MEET LORELEI MARCELL: REAL TALENT AND MORE THAN A VELVET VOICE

Photo by Lauren Desberg

At just 18 years old, this singer and songwriter has not only gathered over a million cumulative streams independently but also drawn the likes of GRAMMY® Award-nominated songwriter JHart [Justin Bieber, Keith Urban, Usher] to her corner.

The first time I heard Lorelei Marcell’s voice was in an IG post made on the 5th of July of 2020. It Was a video of a sweet girl with glasses, singing a fragment of a song written by herself with a velvety voice accompanied only by the piano that she played. At that moment, I fell in love with her artistic talent.

One of the challenges that many artists have today is to stand out from the entire wave of emerging talents that are presented to us every day. Some are successful and others are left as one-hit wonders at best. Definitely not the case with Lorelei, this girl has a particular style that sets her apart from the rest of the actual pop scene. 

In her voice, the past and the present reach a perfect blend that makes her musical proposal something different, transcending generations and overcoming an unstoppable phenomenon of trends, not to mention the fact that she writes and co-writes a good part of her songs.

¿Who is Lorelei Marcell?

Born outside of Philadelphia, she briefly lived in Connecticut before settling in a Boston suburb with her parents, her fraternal twin sister, and her older sister. Along the way, she performed “in every school musical possible,” took vocal lessons, and devoted countless hours to singing. Inspired by everything from Hamilton to Alicia Keys, Sheryl Crow, Neil Young, Bruno Mars, Justin Bieber, and SZA, she played out locally at countless open mics, cafes, and restaurants. Throughout high school, she also posted popular covers of Rihanna, Al Green and Matt Simons online.

An Artistic Soul

In 2019, she made her debut with “Losing Myself,” amassing 131k Spotify streams and 109K YouTube views. On its heels, the breezy “Summertime High” eclipsed 312K YouTube views. Co-written with Valerie Broussard [Kygo, Galantis], Stefan Lit [One Direction, Andy Grammar], and Shannon McArthur [Dashboard Confessional], “Dreaming About You” maintained her momentum with nearly 300K total on-demand streams. Linking up with JHart, she wrote and recorded the bulk of the EP. She introduced the project with the glimmering bop “Perfect,” which culminates on the hypnotic and honest hook, “If you’re looking for perfect, I wish you the best.” Elsewhere, acoustic guitar wraps around finger-snaps on “Billion Reasons” as her voice stretches from intimate verse into a rich chorus.

“I write and record pop music, but I love bluesy R&B,” she explains. “It’s a balance because I’m a bit of an old soul when it comes to singing. Vocally, I always try to stand out.”

In the words of Lorelei herself, this first EP “is an introduction to my sound and my experiences I’ve had thus far as an 18-year-old. This is just the start of my journey as a writer and singer, and I’m excited to turn the page while using this collection of music as a stepping stone”.

Seeing that, is not an exageration to say that through the songs of this EP you can get to know Lorelei a bit better. Here is a description she made of some of the songs.

Your Biggest Fan: “I was inspired to write this song when I met someone very special, and the maturity and emotions that come with moving on. After this past year, with graduating high school, it felt very difficult yet bittersweet to begin and leave it all behind”.

Summertime High: “Summertime high is about having fun with your friends, letting loose, and falling into summer and the memories it brings. I refer to Boston common in the song because this is one of my favorite places to go to in the summer!”.

Eyes Closed: “This song is about finally realizing who someone is after being so infatuated for so long. You can see their true colors so clearly, you can see them with your “eyes closed”.

Perfect: “Have you ever had someone in your life assume you can do and be everything at once? This song is about someone who expects you to be perfect, and how they will never find love or succeed because nothing and nobody is perfect”.

Human Nature: “This song is fully dedicated to good vibes. It’s about the fun of falling In love and embracing that rush that a crush brings”.

Billion Reasons: “This is about someone driving you crazy, yet knowing they are treating you poorly, and there is nothing that will change your mind from leaving them”.

In the end, Lorelei Marcell’s voice will continue to defy both era and categorization. “When you listen to me, I hope you’re intrigued”, she leaves off. “I want to make you ask, ‘Who is this girl? What is she giving us?’ This is just the first chapter, and I feel like I have so much more to give”. Go ahead Lorelei, we want to hear more.

ARTICLE BY MARIANA GONZALEZ