Lia Pappas Kemps
ABOUT
For Lia Pappas-Kemps, expressing herself through art has always been second nature. This is evident in the confident, natural presence the Toronto-born singer brings every time she steps on stage, stemming all the way back to the beginning of her career in music. In 2021 and 2022, she launched her music career through a series of singles, including the grunge-inflected “Jinx” and the gorgeous, swooning ballads “Sad in Toronto” and “Object at Best". In her emotionally unsparing, sensuous and critically acclaimed debut EP, Gleam, her intricate sound comes across, demonstrating influences from throwback alt-rock to ’70s troubadours to modern indie rock but never truly resembling anyone but herself. With each release she continues to trace her progress while finding her songwriting voice. But nothing about her music is underdeveloped. Instead, every new track plots a crystalline moment in an engaging coming-of-age story—one that will feel compelling for anyone for whom desire has felt as heavy as the weight of the world.
For Lia Pappas-Kemps, expressing herself through art has always been second nature. This is evident in the confident, natural presence the Toronto-born singer brings every time she steps on stage, stemming all the way back to the beginning of her career in music. In 2021 and 2022, she launched her music career through a series of singles, including the grunge-inflected “Jinx” and the gorgeous, swooning ballads “Sad in Toronto” and “Object at Best". In her emotionally unsparing, sensuous and critically acclaimed debut EP, Gleam, her intricate sound comes across, demonstrating influences from throwback alt-rock to ’70s troubadours to modern indie rock but never truly resembling anyone but herself. With each release she continues to trace her progress while finding her songwriting voice. But nothing about her music is underdeveloped. Instead, every new track plots a crystalline moment in an engaging coming-of-age story—one that will feel compelling for anyone for whom desire has felt as heavy as the weight of the world.
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