Alice Phoebe Lou unfolds every layer until she reaches "The Surface"

WITH JUST HER VOICE AND A GUITAR,

ALICE PHOEBE LOU

UNFOLDS EVERY LAYER TO REACH

“THE SURFACE” — STREAM

CONTINUING ALONG HER ENCHANTING HEADLINE TOUR OF EUROPE  — SEE ALL DATES HERE

“Soft, sweet, and wistful…As dreamy as it sounds, Lou also imbues the songs with a warning to snap us back to reality.”

“Between sweet folk and indie pop that is both angry and delicate, Alice Phoebe Lou's compositions evoke radiant lives and dull lives, the beginnings and ends of the most beautiful love stories.”

“Her ethereal vocals ground each song while also making the melodies around them soar. She can sound like Judy Garland, Kate Bush, or Angel Olsen, but mostly, Lou’s voice is

distinctly her own.” 

Continuing to open her treasure trove of tucked away storytelling from the last decade, globally adored singer-songwriter Alice Phoebe Lou today releases “The Surface.” A story told in reverse, the acoustic offering unfolds like a rose, petal by petal, until the heart is on full display. In all forms, Alice Phoebe Lou no longer feels the need to fear vulnerability — Stream. 

“‘The Surface’ is a stream of conscious love song about the deep and contradictory feelings that rise up when exploring a connection with someone you feel strongly about,” she articulates. “It goes through the many phases of holding back and then giving in, starting at the end when someone is finally all in. It talks of the hardships that one has gone through in order to arrive at a place where there is promise of a future and a deep connection and trust. It’s the melting away of our hard outer shells to reach the softer place beneath where we let go and allow ourselves to love and be loved. With just voice and guitar, the music is stripped down and bare like the song.”

In April, Lou made her first ever self-produced release with the tender “You and I.” She shared that these are, “Songs that didn’t make it into other albums, some songs I never thought would see the light of day. I am embarking on the brave and thrilling journey of recording these songs as they are, with love and playfulness, simple and all my own. Leaning into imperfection and taking inspiration from some of my biggest influences who have made timeless folk acoustic albums.”

Last month, Lou also played 3 sold-out nights in Los Angeles before joining Remi Wolf at Red Rocks Amphitheatre. She is now on her European tour, playing magical sold-out shows across the continent. In 2024, Lou toured alongside Clairo on the strikingly intimate Charm Tour with headline shows of her own mixed in. See all upcoming dates here.

ABOUT ALICE PHOEBE LOU

Like thread through an ethereal labyrinth, Alice Phoebe Lou’s songs have always felt tethered directly to what fuels her heart—tracing the strings from her guitar back through her memories and emotions. And on her dreamlike new self-produced singles, the singer-songwriter invites the listener along on that wander. The stripped back love songs return to the busking simplicity of Alice Phoebe Lou’s early career, but the songwriting shows the maturity and directness of a woman reaching a new radiance.

Alice Phoebe Lou’s music journey began in earnest when she moved to Germany from her native South Africa, playing guitar on Berlin street corners and exploring her songwriting strength. She grew immensely from those modest origins, having now reached 2.7 million listeners each month on Spotify. Now after a decade in Germany, she’s relocating to warmer climes—and her new music appropriately reflects on the end of a meaningful life phase and the start of bigger things to come. 

“I became who I am in Germany, and busking was a big influence, the basis for everything I’ve done,” she says. “Now I’m paying tribute to the girl that bravely played the guitar and sang by herself, showing gratitude for that period of my life.” To that end, Alice Phoebe Lou’s voice and lightly strummed acoustic act like a hypnotic core on “You And I”, light synth flourishes and wavering keys filigreeing the frame. “I have known for a while/ That there’s nothing better than hoping, wondering,” she sighs, the track a hauntingly beautiful hint at where Alice Phoebe Lou is headed next. 

That beatific candor will be on full display as the singer-songwriter hits the road. She had a trio of sold-out shows at Los Angeles’s Lodge Room and a spot opening for Remi Wolf at the legendary Red Rocks in Colorado in early April, with a spring tour through Europe following. Those shows will take a step beyond her already astounding run of live dates opening for Clairo in 2024, amplifying her already deeply emotional connection with audiences.

By taking ownership of the production process and tapping into influences like Nick Drake, Joni Mitchell, and Leonard Cohen, Alice Phoebe Lou is diving back into her nexus, stripping away any excess that could shield her from herself. These new releases feel necessary, opening and examining chapters of her life to strengthen her sense of self and breathe further vitality into her art. 

“It was important to share my heart in this playful, gentle, vulnerable way that isn’t striving for perfection. That helped me focus on the song and what it needed,” she says. “Being so open is painful and it’s beautiful, and helps you be grateful for where you are and where you’re going.”

For more information on Alice Phoebe Lou, please visit:

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Press photo by Caroline Bertolini