When an artist grows wings

Luna Li took charge of her own life with a move to L.A. and used the change to make a more vulnerable and mature sophomore album

- HEATHER TAYLOR-SINGH

Toronto's Hannah Bussiere Kim, also known as musican, singer and songwriter Luna Li, has a new album coming out next Friday. A hometown show at the Danforth Music Hall on Sept. 28 will come in the middle of her five-week North American tour, which kicks off Sept. 10 in San Diego, Calif.

Luna Li was destined to be a performer.

With musically inclined parents, who own the Classic Music Conservatory in Roncesvalles, the Toronto artist was classically trained from a young age. She was singing along to “The Sound of Music” at age two and taking piano lessons by five. Li developed a knack for learning instruments, adding the violin, guitar, drums, bass, mini harp and, most recently, flute to her repertoire.

By her late teens, she was a part of Toronto’s DIY music scene, playing gigs at small local venues: first, as indie rock band Veins before the group morphed into Luna Li, releasing their debut single “Opal Angel” in 2017. Li’s early work rides the wave of psychedelic rock with sparse vocals and strong instrumentals.

During the pandemic, she started posting jams online: soothing, groovy tunes on which she would play every instrument. The internet responded enthusiastically and these clips formed two EPs: “jams” (2021) and “jams 2” (2022).

Li’s first record, “Duality,” explored her mixed-race identity of being Korean and white, life transitions and friendships. With soft soundscapes and lyrics “shrouded in poetry,” it established a unique mode of cinematic dream-pop.

It received favourable reviews and earned her a Juno Award nomination for alternative album of the year.

The 27-year-old releases her sophomore album, “ When a Thought Grows Wings,” next Friday.

“I’m nervous, but I’m proud of it,” said Li, real name Hannah Bussiere Kim, in an interview. She was on a month-long visit to her hometown from Los Angeles, where she has lived since last summer.