Jr. Hi via

Neon Gold Records Neon Gold Records is a New York City-based boutique record label founded in 2008 by Derek Davies and Lizzy Plapinger. Initially operating as a vinyl-only singles label, Neon Gold has launched the debut releases and international careers of ma ...

, featuring guest vocals by

The Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. Known for his sonic versatility and dark lyricism, his music explores escapism, Romance (love), ...

. Levi's management Roxwell had previously confirmed that Levi had been working with a number of artists including The Weeknd,

Kimbra Kimbra Lee Johnson (born 27 March 1990), known mononymously as Kimbra, is a New Zealand singer and songwriter. Known for mixing pop with R&B, jazz and rock musical elements, her accolades include four ARIA Music Awards, two Grammy Awards and se ...

, Switch and

Robert DeLong Robert Charles Edward DeLong (born February 18, 1986) is an American electronic musician from Bothell, Washington and currently residing in Los Angeles, California. With a background in percussion and influences from a number of indie rock bands ...

. In February 2014 a second track "Trillion Girls" was released, featuring guest vocals from

Childish Gambino Donald McKinley Glover Jr. (; born September 25, 1983), also known by his stage name Childish Gambino (), is an American entertainer, writer, director, and producer. After working in Derrick Comedy while studying at New York University, Glove ...

. In December 2013, Levi wrote and produced the

song "The Party" for the album ''

Because the Internet ''Because the Internet'' is the second studio album by American recording artist Donald Glover, under the stage name Childish Gambino. It was released on December 10, 2013, by Glassnote Records. The recording process began in 2012 and ended in O ...

'', which was nominated for Best Rap Album at the 2015

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

s. In September 2014, Levi and Bunny Holiday formed the Industrial/Electronic duo crush_DLX, releasing through their SoundCloud 1 track a day for 370 days in an Audio Series format called MICRO SEX TAPES 370º. The series has produced collaborations with

Ariel Pink Ariel Marcus Rosenberg ( ; born June 24, 1978), professionally known as Ariel Pink, is an American musician, singer, and songwriter whose work draws heavily from the popular music of the 1960s–1980s. His lo-fi music, lo-fi aesthetic and home ...

and Cabaret Voltaire founder

Stephen Mallinder Stephen William Mallinder (born 1 January 1955) is an English artist and musician who was a founding member of Cabaret Voltaire, and went on to work as Sassi & Loco, the Ku-Ling Bros., Hey, Rube!, Wrangler, and Creep Show. Biography Mallinder ...

. In 2020, Levi signed to

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

based label ''Boiled Records''. On 2 December 2020, he released the album ''Mark Of Paradise''. This was quickly followed up by ''Juicy Diamond'' on 17 March 2021. In February 2022, Levi started a new band with Muscatelli under the project name "The Big Kill".

Discography

Solo

Albums * ''

'' CD/LP (UK/US) (2007, Counter Records) * '' Never Never Love'' CD/LP (UK/US) (2008, Counter Records) * ''Levitation Vol. 1'' Mixtape (2011, World Empire, Inc.) '' navailable' * ''

Medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pract ...

'' CD/LP (UK/US) (2012, Counter Records/World Empire, Inc.) * ''Mark Of Paradise'' Digital (2020, Boiled Records) * ''Juicy Diamond'' Digital (2021, Boiled Records) EPs * ''

Blue Honey "Blue Honey" is the first single from debut full-length album by English musician Pop Levi and was released on September 4, 2006. It is also included in the Amorphous Androgynous The Future Sound of London (often abbreviated FSOL) is a B ...

'' CD/Digi-EP (UK/US) (2006, Counter Records) * ''Sugar Assault Me Now'' CD/Digi-EP (UK/US) (2007, Counter Records) * ''Never Never Love'' CD/Digi-EP (UK/US) (2008, Counter Records) * ''Dita Dimoné'' CD/Digi-EP (UK/US) (2008, Counter Records) * ''Starlight & Wonder Vol. 1'' Digi-EP (UK/US) (2012, Counter Records/World Empire, Inc.) Singles * "Rude Kinda Love" / "Clearly Dearly" 7" (UK) (2004, Invicta Hi-Fi) * "Reindeer In My Heart" / "Hayley Square" nstrumental 7" (UK) (2004, Invicta Hi-Fi) * "Kissed Her Sister" / "Supermarket Woman" Promo-only CD (UK) (2005, Invicta Hi-Fi) * "Blue Honey" / "Mournin' Light" 7" (UK) (2005, Invicta Hi-Fi) * "

" 7"/10" (UK) (2006, Counter Records) * "Sugar Assault Me Now" 7"/10" (UK) (2007, Counter Records) * "Pick Me Up Uppercut" 7" (UK) (2007, Counter Records) * "Never Never Love" 7" (UK) (2008, Counter Records) * "Dita Dimoné" 7" (UK) (2008, Counter Records) * "Police $ign" / "Terrifying (For

Kenneth Anger Kenneth Anger (born Kenneth Wilbur Anglemyer, February 3, 1927) is an American underground experimental filmmaker, actor, and author. Working exclusively in short films, he has produced almost 40 works since 1937, nine of which have been grouped ...

)" 7" (UK) (2009, Counter Records) * "Motorcycle 666" / "Rock Solid" Digi-single (UK/US) (2011, Counter Records) * "Strawberry Shake" Digi-single (UK/US) (2012, Counter Records) * "Spell On Me" Digi-single UK/US (2018, Pop Levi) *"She Was A Girl" feat.

Digital (2019, Dive Up) *"Touch Of You" (2020, Boiled Records) *"Mark Of Paradise" (2020, Boiled Records) *"Shoulda Known Better" (2020, Boiled Records) *"Shona" (2020, Boiled Records) *"Tia" (2021, Boiled Records) *"I Love You" (2021, Boiled Records) *"Time Bomb" (2021, Boiled Records) *"Birthday Girl" (2021, Boiled Records)

w/ Super Numeri

;Albums * ''Great Aviaries'' CD/LP (UK/US) (2003, Ninja Tune) * ''The Enochian Way'' CD (JP) (2005, Counter Records) * ''The Welcome Table'' CD/LP (UK/US) (2005, Ninja Tune) ;Singles * "The Electric Horse Garden" 7" (UK) (2002,

) * "The Coastal Bird Scene (Parts 1, 2 & 3)" 12" (UK) (2003, Ninja Tune)

w/ crush_DLX

;Mixtapes * ''Micro Sex Tapes Collection 1'' Download (Web) (2015, self-released) * ''Micro Sex Tapes Collection 2'' Download (Web) (2015, self-released)

w/ Zukanican

;EPs * ''E 5Number'' 10" (2004, Pickled Egg Records)

w/ Ladytron

;Albums * ''

Softcore Jukebox ''Softcore Jukebox'' is a compilation album put together by English electronic music band Ladytron. It was released on 7 October 2003 through Emperor Norton Records. It features different styles of music from rock to hip hop. It also includes t ...

'' CD/LP (UK/US) (2003, Emperor Norton) * ''

Light & Magic ''Light & Magic'' is the second studio album by English electronic music band Ladytron. It was released in the United States on 17 September 2002 by Emperor Norton and in the United Kingdom on 2 December 2002 by Telstar Records. The album has ...

'' CD (UK/US) (2004 Re-release, Emperor Norton) * ''

'' CD/LP (UK/US) (2005, Island Records) ;Singles * "

Evil Evil, in a general sense, is defined as the opposite or absence of good. It can be an extremely broad concept, although in everyday usage it is often more narrowly used to talk about profound wickedness and against common good. It is general ...

" CD (UK) (2003, Telstar)

Filmography

* ''You Don't Gotta Run'' documentary (dir. Lucky Beaches) Hand-numbered limited (50) edition DVD (2008, World Empire, Inc.)

Music videos

The following are the music videos starring and/or directed by Pop Levi.

In media

* The song "Wannamama" from the album ''Never Never Love'' was featured in the second-season episode "Chuck Versus the Best Friend" of ''

''. * The song "Wannamama" was on the soundtrack to the movie ''

American Reunion ''American Reunion'' (also known as ''American Pie 4: Reunion'' or ''American Pie: Reunion'' in certain countries) is a 2012 American ensemble sex comedy film written and directed by Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg. It is the fourth installme ...

.''