Lianne La Havas

Lianne Charlotte Barnes (born 23 August 1989), known professionally as Lianne La Havas , is a British singer-songwriter. Her career began after being introduced to various musicians, including singer Paloma Faith, for whom she sang backing vocals. In 2010, La Havas signed to Warner Bros. Records, spending two years developing her songwriting, before releasing any music. La Havas' debut studio album, Is Your Love Big Enough?, was released to positive reviews from critics and earned her a nomination for the BBC's Sound of 2012 poll and awards for the iTunes Album of The Year 2012. She has released two other studio albums since, Blood in 2015 and Lianne La Havas in 2020. She was nominated once for a Grammy award in 2016 and twice for the Brit Awards, in 2017 and 2021. She currently lives in London. She was raised in Tooting and Streatham, spending the majority of her time with her grandparents after her parents separated. La Havas began singing at seven, and she cites her parents' diverse musical tastes as having the biggest influence on her music. Her father, an accomplished multi-instrumentalist, taught her the basics of guitar and piano. La Havas wrote her first song at the age of 11 but did not learn to play the guitar until she was 18 years old. She sang in her school choir. She attended Norbury Manor Business and Enterprise College for Girls in Thornton Heath, where she studied her A-levels. She had planned to take an art foundation course before she decided to leave college to pursue a career in music full-time.

Career Beginnings and debut (2008–2014)

Whilst attending sixth-form in Croydon, La Havas was introduced to musicians who would go on to assist her in the recording of her first demos.

In 2010, La Havas signed to Warner Bros. Records, spending two years developing her songwriting skills before releasing any music publicly.

Her first EP, Lost & Found, was released on 21 October 2011 on the Labour of Love label. It featured Willy Mason on the opening track "No Room for Doubt". That same month, La Havas released the live EP Live from LA, which was made available for free download on her website. La Havas made her television debut on the 21 October 2011 broadcast of BBC Two's Later... with Jools Holland, a programme that also featured Wisconsin folk band Bon Iver. Soon after her TV debut, on 25 October 2011, it was announced that La Havas would be the supporting act for Bon Iver's December 2011 North American tour.

Her official debut single "Lost & Found" was released in the UK on 30 April 2012, and her debut album, Is Your Love Big Enough?, was released on 9 July 2012 on Warner Brothers. and on 30 June 2013, she performed at the Glastonbury Festival 2013. La Havas also performed at the Isle of Wight Festival in June 2013.

In early 2014, Prince played a gig in La Havas' living room in London. She also appeared on Alt-J's 2014 album This Is All Yours on the track "Warm Foothills". On 30 September 2014, Prince released Art Official Age, featuring La Havas heavily throughout the album, singing on "Clouds" and providing vocals on "Affirmation I&II", "Way Back Home" and "Affirmation III". La Havas also performed with Prince on an episode of Saturday Night Live as a featured vocalist on 1 November 2014.

She collaborated with Aqualung on the song "Eggshells" from his album 10 Features, released on 19 January 2015.

2015–19: Blood After touring was completed for her first album, La Havas and her mother travelled to Jamaica. During the trip, La Havas was inspired to write new material, which would eventually become part of her second album. She gave a live performance for her family and producer, Stephen McGregor, who would later co-produce her forthcoming album. Many of the songs were inspired by La Havas' reconnection to her Greek and Jamaican heritage. The first single of the album, "Unstoppable", premiered for streaming on 1 April 2015. The single, which was co-written with Paul Epworth, was officially released in the UK on 1 June 2015. Its music video premiered on 12 May 2015 on La Havas' official YouTube channel. The full album, called Blood, was released on 31 July 2015 for physical and digital formats. La Havas toured in the UK and Europe in support of album from mid-May to September 2015. The album was nominated for Best Urban Contemporary Album at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards. She also performed a Tiny Desk Concert on NPR in October 2015.

In 2016 La Havas supported Coldplay on the European and Latin American legs of their A Head Full of Dreams world tour.

La Havas lately plays a hollow-bodied 1964 Harmony Alden Stratotone guitar, which is put through a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe amp on stage with her band. For solo gigs she uses a SansAmp DI, and a Roland CUBE amp is used for practice.

2020: Lianne La Havas La Havas released "Bittersweet" on 25 February 2020 as the lead single from her self-titled album, Lianne La Havas. On 4 May 2020, La Havas released the second single "Paper Thin" and announced that the album would be released on 17 July 2020. Recording of the album took place between October 2019 and December 2019, with sessions taking place in London, Bath, Los Angeles and New York City. The album's production was handled by La Havas along with long-term collaborator Matt Hales, co-producers Beni Giles and Sam Crowe, and guest co-producer Mura Masa.

The album won in the Best Album category at the 2021 Ivor Novello Awards. The New York Times''' chief pop music critic Jon Pareles, in his review, said:The songs illuminate passion, impulsiveness, ambivalence and uncertainty, yet the structures La Havas created are lucid and poised. While matters of the heart may be out of control, her fingers and voice are impeccable.

Following a five year hiatus, La Havas released "Disarray", an independently released single.

Discography

Is Your Love Big Enough? (2012) Blood (2015) Lianne La Havas'' (2020)

Concert tours Headlining Is Your Love Big Enough? Tour (2012–13) Blood Tour (2015–16)

Supporting A Head Full of Dreams Tour (2016)

Awards and nominations Year Organisation Award Nominee / work Result 2011 BBC Sound of... Sound of 2012 Is Your Love Big Enough? iTunes Best of 2012 Album of the Year Is Your Love Big Enough? 2013 MOBO Awards Best Female Act Herself Best R&B/Soul Act Herself 2015 MOBO Awards Best Female Act Herself Best R&B/Soul Act Herself Best Album Blood 201658th Annual Grammy AwardsBest Urban Contemporary Album Blood 20172017 Brit Awards British Female Solo Artist Herself 20212021 Brit AwardsBritish Female Solo Artist Herself 2021 Ivor Novello Awards Best Album Lianne La Havas