Checking In: French Diva Lou Rebecca Moves to Los Angeles

“The Parisian crooner’s cast of characters keeps growing throughout the visualization for Restless, Rebecca’s debut LP on homegrown imprint Holodeck Records,” detailed Rachel Rascoe in a Chronicle cover story last fall. “Video game warrior, sci-fi princess, genie ballerina – she needs you to meet them all.”

Pandemic Polaroids courtesy of the subject

Austin Chronicle: Where are you sheltering and under what circumstances? Who else is there and how’s that going?

Lou Rebecca: When it all began, I was sheltering in Austin, but ended up moving to Los Angeles. I think I got completely restless from quarantine, because I woke up one day, packed my car, and off I went!

AC: At what point did C-19 shut down operations for you, and what went down with the ship, so to speak, both personally & professionally?

LR: Everyone realized in March that there was going to be a big shift, that the way most people lived had to change completely. It took me some time, but at some point I got comfortable with the uncertainty – with taking it day by day, since we don’t know when this is going to end. Personally, a lot has changed in my life, but I ended up embracing that and going all in.

I was hoping that drastically moving to a new city would somehow bring me a sort of epiphany, with all the answers I was looking for. Wouldn’t you know, it did not. But it did bring me a creative impulse as [Austin expatriate and L.A. dweller] Josh [Mills] and I have been writing new songs!

I’ve been focusing mostly on what I can do to improve as an artist and a person, and to emerge from these strange times stronger than before.

AC: As a global culture, people employ music for every purpose imaginable, obviously spanning religion to entertainment and everything in between. What happens to communities like ours when people can no longer access it in person?

LR: It’s been very strange, of course. Stage has always been my favorite place. The weirdest part is not knowing when we’ll be able to perform to a crowd again.

But, we can be patient.

I think it’s the hardest on the venues. It’s so odd to see our favorite places, where we’ve played so many times, being shut down one after the other. It makes us wonder what it’s all going to look like when life comes back.

It’s going to be so special though, when we can all safely gather again. I really cannot wait!

AC: Everyone’s had to shift or drastically alter their work situation. What does that look like for you?

LR: Well, recently my entire life did alter quite a bit. It’s been interesting. You would think it’s not the best of times to move since everything is closed, but it’s actually allowed me to focus on what matters and to think about what that even means. To take the time to appreciate how many wonderful people are in my life, how lucky I’ve been.

I’ve been reading and writing more, and having longer piano and dance practices. Going through a lot of introspection, taking the time to ask myself questions I’ve avoided for years, I think I’ve been trying to understand the meaning of my life. That’ll probably take the rest of it to figure out.

AC: What’s your soundtrack for the apocalypse and what role does music play for you as a fan and scholar of it in times of hardship?

LR: Music is just a part of me. It’s not something I really think about. Its role in my life... is like breathing, you know? You don’t really think about it. It’s naturally a part of what you do and how you live.

Everything about it – if you’re looking for joy or a cathartic release – music has that range. My playlists are usually all over the place. I forget until I’m driving my friends around and have my favorite list on random, where it goes from Japanese rap to Vivaldi.

It gets some interesting reactions, because you never know what’s gonna come next.

That being said, there’ll always be the constant figures in my life: Ella Fitzgerald, Bill Evans, and Tchaikovsky. I don’t think I can make a playlist without them. They’re like old friends I can always count on to bring up interesting feelings in my heart.

And hopefully, it’s not the apocalypse quite yet, and we have a few more beautiful years to come.

Check out the entire Checking In series.