Today we’d like to introduce you to Leanne Tessa.
Leanne, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
In all honesty, I owe my career to my mom. From such a young age, I was exposed and encouraged to be apart of anything and everything I found an interest in and I am forever grateful for that. From dance lessons to guitar and piano class to singing rehearsals and auditions, I fell in love with the chaos.
Although I started dancing, singing and acting at the age of 4 or 5, I did not really get into the world of it all until I was a teenager. I mainly started off as a competition dancer that trained at a studio, took local singing lessons with recitals at the end of the year, and took part in the plays at my local theater. Towards the end of middle school and beginning of high school is when things really started taking off.
I booked the lead role in my middle school play, I got signed to MSA, Momentum Talent Agency, and Dream Talent Management and next thing I know a few years down the line I’m singing the National Anthem at Dodger Stadium for their game against the Cubs and I booked Disney’s “Club Mickey Mouse” the remake of the original “The Mickey Mouse Club” (starring Justin Timberlake, Brittney Spears, Christina Aguilera, etc.) Along with putting out my own music over the years and recently booking a dance job in Netflix’s “The Prom” coming out later this year, I couldn’t have done any of it without the love and ongoing support from my friends and most importantly my mom. She drove me to all these auditions, stayed up with me at 2 am until I was finished with homework and of course paid for all the training and opportunities along the way. When it came to doing something I loved, she never gave me a no.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Nothing in life is handed to you and as repetitive as it may sound if time and time again, you continue to show up, focus on you and take care of the aspects in which you need to grow, it will pay off.
In every venture of the arts I experienced, I had to prove myself. I may not have been the “body type” that most girls were, or the most flexible, or even the most agile when it came to my range in vocals but being looked over made me want to work that much harder. And after years of being the last one at the studio taking the classes that nobody wanted to, working twice as hard on my vocals for muscle memory, and prioritizing school work on top of everything, I was prepared for the opportunities that came my way.
I found myself being mentored by people that I praised and standing next to the kids that I once looked up to and that’s when I realized why things happen the way they do.
Can you give our readers some background on your music?
I am an artist. I started as a dancer and actress but if I had to choose the one that resonates with me the most, it would be music. It’s such a powerful universal language that can make you feel everything and I don’t know how I would have been able to get through the lowest and highest points of my life without it. Writing songs, sometimes even with the intent for nobody to hear them is my favorite form of expression.
One of my favorite moments of my career was the release of my first single “Runnin”. Putting out something that you create can be one of the most terrifying experiences but everyone in my life showed up for me during that release. To my surprise, all my friends knew all the words, fans I didn’t even know I had sent me messages of how much they loved it and friends of mine that had never been on stage before performed alongside me at my high school all out of love. Watching the single stream over 400,000 streams on Spotify on top of it all had me ecstatic. Definitely a time in my life, I’ll cherish forever.
I guess what sets me apart is my love for school. Right now, I’m still in college maintaining a 4.0 and about to transfer to nursing school. Although it can be extremely stressful at times like this past spring when I had to be on set the same week of my finals, I find time to do the things I love. And you never know what life has to offer if you don’t go out and work for it. Overall, I can say I am excited for the future.
I guess what sets me apart from others is my ability to adapt.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
If I had to start over, I wouldn’t change a thing. However, if I knew then what I know now, I would have told myself earlier on not to care what a single person thought or had to say about me. But that’s something that everyone learns over time and shapes you as a person. And in all honesty, the overthinking turned into some really great songs.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.leannetessa.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leannetessa/
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5uRBAI7mW6ursv1RgOgSZt?si=-Ity9WSSSx2920ot9vCdew
Image Credit:
Dodgers Photo Blog, Jamie Rosenberg, Leanne Tessa, Reel Mike Jones
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