“As songwriters, we have two jobs: one is writing and one is living,” Luma tells American Songwriter. “Without the latter, the former is impossible. When I take the time to live and enjoy my life, I always end up with something I love creatively.”
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For the young, Nashville-based, electronic singer-songwriter, telling the stories of her life through song has been an incredibly rewarding experience. With a knack for introspective lyrics and an ear for undeniably groovy beats, she’s racked up millions of streams since she first started dropping singles in 2018. Now, on April 26, she’s putting out her debut EP: Kill The Night, an electrifying collection of tunes blending Luma’s love for pop music with her talent for dancey hooks.
One of the highlights on Kill The Night is “Devil Saint,” a swaggering collaboration with producer Yuppycult. With dramatic lyrical imagery and a hook that’ll get stuck in your head for days, the song is a testament to Luma’s approach to finding inspiration in her everyday life.
“My best friend had been going through a breakup and that situation prompted a conversation about duality,” she explained. “The world makes the most sense when we are able to understand that everything and everyone is made up of good and bad, right and wrong, light and darkness. We’re all a little bit of heaven and a little bit of hell. That’s what makes us so interesting and wonderful.”
After ruminating on this idea for a bit, inspiration struck when Luma went to a session with Rob Resnick of Timeflies and her frequent collaborator, Notelle. “The song came together in just a few hours,” Luma remembered. “I loved this session because of how casual it was. We all just sat on the couch. Rez with his laptop, building a quick track; myself and Notelle exchanging ideas and looking at literary quotes before deciding on the idea; ‘You can’t live like a devil and die like a saint.’ In this single session, we wrote, recorded and finalized the song you hear now. It was absolutely effortless and to this day, my favorite tune I’ve gotten to be a part of.”
Pleased with the tasteful confluence of pop and dance music, Luma noted that “Devil Saint” is one of her most cinematic songs to date—this is backed up by the quality of its music video. With a style akin to American Horror Story—augmented by sultry shots of blood, knives and devil horns—the video perfectly captures the dramatism and sass of Luma’s most exciting work to date. With a fast-growing list of collaborators and an even faster-growing list of fans, Luma might be singing about living like a devil, but she’s on the fast track to be living the dream.
Luma’s debut EP Kill The Night is available everywhere on April 26. Watch the music video for her single “Devil Saint” below:
