Laura Lee (bassist)

Last updated
Laura Lee Ochoa
Khruangbin am Haldern Pop Festival 2019 - 12 - Foto Alexander Kellner.jpg
Laura Lee Ochoa performing with Khruangbin at Haldern Pop (2019)
Background information
Also known asLeezy
Born (1986-10-14) October 14, 1986 (age 37)
Houston, Texas, U.S.
Genres
Instrument(s)
  • Bass guitar
  • vocals
Years active2009–present
Labels
Member of Khruangbin

Laura Lee Ochoa [1] (born October 14, 1986), also known as Leezy, is an American musician and singer-songwriter, best known as the bass guitarist and one of the founding members of the musical trio Khruangbin.

Contents

Biography

The daughter of Mexican-American parents, [2] Ochoa played piano and guitar as a child, but picked up bass at the suggestion of (then future) bandmate Mark Speer. Ochoa met him in 2009 through friends, where they initially connected over a shared love of Afghan music. Ochoa was an art history major with a focus on art of the ancient Near East. She worked as a math teacher for six years. [3] At the time, she was interested in playing piano again and he suggested she "follow the sound of the bass", which she had never thought about doing before. [4] [5] This recommendation led her to begin playing, which she says came very naturally to her. [6]

Ochoa has recorded five studio albums with Khruangbin: The Universe Smiles Upon You (2015), Con Todo el Mundo (2018), Mordechai (2020), Ali (2022) and A La Sala (2024) as well as two EPs: Texas Sun (2021) and Texas Moon (2022), both with the band and Leon Bridges. Prior to forming the group, Lee played bass on tour with Yppah. [4] In April, 2021, she collaborated with Los Angeles–based singer-songwriter Niia on the song "Not Up For Discussion." [7]

Style and stage persona

In Khruangbin, Ochoa performs as "Leezy", an alter-ego that helps her keep some parts of herself private: "It helps me separate from her and it helps me emotionally to put it on her, so I let her take on all of the pressure." [4] She is the band's creative director, using her training in art and architecture to set up staging and create choreography and graphic design. [8] Both she and Speer sport long black wigs while performing [9] and "Leezy" goes through many costume changes throughout a show. In 2011, she made the decision to never wear the same outfit twice on stage, estimating that she has worn 600 different outfits whilst on tour. [10] She wears two different outfits per show, a decision inspired by Elton John, who was known to change up to four outfits. [3] She is also inspired by Prince who handled choreography and played guitar at the same time. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aimee Mann</span> American singer-songwriter (born 1960)

Aimee Elizabeth Mann is an American singer-songwriter. Over the course of four decades, she has released more than a dozen albums as a solo artist and with other musicians. She is noted for her sardonic and literate lyrics about dark subjects. Mann's work with the producer Jon Brion in the 1990s was influential on American alternative rock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nanci Griffith</span> American singer-songwriter (1953–2021)

Nanci Caroline Griffith was an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. She appeared many times on the PBS music program Austin City Limits starting in 1985. In 1994 she won a Grammy Award for the album Other Voices, Other Rooms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miss Black America (band)</span>

Miss Black America (MBA) were a punk rock band formed in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England in 1999 and active until 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sara Lee (musician)</span> Musical artist

Sara Lee is an English-American bassist and singer-songwriter, who came to prominence when replacing Dave Allen on bass guitar in the post-punk band Gang of Four, of which she was a member from 1982 to 1984. She was also a member of Robert Fripp's short-lived band The League of Gentlemen and is also notable for work with the B-52s, Ani DiFranco, and Indigo Girls. As of October 2021, Lee rejoined Gang of Four with founding members Hugo Burnham and Jon King as well as David Pajo, to tour in 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Las de la Intuición</span> 2007 single by Shakira

"Las de la Intuición" is a song by Colombian singer-songwriter Shakira from her sixth studio album Fijación Oral Vol. 1 (2005). It was written and produced by the singer as well as co-composed by Luis Fernando Ochoa, with additional production by Lester Mendez. It was sent to Spanish radio stations on 24 February 2007, as the fourth and final single from the album. "Las de la Intuición" is a synth-pop and Euro house track whose lyrics talk about female intuition. It received mostly positive reviews from music critics, who commended its lyrical content and production. The track was a commercial success in Spain, topping the Airplay chart, and entering the top ten on the Downloads and Original Tones charts, all published by the Productores de Música de España (PROMUSICAE). It received a five-times Platinum certification by the organization for 100,000 ringtones sold, and became the song of the summer of the country in 2007. Elsewhere, it entered the charts in Russia and Venezuela.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Save Up All Your Tears</span> 1988 single by Bonnie Tyler

"Save Up All Your Tears" is a song written by Desmond Child and Diane Warren, and originally released by Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler. The song was subsequently covered by other artists including Robin Beck, Cher, Freda Payne and Bonfire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amy Lee</span> American musician (born 1981)

Amy Lynn Lee is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She is the co-founder, lead vocalist, lead songwriter and keyboardist of the rock band Evanescence. A classically trained pianist, Lee began writing music at age 11 and co-founded Evanescence at age 13, inspired by various musical genres and film scores from an early age. Lee has also participated in other musical projects, including Nightmare Revisited and Muppets: The Green Album, and composed music for several films, including War Story (2014), Indigo Grey: The Passage (2015), and the song "Speak to Me" for Voice from the Stone (2017). She has also released the covers EP Recover, Vol. 1 (2016), the soundtrack album to War Story, the children's album Dream Too Much (2016), and collaborated with other artists such as Korn, Seether, Bring Me the Horizon, Lindsey Stirling, Body Count, and Wagakki Band. Lee has a mezzo-soprano voice type.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Niia</span> American singer

Niia Bertino, better known by her stage name Niia, is an American singer, pianist, and songwriter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meghan Trainor</span> American singer-songwriter (born 1993)

Meghan Elizabeth Trainor is an American singer-songwriter and television personality. She rose to prominence after signing with Epic Records in 2014 and releasing her debut single "All About That Bass", which reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart and sold 11 million copies worldwide. Trainor has released five studio albums with the label and has received various accolades, including the 2016 Grammy Award for Best New Artist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Khruangbin</span> American rock band

Khruangbin is an American musical trio from Houston, Texas. The band consists of Laura Lee Ochoa, Mark Speer, and DJ Johnson. The band is known for blending global music influences, such as classic soul, dub, rock and psychedelia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kadhja Bonet</span> American musician

Kadhja Bonet is an American musician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Speer</span> American guitarist and songwriter

Mark Speer is an American musician and songwriter, best known as the guitarist and one of the founding members of the musical trio Khruangbin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Save a Kiss</span> 2020 single by Jessie Ware

"Save a Kiss" is the fifth single by English singer-songwriter Jessie Ware from her fourth studio album, What's Your Pleasure? It was released 7 May 2020. It was written by Ware, James Ford, Shungudzo Kuyimbia and Danny Parker. Ford also produced the song.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Chromatica Ball</span> 2022 concert tour by Lady Gaga

The Chromatica Ball was the seventh headlining concert tour by American singer Lady Gaga in support of her sixth studio album, Chromatica (2020). Comprising 20 shows, it began on July 17, 2022, in Düsseldorf and concluded on September 17, 2022, in Miami Gardens. Initially conceived as a six-date-long, limited tour, new dates were added after it was delayed by two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

<i>The Universe Smiles upon You</i> 2015 studio album by Khruangbin

The Universe Smiles Upon You is the debut studio album by American musical trio Khruangbin. It was released November 6, 2015 under Night Time Stories label.

<i>Mordechai</i> (album) 2020 studio album by Khruangbin

Mordechai is the third studio album by American musical trio Khruangbin. It was released June 26, 2020 under Dead Oceans and Night Time Stories.

<i>Ali</i> (Vieux Farka Touré and Khruangbin album) 2022 studio album by Vieux Farka Touré and Khruangbin

Ali is a collaborative studio album by Malian singer and guitarist Vieux Farka Touré and Texan trio Khruangbin. It consists of covers of songs by Vieux's father, Ali Farka Touré. It was released on September 23, 2022, on Dead Oceans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DJ Johnson (musician)</span> American drummer, songwriter and producer

Donald "DJ" Johnson, Jr. is an American musician, songwriter, and music producer best known as the drummer for Khruangbin, a trio from Houston, Texas.

<i>A La Sala</i> 2024 studio album by Khruangbin

A La Sala is the fourth studio album by American musical trio Khruangbin. It was released on April 5, 2024 through Dead Oceans and Night Time Stories.

References

  1. Cheng, Vivian (2020-07-11). "Khruangbin's Leap With Mordechai". Office. Retrieved 2022-01-13.
  2. Smith, Thomas (26 June 2020). "Khruangbin: "We planned our entire world tour around Glastonbury"". NME.
  3. 1 2 Hoffman, Jordan (2022-08-18). "Khruangbin's Laura Lee Takes Us Under the Wig". Vanity Fair . Retrieved 2022-08-19.
  4. 1 2 3 D'Auria, Jon (11 November 2020). "Laura Lee: Leap Of Faith". Bass Player. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  5. Rhodes, Margaret (30 January 2018). "Khruangbin's Feel-Good Funk Is Undeniable". Vulture. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  6. Weinberg, Silken (23 October 2020). "Follow the bass: An interview with Laura Lee of Khruangbin". Teeth Magazine. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  7. Britto, David (21 April 2021). "Los Angeles Singer-Songwriter Niia Collaborates with Khruangbin's Laura Lee On Lush Single 'Not Up For Discussion'". Rolling Stone India. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  8. 1 2 Barrett, Helen (2022-09-19). "Musician Laura Leezy on her wild stage style". Financial Times . Retrieved 2022-09-26.
  9. Vetch, Mara (12 August 2021). "Khruangbin's Laura Lee and Kadhja Bonet on Crafting the Perfect Remix". Interview Magazine. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  10. Nguyen, Andrew (5 October 2021). "Khruangbin's Laura Lee Never Repeats an Outfit". The Cut. Retrieved 13 January 2022.