Hannah Bussiere Kim (born October 3, 1996), better known by her stage name Luna Li, is a

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

-based singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer. During the early months of the

COVID pandemic Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fev ...

, Kim rose to prominence after a series of videos of her home-performed multi-instrumental

jam session A jam session is a relatively informal musical event, process, or activity where musicians, typically instrumentalists, play improvised solos and vamp over tunes, drones, songs, and chord progressions. To "jam" is to improvise music without ...

s, featuring her playing the harp, keyboard, guitar, and violin, became

viral The word ''Viral'' means "relating to viruses" (small infectious agents). It may also refer to: Viral behavior, or virality Memetic behavior likened that of a virus, for example: * Viral marketing, the use of existing social networks to spre ...

social media Social media are interactive technologies that facilitate the Content creation, creation, information exchange, sharing and news aggregator, aggregation of Content (media), content (such as ideas, interests, and other forms of expression) amongs ...

. Kim began writing music as "Veins", and released the record ''Moon Garden'' in 2015. As "Luna Li", she

self-released Self-publishing is an author-driven publication of any media without the involvement of a third-party publisher. Since the advent of the internet, self-published usually depends upon digital platforms and print-on-demand technology, ranging fr ...

her debut extended play ''Opal Angel'' in 2017. After signing to AWAL Recordings and In Real Life, she released the ''jams'' extended play'','' a compilation of the viral jam sessions she composed during the pandemic, in 2021. Her debut record as Luna Li, '' Duality,'' was released on AWAL (Canada) and In Real Life (in the rest of the world) in 2022. She released her second album in 2024: ''When a Thought Grows Wings''.

Early life

Kim was born and raised in

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. She is of Korean-Canadian heritage and cites her background as a major influence on her songwriting. Kim grew up with classical training in piano and violin, eventually also becoming proficient in harp, electric guitar, bass, and drums. She attended Classical Music Conservatory in

, where her mothers are co-directors. She originally attended

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

to study violin, but dropped out after a semester to pursue her own songwriting and to start her own rock band in the Toronto music scene. According to Kim, “When I was first starting out, I thought, ‘Rock and roll is cool, the violin is not.’”

Career

2014–2017: Veins

In 2014, Kim started the garage rock group "Veins", the name of which came from a poem written during high school. After returning from Montreal to Toronto in 2015, she concurrently attended Seneca College's one-year Independent Music Production program, graduating in 2016. While Veins was initially conceived as a personal project, the group grew into a six-member live band that performed at local venues in Toronto and Montreal. In May 2015, the group's debut album ''Moon Garden'' was released on

Bandcamp Bandcamp is an American online music distribution platform founded in 2008 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with an office and record store in Oakland, California. Acquired by Epic ...

. Though they had not reached out to media, the record received a warm reception from press and reviewer outlets. In January 2017, they played their last show under the name Veins. According to Kim, the group had intended to change their name since 2016, partly since “everyone thought Veins would be like a metal or a dark hard rock band, which it wasn't.” She and her bandmates eventually decided on ‘Luna Li’, which fit the natural imagery and themes in her songwriting and production.

2017–present: Luna Li

As Luna Li, Kim self-released her first EP, Opal Angel, in 2017. In February 2020, Kim released a new song titled "Trying". Kim released another new song, "Afterglow", in August 2020. In February 2021, Kim released her second EP, titled "Jams EP". Kim released a new song titled "Cherry Pit" in March 2021. Kim's next single, "Alone But Not Lonely", was released in May 2021. In September and October 2021, Kim embarked on a tour opening for

Japanese Breakfast Japanese Breakfast is an American indie pop band from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, formed in 2013. The project is fronted by vocalist, guitarist and primary songwriter Michelle Zauner; she is joined in its current iteration by long-serving music ...

. In May 2022, Luna Li appeared on Saturday Night Live as a violinist for Japanese Breakfast. Kim released her debut album '' Duality'', in 2022 to positive reviews. She followed it up later in the year with the EP ''Jams 2''. She toured with

Wolf Alice Wolf Alice are a Rock music, rock band from London. Formed in 2010 as an acoustic duo made up of singer Ellie Rowsell and guitarist Joff Oddie, Wolf Alice have also featured bassist Theo Ellis and drummer Joel Amey since 2012. Wolf Alice playe ...

, opening for them in fall 2022, before embarking on a headline tour. On May 15, 2024, Kim announced her second album, ''When a Thought Grows Wings'', with release set for August 23 by In Real Life and AWAL.

Awards

In 2017, Luna Li won the SOCAN Foundation Award for Young Canadian Songwriters with her single Star Stuff, from the Opal Angel EP. Luna Li's debut album, Duality, was nominated for a Juno Award under the Alternative Album of the Year category in 2023. One of the songs from Duality, Silver Into Rain (Ft

Beabadoobee Beatrice Kristi Ilejay Laus (born 3 June 2000), known professionally as Beabadoobee (; '), is a British singer-songwriter. From 2018 to 2021, she released five extended plays (EPs) under the independent label Dirty Hit: ''Lice'' (2018), ''Patc ...

), earned Luna Li the 2023 SOCAN Songwriting Prize.

Discography

Albums

* '' Duality'' (2022) * ''When a Thought Grows Wings'' (2024)

EPs

''Opal Angel'' (2017)

''Jams'' EP (2021)

''Jams 2'' EP (2022)

References

External links

Official website

Luna Li
at

Veins
at Bandcamp * – published by

KEXP KEXP-FM (90.3 FM broadcasting, FM) is a non-commercial Radio broadcasting, radio station in Seattle, Seattle, Washington, United States, specializing in indie music programmed by its disc jockeys. KEXP's studios are located at the Seattle Cent ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Li, Luna Canadian people of Korean descent Living people 1996 births Canadian indie pop musicians 21st-century Canadian women singers Canadian women singer-songwriters Musicians from Toronto