LUSAINT: An Original Soul
- Leigh Maynard
- 3 hours ago
- 12 min read
Sometimes it’s the little moments that seem insignificant that can become so impactful on our goals and our trajectory. Pivotal points where luck and talent collide and create magic. One such moment led me to cross paths with an incredible singer-songwriter, who, in turn, had her own significant moment, one that would send her career stratospheric. She is singer-songwriter, Lusaint.
We first crossed paths at the V&A in London at a CHANEL event. She stood, collected and elegant, and exuded a mix of calm, class and an air of approachability. And below the oil paintings of past masters, I encountered a woman with an incredible passion for her craft, having her well-deserved moment. For context, I discovered that the house of CHANEL is also a firm advocate, often dressing Lusaint, and if you are dressed by the best, then you must be doing something right!
Words by Leigh Maynard
Photographed by Alex Hutchinson. Styled by Tasha Arguile. Makeup by Cat Parnell at Premier Hair and Makeup using CHANEL Denim Collection and No.1 de CHANEL Body Serum-In-Mist. Hair by James Tarquin using Bumble and Bumble. Shot at The Winchester House Club, London. Lusaint appears courtesy of Perfect Havoc Limited.
As for that pivotal moment, it is an element of a career in two parts. For many years, she honed her voice by performing covers in clubs and releasing tracks online, and one of them became the most-tagged song on Shazam in a single day, knocking Ed Sheeran from the top spot. That was the moment when Lusaint had the world’s attention, and she took her opportunity, finding a manager and pushing her career forward. “Earning a living in another field within music felt bizarre. And I'll never forget that day, because to create this music and build this other career, I could leave that job and start working on this other music. And then one of those covers went onto a UK television show, and then that went viral overnight, and that opened a lot of doors for me and I got my manager.”
Since then, this remarkable talent has seen Lusaint recognised by publications such as Rolling Stone, Wonderland, and Notion, with BBC DJs supporting her work, as well as Abbey Road Producer Rob Cass. Since then, she has toured extensively, supporting artists such as RAYE, Nia Archives, Michael Kiwanuka, Chris Isaak, and Calum Scott, and performed at the 21st edition of the Monte Carlo Film Festival for Prince Albert II of Monaco and at the Concerto di Natale Vatican for the Pope.
Lusaint’s smoky, low-register vocals perfectly emphasise the rich tones of soul, jazz, blues, and contemporary pop. Her lyrics explore themes of emotional vulnerability and self-reflection, unrequited love, and the tension between desire and self-preservation. And as much as her audience loved her covers, her original tracks are resonating globally. With a huge following across Europe, 2025 saw her tour intensively, and 2026 is set to take the singer-songwriter to even greater heights. And though the covers gave Lusaint a platform to showcase her vocals, writing has always been part of who she is. “I mean, I'd always loved to write, and I think before I even started doing covers, I wrote quite a lot of poetry, and that was my way of essentially lyric writing. But I started doing the covers and assumed that would just be, you know, work. I was working at the White Company, not in the stock room; I'd just finished uni. It was very much a part-time job, and I just started randomly creating these covers, and I think I've probably got about five covers out at this point. I remember the guy that I was recording them with gave me a call and said, ‘I just wanna let you know that you've managed to reach a certain number of streams on this one song. And I can't even remember how many it was, but it was in the hundreds and thousands. But I just couldn't understand why this had happened. Then I started to earn a living from that. And that itself was bizarre to me to actually make money from doing this job, apart from singing on a weekend, which I was also doing in pubs and restaurants.’
Wool tailored robe coat, white cotton shirt with XL collar and wool tube belt trousers, all by Louis Vuitton
So, Shazam aside, how did Lusaint’s story begin? Hailing from Manchester, the fledgling musician was drawn to the soulful sounds she heard at home, while she discovered her own voice at primary school, singing in the choir and auditioning for shows. “When I was about seven or eight, I was so shy, and didn't really have many friends, and for some reason whenever I sang, it was kind of this way out and way of becoming somebody else.” She grew up listening to the dulcet tones of Billie Holiday and Nina Simone, but one artist who truly resonated with her and continues to inspire her music is the late, great Ella Fitzgerald. Listening to both, there are parallels to be drawn, from the jazz harmonies and phrasing to the chord progressions and swing-inflected rhythms in tracks like “Sweet Tooth.” “I feel like [Ella] is somebody that I listen to every day, and there's just something about her. I watch so many documentaries and films on her, but it's just the way that she sings, the way she performs, how her voice and her rhythm and her tone and just everything to do with who she was is. I can never get enough of her voice. I think Nina Simone, as well, is somebody that I really look up to and I listen to a lot of her music, but I think there's just something very unique about Ella Fitzgerald and the way that not many people can sing, and in that kind of way, there's just so much uniqueness about her performance and her tone and rhythm. And she's just given a piece of music and the way that she can scat over the top of it, it's a real skill.”
After time singing along to these sounds, Lusaint would begin to discover her own voice. “I would just kind of sing along and not think too much of it. My parents said to me, ‘You can sing,’ but I never thought anything of it. One day, during a school play, I don't know where it came from, but I had the courage to audition. I did it, and I remember the teachers being quite shocked by my voice, and I got the solo part of this school play, which was so bizarre and unheard of for somebody like me, who was genuinely that quiet. And it was just like another person on the stage. And I still use that in many ways. I think as soon as I go on stage and I start performing, I feel like I'm somebody else. And I guess that's why I used Lusaint instead of Lucy, because I do become that other person who feels a lot more confident.”
Talking to Lusaint, one senses a vulnerability and authenticity that are often unexpected in performers. Yet Lusaint seamlessly transitions between this state and a powerful performance on her tours. “Yeah. It's a bizarre feeling, and sometimes I think, you know, before I go on stage, I need something to cope. And then as soon as I get on that stage, it's like a whole different meaning, and it's just a very natural progression. And without it, I think without that performance side of this job, it always reminds me of why I do it, because I think there's so much that's social media-led now, and there are so many things revolving around the music industry that aren't your art and aren't necessarily music. So, you think, what am I doing this for, because it has taken so much of me to be this artist. But as soon as I get on that stage, it's like, ‘okay, this is where I'm supposed to be.’”
On this basis, one might assume that working in the studio was preferable, yet Lusaint maintains that both hold their place. “I think sometimes I enjoy being in the studio, and the other day I had a writing session, and that was the first time for quite a while with somebody else in the room, which was really special. And I felt like sometimes you go into the studio, and you think, ‘Why have I come here? I'm not in the right headspace.’ And then other times you think, ‘okay, I feel like I'm in a creative headspace, and I can't wait to write something that feels special to me.’ I had that the other day for the first time in a while. And when you get that feeling, that ‘I've got a good song here. I really love it. I can't wait to perform it.’ And then when you do get on that stage, and you do perform these songs that you've written in a studio, and you don’t know how you've come up with them, that's such a special feeling, too. So, I think it's a bit of both for me. I do love studio work, but I think the main point of my job is to give to an audience, the stage is everything to me.”
Success has afforded her the opportunity to work with respected producers and writers, and that process has helped to shape her sound and find her unique voice. “It happened very much overnight, to be honest. But it still took me a long time to figure out what kind of artist I wanted to be, because I'd never even given it a thought. The song that went on television was a ballad, and a lot of the writing sessions involved creating that kind of music, but something just didn't feel quite right for me. I really enjoyed writing and performing it, but I think, with my inspirations, the people I listened to, and what I loved most, I knew I wanted to intertwine this jazz and soul sound. I've got eight tracks out now, and they all still hold such an important part of every chapter within the last couple of years. There's so much that's happened and so much experience that I've gained that I think every single time that I write a new song, there's something that I put in that song that's come from that experience. So, it's a whirlwind and a rollercoaster, but it's incredible.”
And within the last couple of years, that is what Lusaint has focused on, working alongside her partner and musical collaborator Bjorn. “Bjorn is essentially my producer now. And it's been quite a whirlwind, but I feel like when you find who you want to be as an artist, it's quite a euphoric experience because, you know, you find yourself in it, and it's an amazing process. And I think when you know exactly who you want to be. Sometimes, when you are creating music that doesn't feel like you, you are almost living a lie, and it can really affect you. So, I think the fact that I found my voice is great.”
As she works with Bjorn to create each song, Lusaint doesn’t necessarily always use the same process, though she explains that working together with someone who instinctively understands her is really something she deeply values as an artist. “Sometimes I have voice notes saved. I feel like I love going into the studio now, completely bare, with nothing planned. Because I think, especially if I'm feeling creative, and Bjorn will play something on the guitar, I can hear something almost straight away. When I'm working with Bjorn on guitar, he can move chords around, and he knows where to take it or where my voice is almost going to go. So, I think having that relationship with somebody who is aware of what you do in the studio, that also feels special because you're creating something that feels true to who you are. It's very much coming from you, and I suppose him as well, because he's taking it somewhere else.”
We discuss how artists can move through different areas and genres over time, and while Lusaint will always fundamentally resonate with jazz and soul, she has begun to branch out and experiment in her most recent works. One of the latest songs is called "Lie To Yourself," and another, "Shoot You Dead," was released at the end of last year. “Essentially, they are very much part of this next chapter. It feels very pop-y. And when I created it, I was obviously in the headspace of, ‘who do I want to be as an artist? And I think, you know, within the process of understanding who you are, and definitely knowing I wanted to create with jazz and soul, I think there are always those points in an artist's life where you think, ‘do I wanna come out of that box a little bit, and why shouldn't I? And then, when I showed it to my manager, he said, ‘This is great. Yes, it does feel slightly different, but why don't we just experiment with that and see what happens?’”
2025 saw the singer go stratospheric, moving to stages with thousands of people. Striking a balance between huge success and staying grounded is surely a challenge to navigate, yet this is an experience Lusaint remains grateful for. “Sometimes I pinch myself. It feels so unreal to have this as my job and to be able to visit different countries and be on that stage and have people buy tickets to come and see you. People want to know you and spend time with you after a show, and just all of those things that are not normal. It’s always really good to speak to other singers about it, to understand what they're going through. There are elements of the job that feel quite lonely because you’re going through something that not a lot of people do. It feels incredible to be able to do this and to be able to have this art as my job and career.”
Four years into her writing, Lusaint aims to keep progressing and to understand herself as an artist, taking solace in her authenticity rather than falling into the traps of what is deemed a style or a performance. “When I supported Callum Scott on an arena tour in November. I had some movement coaching. When you are in a stadium, you want to be able to work the stages as much as you can. But then I realised that, as an artist, who I want to be. You only recognise this after you've done that movement coaching, and when you get on that stage, and you're in front of thousands of people, all I really want to do is just be behind that microphone and sing. I don't really care about having dance routines. But owning the stage and being this super-confident, look-at-me feel just didn't correlate with who I was. It's doing those things to recognise who you are and what you want. When you are true to yourself, and you're not trying to be somebody else, that's so important because I think that there are times when you feel like you are lying to yourself, and you can feel your audience recognising that. I could feel as I progressively became more myself through each show that the audience really warmed to that.”
Lusaint has not only captured the hearts and ears of a wide international audience, but her work has also been noticed by unexpected people, leading to unforgettable experiences in the most unlikely places. “When I did the Christmas show in Rome, I performed for the Pope; that was something that I will remember for the rest of my life. Performing with a 60-piece orchestra that I'd only had one rehearsal with, which went out on live TV, was the scariest thing I've ever done. It was just an incredible day to be at the Vatican.” And while her audience continues to grow, Lusaint keeps them happy doing what she loves best: getting up on stage. With an upcoming tour planned, she’ll be performing in some more stunning locations. “We’ll start the tour on March 11th, and I think because it is my first European tour, it feels very surreal seeing people buying tickets in other countries and sending messages. I can't wait because I've got my band with me as well for quite a lot of the shows. So, I think, you have audiences in other countries, and it just feels brave to be real. When it first began to grow in France, that was also very bizarre. And I got a promoter called GDP in France; they've just been so supportive. I did a show in November 2024 at La Cigale in Paris, which was just a complete and utter dream, and then I'm playing at the Alhambra in April, so it's going to be a really amazing time.”
Recycled silver ‘Scrunch’ earrings by CompletedWorks. ‘Zaman’ trench coat with leather detail by Joseph. Turtleneck bodysuit by Norma Kamali. Trousers by Polo Ralph Lauren leather pumps by Ami Paris
As for the future in the creative sense, this talented singer-songwriter has big plans. “So, now I'm just creating my next work, and I'm really experimenting with different sounds and working towards an album, which I can't wait for. There's so much of this experience and learning about yourself that I now feel I'm ready to write for the album. I think there's so much learning to do on this job that it's an exciting process. Sometimes you feel like, ‘Where is this next chapter going to take me?’ And then out of nowhere, things happen, and every day is different. It’s such an incredible journey. So, I just feel really excited for what is to come.”
With an industry filled with artists vying for attention, it’s amazing how the digital world, though seemingly saturated with songs, can be transformative. That Spotify song has helped to elevate Lusaint and bring her the exposure she so rightly deserves. She has come so far in the last few years, but with such a distinctive voice and incredible talent, one expects that this was destined. Lusaint is a testament to all those artists with incredible innate talent who, at times, question themselves despite their incredible achievements and success. Still, what truly shines about her, aside from that phenomenal voice, is the warmth and authenticity that exudes from her lyrics, and from the person I met that evening in the V&A; it’s a refreshing honesty that sets her apart. No doubt her star will continue to shine, and I, for one, cannot wait to see where she goes next.
See Lusaint Live:
14th April 2026 - Band On The Wall, Manchester
22nd April 2026 - Oslo, London
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