If you’d like to hear about the long and bumpy road that leads to success, LP is the right person to ask. The US singer, who is of Italian descent, released her very first album in 2001, however, the world only got to know her more than a decade later thanks to her 2015 hit, „Lost On You”. From then on, it was clear than she simply cannot focus solely on songwriting, like she had done for years, because at that time, the whole world fell in love with her unique and unmatched voice, and everyone who’s seen her live will agree that she was born to be on stage.
This September 24 marked her third concert in Hungary, and her second time playing at Budapest Park, where she took the stage by storm. Before the show, we were lucky enough to have a quick chat with her backstage about her forthcoming album, „Churches”, she told us which tattoo of hers is her favorite and why, she told us about what her life’s like when she’s touring, and of course we taught her how to say I love you in Hungarian, which she remembered to say on stage, making the Hungarian crowd very happy – exclusive interview with LP.
It’s so nice to see you. How are you? How are you doing?
I’m good, I’m good. Just ready to rock.
Ready to play. Alright. So how about we start with a quick round of rapid questions, just to get us warmed up.
It’s gonna get me all warmed up. Yeah!
So, first of all, what’s one thing that you think people don’t know about you at all?
Umm… I don’t know. I think everybody knows a lot of things. I think that I’m a very sensitive person, I guess. And you know, with the fucking internet, it’s difficult.
And what’s one thing that you can’t leave your house without when you’re on tour?
When I’m on tour? Pretty much my yoga mat.
Your yoga mat?
Yeah, I do yoga every day, or it’s kinda like, I lose my shit.
Alright. If you could choose just one superpower, what would it be?
Time travel.
Time travel?
Yeah, sure.
Now, you have so many cool tattoos, I’m wondering, which one is your favorite?
I mean, obviously the ship is like, an interesting… When I got this tattoo, it was in 2015, and I just lost my, I don’t know, like, 6th record deal or some shit like that. I was not like, oh I’m gonna put a ship on my chest and, you know what I mean, whatever. But then I did it ’cause I was like, I had some stuff there and I had some like, birds and shit and I was like yeah, okay, I’m putting this ship there just on a whim, kinda. I went to New York City, I was kinda like searching my soul, thinking about the journey and all that stuff and then I did this and it became a thing. I was kinda surprised ’cause I didn’t know I was gonna be an artist then.
What’s the best part of touring for you?
Best part of touring… The shows. The actual shows. Everything else other than that is just traveling and whatever, doing all those things, this fucking shit…
Sorry!
No, I’m kidding! But anyway. Yeah, but I love the shows the most.
© Nagy Marci / Budapest Park 
© Nagy Marci / Budapest Park
And what’s your favorite part of being a musician, like, writing the songs or the touring part or the recording part?
I’ll be honest, I love all of them. That’s why I think being a writer, for me, ultimately wasn’t a thing. I mean, it is a thing but getting to write the songs and then sing them and then record them is more than I could have ever hoped for.
So like, the whole package.
Yeah, so I love it all. And it’s not fun to be in the studio writing all the time, kinda like squeezing my brain, you know? I don’t always wanna be squeezing my brain to death. I just wanna forget about stuff and then when I’m touring, it’s amazing ’cause I just keep putting out energy and then I need a rest from that, just like, mentally.
Your new album is called „Churches” and it’s coming out at the end of the year, on December 3. And then your new single „Angels” is coming out at the beginning of October. I’m just wondering, can you tell me about what were your main inspirations while you were making this record and what sound can we expect from it?
I think the record for me… Every single that comes out, I’m like, yaaay, a single, but I’m also like, ahh I can’t wait till the record comes out ’cause I feel like it all goes together very well, in my opinion, for me, even when I listen to it. I mean, I always shoot for that, but I feel like this particular record feels very good as a whole.
A body of work.
Yeah, exactly. I put more songs on it than the usual, 14 songs or something like that. Usually, I put like, 11 or 12. But it’s still not that long, I think it’s like, less than 40 minutes long or some shit. But yeah, I’m excited for everybody to hear it as it’s whole thing.
Alright, and which song are you the most excited to put out?
Which song? You know… I don’t know! I think „Angels” is definitely one of them. I think „Everybody’s Falling In Love” feels very like… the timing is… I hope the timing is right when we put out the songs ’cause that’s a big thing. I feel like a song like „Everybody’s Falling In Love” is just a playful, kinda fun song about having fun with someone in a beautiful way, in a loving way. I think it, and also „Angels”, feels uplifting and I think people will take it as that ’cause I feel like we need that right now. We need to get ourselves back to the joy.
Now, as you mentioned before, it’s been kind of a long and bumpy road for you to get where you are in your career.
It’s always long and bumpy. It’s still bumpy, man. There’s all kind of shit that goes on.
Right. So I’m wondering if you had a time machine and you could go back in time to when you were starting out as a singer-songwriter and give your younger self just one piece of advice, what would it be?
I would say don’t worry so much and just keep working, like I did, basically. Just like, roll back on the worrying so much. I was just so terrified but I think it’s what kept me going. Being an artist can be a very thankless situation. It’s not like going to school to be a doctor, which was like, another option that I thought I had back in the day. It’s like, you go thought the whole thing. Yeah, you can be a shitty doctor, there are plenty of them, but at least you got a job and you make money, usually. Have you ever met an out of work doctor?
No, I don’t think I have.
You know, someone go like, yeah I’m a doctor, but I don’t have any work right now. Seem like they always have work. I don’t know. I just thought that. This just in. But I think you can be an artist your whole life, or working and striving to be, dancers and entertainers, they got a time clock a lot of the times, it’s hard, and that’s why you do worry. You worry, but don’t.
Alright, thank you. Now, you’re just about to step on stage, the last question, do you have any pre-show rituals that you always do before you step on stage?
I just smack Talayeh on the shoulder, and I’m like, thanks, thanks again! If I don’t do that before the show, I’m screwed! No, I mean I warm up my voice. That’s it.
Okay. Just one last thing before we go. We would like to kind of teach you something, so you can take away something from this interview, as well.
Okay.
So, I’m wondering, do you know any Hungarian words?
Oh, I just… Szia! And I know, umm, köszönöm.
But do you know, I love you?
No!
Alright, so that’s what we’re gonna teach you.
Okay, okay, good.
So it goes like this: szeretlek.
Szeretlek.
Szeretlek, yes, yes!
Szeretlek! Ayyy!
So maybe you can say that on stage tonight.
Okay, perfect, thank you!
