Lleo loves a girl but they love playing shows even more

Lleo hasn’t performed yet, but they already seem at home in one of music’s most storied rooms. We meet just before their set at Sound Bite’s official launch party with Johnnie Walker Black Label. Fresh off tour, Lleo is settled rather than nervous — present, talkative and visibly buzzing to get on stage. As partygoers will soon see, there is a quiet tension at the centre of Lleo’s work. On first glance, they carry a grunge-leaning edge — blue-blonde hair and smudged eyeliner — that hints at distortion and noise. But the songs themselves move differently. What Lleo calls “bipolar pop” is bright and melodic, holding the highest highs and lowest lows in the same breath. It sounds buoyant, but it lands close to the chest.

That closeness carries through to Lleo’s writing. The ‘i love a girl’ singer pulls apart identity, mental health and queerness without turning any of it into spectacle. The songs are open without being heavy-handed, funny without dodging discomfort and designed to be felt before they’re overthought. Tonight’s set pulls from across their catalogue, including ‘nice to know u’ and ‘serotonin’, both sharpened by time on the road. But before the guests, who are just starting to queue outside, get to hear Lleo’s songs, we sit down for a quick-fire chat, touching on pre-show habits, favourite lyrics and the quieter kind of persistence that keeps artists moving forward.

Hi Lleo. How are you doing today?

I’m well, how are you?

Good, thank you. Ready for your first question?

I think so, yeah.

What song are you most excited to perform tonight?

I’m most excited to perform my song called ‘i love a girl’. I played it on tour and I’ve literally just come back, so I feel like I’m really in the swing of playing it now. But now I get to play it here, which is iconic.

Which of your songs is guaranteed to get people dancing tonight?

‘nice to know u’, which is the last one in the set and it’s just a banger. Even if I do say so myself. 

Is there a lyric from the set that hits different when you play it live?

That’s such a good question. There are too many to choose from. One of my favourite lines from any of my tunes is in ‘nice to know u’. It’s not very poetic, but it’s: ‘I know you probably think I’m an arsehole, and so do your friends who’ve been slagging me off.’ I just think it’s funny. I love that line, I really savour it.

What’s your most unhinged pre‑show ritual?

Honestly, I’m really well-behaved and boring. I don’t really do anything before a show, I just like to sit there and chat. I did some vocal warm‑ups in the toilet just now, though. The toilet is not that glamorous.

If your outfit could talk tonight, what would it be screaming?

That’s a hard question. There are a lot of layers so it would be screaming: You’re about to get very hot and sweaty. Because I decided to wear two shirts. I don’t know why I did that.

What do you hope people carry home with them after your performance?

That real tunes are the best tunes.

Who or what is inspiring you most creatively right now?

I think just looking inward. Recently I was panicking because I didn’t really know what to write about. Then I decided to trust myself and look in. I had a session yesterday and we wrote a slammer. So just to trust myself and look in. 

What’s something you’re excited, or nervous, for people to hear in your next project?

I’ve got loads of new tunes on the way. I think it’s the concept as a whole, and all the thought, craft and care that’s gone into it. I’m really excited, but also a bit nervous because it’s very vulnerable. I think it’s cool. 

Describe how you’re feeling about tonight in three words.

This. Is. Iconic.

Johnnie Walker Black Label’s ethos is ‘Keep Walking’. Can you share a moment where you chose to keep moving forward in your career?

Literally all the time with music. I know it’s not cool to talk about or say, but there have been so many points where I’ve thought, I can’t do this anymore. You just keep getting on with it, you just keep trudging. Then suddenly you look around and you’re like, Wow, everything’s good again and this is really fun. If I’d given up at any of those points, I wouldn’t be playing here right now. Which is insane. Iconic.