We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Lady OFLO a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Lady OFLO, thanks for joining us today. One of the toughest things about progressing in your creative career is that there are almost always unexpected problems that come up – problems that you often can’t read about in advance, can’t prepare for, etc. Have you had such and experience and if so, can you tell us the story of one of those unexpected problems you’ve encountered?

One of the most unexpected problems I’ve ever faced was my father getting sick. I was living on the East Coast at the time, and decided to come home to help take care of him. I dropped everything – my job, my music career, my apartment, my social life – all of it. And I became a full time, live-in caregiver for my Dad.

Everything came to a halt in my own life, including my artistic career and goals. Frankly, it was incredibly difficult to cope with. I was already feeling isolated – not having time or energy to see friends or go out. Plus, the added anxiety of Covid while living with someone who was extremely immuno-compromised was rough. All this along with the wonder of whether I was being missed, or thought about, or if my fans still found me relevant. It was tough. It made me doubt myself in ways I never knew I could.

I had no other option but to keep it pushing, though. I tried to take what time I could for myself. Luckily, though I was incredibly busy and under insane amounts of stress, I did get a lot of free alone time. In that time I was really able to lock in with myself and my craft. Once I was able to self-leverage, I actually became very focused and productive. In a way, my creative projects became my outlet and an escape from my horrible reality.

Lady OFLO, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I come from a very creative, talented and specifically, musically gifted family. My exposure to creative arts was unavoidable as a child, and I quickly took to create extra-curricular activities like musical theater, flute and piano lessons.

Though my roots and much of my vocal training come from musical theater, I studied for 4 years at Berklee College of music, where I was really able to hone in on my skills as a more contemporary songwriter and electronic producer.

My goal for myself over the last several years, and especially since rebranding as “Lady OFLO” – has been to become as self sufficient at producing pop music as I possibly can. I think what sets me apart from a lot of other artists is that I am 100% independent. I am driving the ship from the very start to the very finish. I produce the track, write to it, sing on it, vocal produce and arrange harmonies, record it, level it out and sometimes, even master it myself. I have to shout out my collaborators, particularly my mixing engineer, Pablo San Martin, who makes all my songs sound incredible – but so much of my creative process comes directly from me, and that’s why I think so many people are able to connect with it. It’s authentic, slightly imperfect, but actually stunning because so much heart goes into it every time.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I think the most rewarding aspect of being an artist is being able to connect with others – especially strangers – emotionally. Nothing makes my heart feel fuller than getting a message from someone I have never met before, telling me that they’ve just discovered my music and that it’s impacted them in a positive way. Those moments are what make being a singer and a songwriter so fulfilling for me.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My creative path has certainly been a journey, but I think what sets me apart from many other artists is that I don’t have big goals of touring stadiums or packing out arenas. I don’t make music for the dreams of fame and fortune that I sense fuel so many artist’s careers. In large part, I create music because it’s simply a part of how I operate. Fish swim, birds fly, Lady OFLO sings. It’s both an emotional outlet and a habitual practice. It’s a way for me to process my thoughts, but also to release and transform non-physical energy into something tangible. What really drives my creative journey is the passion of life itself. It’s not for some short lived, temporary high. It’s for something greater. Something real. And that,I believe, is what will bring me creative success for a lifetime.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.ladyoflo.com
• Instagram: @ladyoflo
• Facebook: Facebook.com/ladyoflo
• Twitter: @ladyoflo
• Youtube: YouTube.com/ladyoflo

Image Credits
Image credits: Carina Allen & Paul Burgo