Rising Stars: Meet Lawrence Lebo of Los Angeles / OC

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lawrence Lebo.

Hi Lawrence, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
“…no denying, Ms. Lebo is not only an old school girl, but a classy vocalist to boot.”
~ Blues Matters Magazine

Lawrence Lebo is classic Old School American Roots! In the title track of her sixth release OLD SCHOOL GIRL Lebo writes “I’m an Old School Girl from head to toe”… and indeed she is! From the sultry wail of “You’ve Got A Secret” to the flirty laid-back groove of “Give Me A Try”, Lawrence delves deep into soul-blues territory reminiscent of the classic Stax records style. Ms. Lebo picked Rich Wenzel at Ardent Audio Productions to mix and master the CD for his familiarity of Old School ways of record making. Pulsing with classic Hammond B-3 organ and rock-solid bass lines, OLD SCHOOL GIRL is sure to please.

Lawrence is a consummate performer and entertainer who takes her audiences along on a magical journey. In their live concert review MUSIC CONNECTION MAGAZINE wrote, “Ms. Lebo took complete control of the stage. She was a comfortable performer who worked her audience well, often at times offering humorous as well as educational explanations for her choices. She had style, spunk and charisma! This was a thoroughly enjoyable evening.”.

Daughter of a Sears & Roebuck shoe salesman, Lawrence grew up in a middle-class suburb of Los Angeles, far away from the entertainment industry. She worked her way into the business the hard way, by singing in bands in every gritty little dive bar, all while she struggled as a single mother. She isn’t rich. She isn’t privileged. She isn’t related to anyone famous. She’s never had the help of an established record label or an agent. She does it all on her own and she stays in the game by relying on her talent. While her recordings receive airplay internationally, raising a family kept Lawrence’s performance schedule mostly local. She is well known and loved in Los Angeles. The LA WEEKLY awarded her BEST BLUES SINGER in their famous annual BEST OF LA special addition. The LA WEEKLY wrote “Lebo remains one of this country’s greatest living blues singers”.
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Lawrence has always relied on the strength of her music. In a career that has lasted several decades Lawrence was a successful self-releasing artist long before any artist ever dared consider doing such a thing! In 1989, before everyone had a computer and access to the internet she released her debut EP on her label On The Air Records from the kitchen of her tiny rent-control apartment, using just a typewriter and her Rolodex!!

All of Lawrence’s body of work contains the element of Old School. Her artist journey began with her critically acclaimed debut Ep titled “LAWRENCE LEBO and her LITTLE BIG BAND:DON‘T CALL HER LARRY ”. The debut release garnered national and international airplay, press, and landed her a feature on NPR’s WEEKEND EDITION SHOW. It was later re-released on CD as “DON’T CALL HER LARRY, VOL. 1”.

The success of her first endeavor sparked her second release “DON’T CALL HER LARRY, VOL. 2”. She swings, scats and moans her way through both originally penned compositions, and originally arranged classics that run the gamut from rocking electric blues, acoustic swing, to contemporary jazz.

In “DON’T CALL HER LARRY, VOL. 3 : AMERICAN ROOTS” Lawrence continues to explore the depths of American Blues & Roots music, reinterpreting her songbook in a duet setting, featuring herself and bassist Denny Croy (Lawrence Lebo, Doug MacLeod, Fiona Boyes, Brian Setzer Orchestra, Moon Martin). Stripped down to an organic setting, the stellar vocalist creates vivid imagery with her texturally diverse vocal styling. In an age where singers are manipulated with technology and slick production, Lawrence goes bar-room-raw, minimal, and shows us exactly what she can do. CASHBOX MAGAZINE wrote, “With equal parts Etta James and Bonnie Raitt, Lawrence Lebo’s voice is made for the ages. She would have been packing them in 60 years ago at the most happening spots out there, and her style should translate into quick chart dominance today.”

Lawrence followed with, “THE BEST OF DON’T CALL HER LARRY: BLUES MIX”. Here she handpicks the best of her blues tracks from her three previous releases and melds them into one body of work. A Blues DJ favorite, UK disc jockey Ian McHugh, host of Blues Is Truth wrote, “She (Lebo) has a way of phrasing a line that could never be anyone else, her voice sliding into and out of notes in a way that’s amazingly blue, microtonal in the way that people like Muddy Waters were “. And BLUES BLAST MAGAZINE wrote “Lawrence possesses one of the better female blues voices out there today.”

Ms. Lebo has worked long and hard at developing her craft. In addition to her more than 25 years of experience as an accomplished vocalist, band leader and songwriter, Lawrence was driven to expand her education. In the 1980s, she had attended the vocal program at Grove School of Music in Los Angeles, California. With this educational background, a steady performance schedule and raising family, she returned to traditional academia in 2000, earning an Associate of Arts degree in music at Santa Monica College, and then transferring to UCLA to complete her Bachelor of Arts degree in 2005. “An education at UCLA was not something I could afford,” says Lawrence. But hard work paid off. She received two of UCLA’s highest honors, including a Regents Scholar and a Gold Shield Alumni Scholar, that covered her entire tuition. She graduated from UCLA with Latin Honors and became the first in her family to graduate from higher education!

In 2014 Lawrence received inclusion into The Recording Academy (GRAMMYS ®) with voting member status. She continues this membership brining her to 12 years in 2026.

Post pandemic Ms. Lebo and her husband/bassist Deny Croy relocated to NE Ohio. Ms. Lebo continues to write, record, perform and teach out of her new base.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Navigating a career while raising two young boys as a single mother definitely had its challenges! I’m happy to say my sons are well-adjusted grown men now, who survived it!!!

Being a female vocalist and bandleader has always had its challenges. I dealt with that challenge by staying educated and able to hold my own with talented educated musicians. They make you prove yourself and I always have!

Most recently, the music industry financial fallout from the global pandemic caused me to make the difficult and hard choice of leaving the only home state I’ve ever known (California). The flip side of that decision is getting to have a completely new experience! A fresh perspective. New territory to explore. An ease on financial burdens, and new fans to meet and impress! I have to say that NE Ohio has some of the greenest, most beautiful landscape I’ve ever seen!

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am an internationally recognized, critically acclaimed, award winning American Roots recording artist/performer and educator!

For the past 30-plus years I have specialized in an original hybrid of American Roots music, based in jazz, blues and folk. I earned my early recognition with my debut release titled ‘Lawrence Lebo & her Little Big Band:Don’t Call Her Larry’ It featured traditional bluegrass instrumentation (Acoustic guitar, upright bass, banjo, mandolin, twin fiddles and drums) backing my vocals and performing Big Band arrangements of the songs. It was the first of it’s kind, though many have attempted some version of it since! NPR featured me on their WEEKEND EDITION SHOW, which really helped put me on the map, as it were! My ‘Don’t Call her Larry’ title inspired a trilogy of such titled albums exploring different hybrids of the American Roots umbrella.
Most recently I’m known for my latest blues release titled ‘Old School Girl’.

What am I most proud of? Wow, it’s difficult to pick just one accomplishment! I guess it all begins with being one of the first recording artists (and a female one to boot!) to release music on their own independent record label. And with no budget!!! No one was even thinking of doing that in 1989. The internet had just been born and no one had home computers. yet. I accomplished this from my rent-controlled apartment, using a typewriter and my Rolodex! I have since release 6 albums on my On The Air Records label.

What sets me apart from other recording artists is my stubborn commitment to art and originality over money-music! My commitment to my own growth and artistic journey no matter whether it’s hard to fit my music into the industry’s money-making boxes. My trust in my audience that this is why they are drawn to what I create. My deep appreciation for each person who pays any attention to what I do. My gratefulness for the opportunity to create art.

What matters most to you?
Truth matters most to me. I think it does to all real artists. Truth defines bonafide art. True art starts intellectual conversation both external and internal about what is true. The truth in art is what you connect to, what moves you, what inspires you, what you will never forget.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.lawrencelebo.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawrencelebo
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LawrenceLeboFanPage
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lawrence-lebo-1756227/
• Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/LawrenceLebo
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCM0CHhRe9Sk0uLs0rublCFA
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/77ChNcXWm0yiRhpiqePuI3?si=wD-FIfQXSqiCSA05_FeJrg

Image Credits
Headshot and album cover photos on all CD’s except Lawrence Lebo and her Little Big Band were taken by Michael Hiller. Band photo was taken during a live performance at McCabe’s Guitar Shop in Santa Monica, CA.