We recently connected with Luna Starr and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Luna, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

The most meaningful project that I’ve worked on is my latest upcoming project ‘the AWAKENING’. This project highlights the thoughts, feelings, and experiences that I’ve had since October of 2023. I was in a relationship but it was very abusive, the relationship between my family and I becoming ever so increasingly unsteady, the threat of homelessness was constantly hovering overhead, the stress from just trying my best to keep a job for longer than 3 months, the pressure I was feeling internally due to my own personal growth, my first child being born by the aforementioned abusive ex girlfriend, and lastly, my coming out as a transwoman.
Due to the nature of these experiences and the nature of my spirit, this project is a very high octane, yet heavily emotional piece of art. ‘the AWAKENING’ features 6 songs; BassTalk, FACE2FACE, rolling, GREETINGS, POYG (Piss on Yo Grave), and WEB. BassTalk is a callback to power; FACE2FACE is a more lamented track where one feels like they’re constantly a disappointment, even if on the surface it may seem like they don’t care what others think, they definitely do; rolling is the “I CAN’T BELIEVE I FELL FOR THIS CRAP” song; GREETINGS is a VERY special song – it’s a conversation between my divine feminine and divine masculine, both of them coming together and learning to love themselves by loving each other; POYG is a direct attack, no holding back; finally, WEB speaks on the transformation that I’ve been feeling inside of me for this period of time.
‘the AWAKENING’ is a very fun, yet exposing piece of work and I’m so excited to share it with you all. Set to release on September 22, there will be accompanying music videos to help you dive into my world for real. I hope that these songs serve as a means of cathartic release for people listening, just as they have served for me as I created them.

Luna, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Hi everyone! Off stage, my name is Luna (she/her/hers) and onstage my name is YVNGFONTI (pronounced – young fontee). Living in Seattle, I am an alternative rap artist, blending elements of Rock and EDM with rap to create a high energy yet quite emotional musical experience.
I began making music almost 7 years ago, shortly after being surprised by my mom with tickets to see Travis Scott’s Astroworld at the Tacoma Dome. As much fun as I had being there and watching one of my favorite artists, I also saw myself on stage in his place. And then I scanned the entire arena, and that’s when I knew that I could do it too.
After the show, I told my mom that it was time for me to start making my own music and she quickly got me the materials that I needed to make it happen. I knew before even I opened the Ableton music DAW that I wanted to be myself at all times. Of course, mom had opinions and suggestions on what type of music I should make, however for the first time in my life, I ignored her and did what I wanted to do. THIS WAS IT! Finally, unmoderated, uncontrolled, self-expression, something I had been craving my entire life (before this, I was an ‘image of my mom’ so everything about who I thought I was as a person was curated by her).
True self expression, so long as you’re not hurting yourself or anybody else, is the message that I want to spread to people who listen and potential new listeners. With every song that I create, I want people to know that now is the time to BE! As a transwoman, I live in a world where as scared as I may be when I step outside, I’m even more scared of NOT stepping outside. I’m scared that I’m letting myself and many many others down, by hiding away. I feel that I must parade myself, a parade that says “THIS IS ME. TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT’. There are so many kids today that are scared to step outside, and sadly, with good reason. The amount of hate that is being projected in every direction is truly saddening, and I combat this with fostering an environment where people are loved and accepted because of who they are.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

I was in college, at the University of Washington, back in 2021, coming to the end of my senior year. At this point I had been grabbing at straws trying to keep my education as relevant as possible. For the last 2 years, I had been going back and forth about if I even wanted to stay in college, but I always stayed because I didn’t want to let my mom down. I promised her i would finish my degree, and I wanted to fulfill that promise. In addition to this, there was a young woman I was interested in, she was actually my friend. In my head I thought that “oh! if I prove myself worthy then she’ll wanna be with me”. So I kept going to school. I wasn’t very happy though.
One day, while my mom and I were not talking to one another because we had had another argument, my friend and I ended up not being friends anymore. Shortly after that, I broke and I dropped out of college. It was 1 quarter before graduation. I had had enough of pleasing others, especially the ones I love and consider family, just to be hurt time and time again. This was when my journey of growth officially began. I prioritized my mental health, got a full time job, and committed more deeply to musical career.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

Being a creative almost feels wrong in today’s society. But it’s a different feeling, to know that you’re meant to make art for the rest of your life. It’s terrifying, in my opinion, at first, because you’re instantly hit with “well how am I gonna make money?”, “shit, I can’t afford get groceries this week”, and my all time favorite, “will I be able to afford rent this month?”. So you get full-time, maybe part-time, job to help support your creative pursuit. And then you’re hit with it again: “Oh I just had a good idea, I need to write that down”, “Damn, I can’t wait for lunch, I’m gonna try to get some work done” or even “I don’t plan on staying here long because I know that I’ll be able to live off my art soon enough”.
That terrifying feeling of having to decide between homelessness and art; or that job opportunity and a roof over your head but no time or energy to put into your art. That terrifying feeling of “I can’t NOT make my art”. That terrifying feeling of “This is what makes me happy”. This is what it’s been like for me on my journey as a creative. It a healthy, yet insatiable itch that I have within me. I don’t fit this mold that society has laid out for us and I will never try to fit that mold again.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yvng.fonti/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fontineze/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@yvngfonti
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/fontaviusstarr
• Other: Email:
  [email protected]

  Spotify:
  https://open.spotify.com/artist/7cSCKmHVUy39E8eSbMoFhV

Image Credits

@SOOSCREEKPRODUCTIONS (Photo 2)

@Shot By Tony Two Times (Photo 3)

Shot by Rxno (Photo 4)

Caroline Michael (Photo 5)

I don’t remember who took Photo 6 but I’m forever grateful