LMG Records announces the release of Lu City’s latest track & music video entitled ‘Travail’ – a creole infused pop-ballad written for the ladies. It has been described by Lu City artists LUJA & Ryie as a love-letter and boasts smooth lyrics with a deep warm base-line that is perfect for loud speakers & long summer nights.
The St. Lucian duo pride themselves on writing their own music. In this quarantine-inspired release, Ryie’s catchy chorus states, “Outside outside, so ou pa vle ale (we don’t have to go) let’s stay inside” - timely lyrics that ironically seem to echo current world sentiment. When asked about the process for writing this latest release, Lu City artists have said that they were inspired by a beat from in-house producer Shaquille ‘Delete’ Wilkinson and the lyrics were pulled from deeply personal experiences.
“It’s a free flow, I don’t plan it and instead the lyrics pour out of me kind of like an out of body experience,” said LUJA. Ryie echoed this saying, “It’s spiritual, I don’t know what I’ve done until I’m done and then I’m like wow.”
As they did with ‘Sa Ka Fete’ (ft. Grammy-nominated artist Shontelle) and again with ‘Movay’ (the fastest growing track ever out of St. Lucia), Lu City integrates St. Lucian French-Creole into their music. ‘Travail’ follows on this trend and thrusts Creole into the mainstream and shines a spotlight on the culture of the Caribbean island. The artists are inspired by French superstar Kalash and site the influence of afro-beat sensation Wizkid who blends the African language with English in his music and takes it mainstream. “We want to continue to bring up the country, St. Lucia has a lot of raw talent and we want to showcase what we’ve got here,” said Ryie, “music don’t need a visa”.
Lu City had been teasing a ramp up of releases via their social platforms and this has now been confirmed by Manager & LMG Executive Producer Eliot H. Bailey who says, “Just as this song suggests, we are really going to be putting in work in the coming months. We intend to give our fans at least one song a month over the next 12 months, it’s going to be a difficult feat to achieve but you can look at ‘Travail’ as the start of a trend. We are more dedicated to this mission than ever and we are going to continue to give our fans exactly what they want until we are where we know we can be.”
Ironically, ‘Travail’ (affectionately known as ‘Outside’) is being released on what would have been Carnival in Lu City’s island home of St. Lucia. Due to the current circumstances globally, the annual celebration had to be cancelled causing great disappointment for revellers who would much prefer to be outside (pun intended) at this time. “For all those people devastated by the cancellation of carnival, we are giving you an alternative. In this strange year when you’re not always able to go outside, the next best thing to do is hinted at in our song,” said Eliot H. Bailey with a laugh.
The release of ‘Travail’ is accompanied by captivating visuals by Official Artistry. The rustic, secluded setting for this music video, now on Lu City’s Official YouTube Channel, perfectly matches the tone and romanticism of the track and showcases the islands’ natural beauty.
‘Travail’ is out now and available on all major platforms. Continue to stay tuned to the groups website and instagram page for information on tour dates and new releases.