We were lucky to catch up with Liv Dejonghe recently and have shared our conversation below.

Liv, appreciate you joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

At a young age I was exposed to a lot of great music. Some of the artists/bands being Carlos Santana, Fleetwood Mac, Marvin Gaye, & all things Motown. I had parents that displayed a lot of excitement for music so I’d see dancing & singing along on a daily basis. I remember discovering the Duran Duran album “Decade” in my dad’s collection and being completely fixated by the album art and then asking my dad to play it for me. This spurred further fascination with discovering my own favorite artists and collecting CDs. I loved everything about it. The music videos, the fashion, the way the music made me feel. It was also a way to escape from the hard times I had as a kid. It wasn’t until I saw a local band called God and the Architects in my home town of Jackson, MI that it occurred to me that I could do this too. (At that point I was 18 and was already writing songs and performing in bands.) Their music really spoke to me and inspired me on a deep level to take my art more seriously. I knew if they could make me feel this way then I could certainly make someone else feel something with my art. I knew then it was all I cared about and nothing has really changed haha.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Liv DeJonghe and I live in Lansing, MI. I moved here from my home town of Jackson, MI a few years ago to live with my now wife and step-son, I play in the indie-rock band LVRS as the guitarist and singer. I am the primary song-writer for the group as well as audio engineer and producer. I started this group in 2015 with friends in my home town. The line up has since changed which consists of Lorelei D’andriole on drums and Nuri Tett on bass. I’ve gotten the chance to play all over Michigan in the past eight years playing in this band. LVRS has opened for Big Thief, Joyce Manor & Michigander. We’ve played many Pride Festivals around the state including Detroit, Ferndale & Lansing pride. I’ve always embraced the duality of sound in this band, toeing the lines of jangly indie pop and the raw sounds of grunge. I am proud of the adaptability and commitment I have to the art of music making. There’s so much to it and I’m always learning which is exciting. I immersed myself into the world of music production at the start of the pandemic which I discovered was a new passion of mine. I now have a studio called Pixel Dream Studios where I record and mix other artists as well. I am passionate about assisting others in their vision for their own music. I know from experience how recording studios can feel intimidating and out of reach cost wise for some bands/artists. As a person who identifies as queer, I believe it’s important that queer voices are present in our community and queer people are given safe spaces. My mission in music is to make connections and help others whether that be through my lyrics or by recording another artists project.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

We have a modest following on social media but it’s something I think creatives should really invest some energy into. Firstly branding is super important with any business. Visuals, logos and color schemes can tell the person coming to your page what they can expect before even hearing your music. There have been times I sold our band tees at gigs where people have missed our set. I believe people see a cool logo or shirt and believe the music sounds just as cool. Commission a local artist to collaborate with to help build your brand or use Fiverr.com to find an artist. I started social media for this group as a way to get to know our community and let others get to know the band. To me it’s another tool for expression. Instagram is a great place for people to see upcoming gigs and get a glimpse of the personality of the band. It connects the people who make the songs to the music and I think that’s important. A newer social media venture for the band has been Tiktok in the past few years. I’ve been having a lot of fun posting quirky videos to promote our music on there and connecting with other artists. This platform can be a great place for new people to discover your art. Your music has the chance of blowing up from created videos, it’s like playing a fun gambling game. It can be addictive, haha.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

More grant funding for creatives would be amazing. It’s so hard to be a creative and do it full time, It’s the dream so many of my friends and I have. I have three other side gigs outside of music for my main income. Music gives so much to our community and so little is given back to the creatives. Venues should be paying musicians adequately. A living wage I believe starts at $100 per person in the band. There’s so much prep/driving time that goes into live entertainment that isn’t accounted for. We need to support other artists as much as possible by buying their music and merch. Outside of money, we can share other people’s music online and say kind words to a performer after a gig. It’s about lifting each other up in any way that we can.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://lvrsband.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lvrsband/
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/LVRSmusic
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/LVRS
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@lvrs330
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@livlaughlvrs

Image Credits
Emily Wacyk