Atlanta breakout singer-songwriter Lánre is back with a new, upbeat pop single release, “just a friend.” Written exclusively by Lánre, the track showcases an artist consistently growing musically as he meshes awe-inspiring lyrics with his striking vocal dynamism. Influences back to his early discovery in 2020, Lánre’s role models are the finest of the industry: Beyoncé, Usher, Justin Timberlake, and Chris Brown as he would put it, to capture that sweet spot in between a night drive with a significant other and the wildest college party.
Within the below interview, he talks about his inspirations, creative process, and plans. He lets us in on his new single, “just a friend,” upcoming EP “up all night.” and lessons he’s learned along the way musically. Lánre appreciates his fans so much that he doesn’t forget to reveal his targets in the future. Now, take an adventure with us into the depths of Lánre and his music.
Would you like to start by telling us a little about yourself?
Hey! My name is Lánre, and I’m a singer-songwriter from Atlanta, GA. I’ve been singing and performing my whole life, but my music career really started in 2020. My music has been played on BBC Radio, streamed over 1.75 million times, and have been blessed to tour in multiple cities across the US and Europe. Music is in my blood and I love sharing it with people!
How would you describe the overall vibe of your music?
I’ve been inspired by Beyoncé, Usher, Justin Timberlake, and Chris Brown. I make pop songs that evoke the energy of Usher with the heavy vocals of a male Beyonce – music that lives somewhere between a night drive with your significant other and the wildest college party you’ve ever attended. My new music pushes the envelope on that!
You have recently released your single, ‘just a friend.’ what was the inspiration behind the creation of this track?
‘just a friend.’ is part of a larger EP project, ‘up all night.’ which is a collection of stories and situations that have, kept me up at night. With this song, I dove into my insecurities about dating and how I’ve always settled with just being friends with people vs. going for what I really want, a relationship.
What does ‘just a friend.’ mean to you?
This song is liberating and is a message to myself and others to not give up on what you want in life. I’ve been so gunshy about dating anyone and used excuse after excuse when I was just afraid of rejection. I’m not afraid of that anymore, for me to find love and a partner, I just have to go for it. I’ll be ok.
What did the creative process look like for ‘just a friend.’?
The beat was sent to me by Mileage who is a producer and one of my good friends. I remember feeling so intoxicated by the production when I first heard it. It felt really big and intimate at the same time. So the story sort of put itself together on its own, I was just there to guide it musically. I frequently journal, especially after therapy sessions so I pulled a lot of the lyrics for ‘just a friend.’ from my notes. This whole song is me talking to myself, and I hope listeners can pick up on that and relate to it.
You have an EP coming out, ‘Up All Night’.. What can we expect from your EP?
SO MUCH! I’ve released 5 out of the 10 tracks on ‘up all night.’ so far, and it’s been so gratifying to see how fans and listeners have gravitated to this new direction I’ve been taking my music. Like I mentioned earlier, ‘up all night.’ is basically a collection of stories, situations, and thoughts that keep me up when I’m alone at night by myself. I let each song have its own color and vibe to tell that particular story, but there is a throughline that connects them. I’ll reveal what that throughline is once it’s released! Sonically though, it’s a mixture of dance music, lofi, alt-pop&rnb, and house. All genres I’ve never immersed myself in until this project, so I’m so pumped to see how fans enjoy the rest of the songs.
What do you feel has been one of the biggest lessons for you along your musical journey?
The biggest lesson I’ve learned is that your success in this industry fully depends on your passion and hard work. You can’t outsource that. I was fortunate that I had parents who are both successful entrepreneurs, so I’ve always known that success was never going to be handed to me. But I still had to learn that there’s no shortcuts to this game and it requires you as the artist to be fully locked in to make it work. You can’t depend on managers, labels, social media, or even fans to do this for you. They are great tools and resources, but it ultimately depends on your hands-on hard work and passion to really make an impact. That’s my approach to my career and it’s been serving me well!
What would you like to see happen for you in your music from here?
I have so many goals for my music career this year, but the main one is reaching and creating more fans! I’ve been working on building up my fan communities on Instagram and TikTok and booking shows in new cities like Rotterdam and London. Seeing how my music is perceived by people online or at shows has given me such a cool perspective on my career. I’ve found new purpose in being my most authentic self on records or on stage because it opens the door for people to connect. That’s been such a beautiful thing to witness and I’ll continue to level up in my career to make an even bigger impact.
What is one message you would like to share with your fans?
I love yall! I have fans from places like Mexico and Brazil who have been following my career from afar since the pandemic in 2020. And most recently I have a really cool community of people who join me on TikTok live every week. I consider these people my friends in a ‘pen pal’ sort of way. We check up on each other, we keep each other updated on our personal lives, etc. I can’t begin to describe how much you guys mean to me! I know I’ve been busy lately but I’ve been working hard on delivering a project that you will be proud of. More than anything, I’m so excited to share this with you 🙂
Where can people find your music?
You can find my music on all the main streaming platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, Youtube Music, Deezer, Amazon Music, and Tidal at Lánre (Lanre). I also post covers and other non-music related content frequently on TikTok and Instagram at @lanre.official.
You can listen to ‘just a friend.’ below:
Karen Harding is a Melbourne, Australia based singer/songwriter, founder of Sounds On The Couch, and founder and operator of boutique music PR service for emerging and independent artists, Rise Indie.