Biography
Leila Adu is a New Zealand composer, vocalist, pianist and improvisor of Ghanaian descent. London-born and raised in New Zealand, she studied composition at Victoria University of Wellington, graduating in 2003 with a focus on electronic music, orchestration, and film scoring. She later completed her PhD in music composition at Princeton University, where she was awarded a doctoral fellowship in 2011.
Operating at the intersection of electropop, avant-classical, and singer-songwriter traditions, Adu’s work blends piano-based composition with improvisational elements and electronic production. Her influences range from modern composition and Javanese singing to Balinese gamelan and early blues traditions of Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday, and Josephine Baker.
A genuinely good singer, with a velvety, soulful voice.
John Schaefer, WNYC
Adu maintained a significant presence in New Zealand’s music scene for approximately seven years, performing across jazz and contemporary music festivals, venues, and art spaces throughout the country. Her debut album Dig A Hole (2002) received rave reviews both in New Zealand and Australia. Her second album Cherry Pie (2005) was produced by David Long of The Mutton Birds and featured drummer Ricky Gooch (TrinityRoots), bassist Thomas Callwood, and Jeffrey Henderson (Syzygy & Urban Taniwha). The album received stellar reviews and was supported by a national release tour.
Her 2009 album Dark Joan was recorded by Steve Albini at Electrical Audio in Chicago. She has been compared to Nina Simone and Joanna Newsom, and her music has reached diverse audiences—her track “Asylums for the feelings” was featured in the PlayStation 4 game Death Stranding.
As a composer, Adu has written for prestigious ensembles including Bang on a Can, the London Sinfonietta, the Crossing, the Brentano String Quartet, Mivos String Quartet, So Percussion, Gamelan Padhang Moncar, and Orchestra Wellington. She has performed at venues including the Ojai Music Festival and appeared on Late Night with David Letterman.
She currently serves as assistant professor in the music technology program at NYU Steinhardt, where she founded the Critical Sonic Practice Lab. In 2022, she received the Charles Ives Composer Fellowship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Adu previously served on the board of directors for Die Jim Crow Records, the country’s first record label for currently and formerly incarcerated individuals, and taught music to incarcerated men at Sing Sing Maximum-Security Correctional Facility through Musicambia.
Members
- Leila Adu (vocals / piano / keyboard, Leila Adu, Life Station, The Miz’ries, Truth In The Abstract Blues)
Discography
- S/t [CD] (2001, spaceCDS, spacecd 001)
- Dig A Hole [CD] (2002, SpaceCDs, SpaceCD 101)
- Cherry Pie [CD] (2005, Hen 712)
- A Low Hum DVD2 [DVD] (2005, A Low Hum, HUM 014)
- Truth In The Abstract Blues [CD] (2009, Rai Trade, RTPJ 0017)
- Ivana EP [File] (2009, Unaffected Records, UAR011)
- The Shoreditch Concert [CD] (2010, Amirani Records, AMRN023)
- Ode To The Unknown Factory Worker [CD] (2010, Rai Trade, RTPJ0020)
- Digital Haircut/Molten Lava [File] (2013, Bastard Jazz Recordings)
- Emotional Performance Motorcycle [Cassette] (2014, Belts & Whistles, B&W001)
- Swimming In The Sahara (With A Frog On My Tail) [CD] (2015, Bullnose Hoop Records, BNHCD001)
- Life Station [File] (2016, 577 Records, 5795)
- Love Cells & Scary Love Monster [CD] (2016, Belts & Whistles, 004)
- SPAGHETTO [Vinyl] (2016, Warp Records, WAP389)
- Complete Control Of Your Vehicle [CDr] (2016, Belts & Whistles, B&W005)
- Cave Circles [Vinyl] (2017, Wonderful Noise Productions, WN12052)