re. LW in LA live show

The bars of Los Angeles have been good to this teetotal Brit.

I spent my 30-day grace-period there, celebrating graduating my Master's and entering 2020. I backed keys at a Santa Monica bar, where I decided to stay off the liquor while pursuing my new career spreading social messages through live entertainment.

‍
Newly clean, I spent my 25th birthday making music (instead of just partying to it). After a family lunch at Nando's Swan Centre, we shot the #SmalltownDreamer music video there which put Eastleigh on the map within weeks.
I like to think I carried a little bit of La La Land with me back to Eastleigh that week. To the tune of cheeky optimism, Brexit Britain seemed a bit less bitter. I know I'm not the only one on the South Coast who's lockdown was eased by those very English music videos America inspired.

‍

So naturally L.A. was the first place to tour my music abroad when restrictions were lifted in 2022, as a 'Brit by the Beach'.
The reality for early-stage performing artists in Los Angeles is unglamorous, unpaid open-mic nights. But you've got to make the best of it. Start your week showcasing a couple tracks at TR!P Santa Monica on Monday & then head do the last cheap drink North of the Hills at Barrel Tavern on Tuesday.
‍
Both venues combined to make a success this winter when I rejoined my main creative collaborator Abhishek Pandit out there.

Firstly, the Barrel Tavern had allowed us to affordably shoot a film adaptation of Pandit's recently published Cold War story, a week before Russia's invasion of Ukraine made it chillingly relevant. This gave us the inspiration to complete the surreal short, soundtracked by YEP Kyiv who'd survived the onslaught.

Secondly, I was looking for a place to showcase the work on the anniversary of that regrettable invasion.

TR!P had responded well to my new singles at the open-mic nights and invited me to take the stage for a full hour.
My singles are all 2-3 minutes - so even blasting my new release "(Babyyy) I Want to Know U" a couple of times - I knew I could spare half the show to screen the short which - as Lonely Wolf observed on their Best Independent FIlm shortlist - "manages to compress decades of Cold War history into a quarter of an hour" - allowing a short talkback from core cast & crew members.

So that's what we did, on Feb 24th.
You can watchback highlights of the 2 parts in separate videos around 5 mins each:
1. Live Music
2. Film premiere

If you wanna hear more from me, either Contact me or join the mail-list below to get an email on the last Monday of the month.
Cos I Want to Know U!
‍
Laurence Warner
The entertainer behind Cerulean Sounds Productions like Closure Cafe

‍

P.S. hello world, this is my first News post on my new artist website LaurenceWarner.com, and is the only place here you'll find the 1st person, because it's the only aspect I commit to always curating myself.
For some of the old articles published at CeruleanSounds.com/news please go /olds. Check out the top post where I explain the choice to recenter my ~monthly official news updates to this domain.