I first learned of the music Laune / 라우네 (pronounced Lau-ne) makes earlier this year, when a friend mentioned that the DJ who performed as part of Oceanfromtheblue’s Way to Blue tour- which happily included London – was also a singer/songwriter/producer in his own right. Laune & I spoke via Zoom ahead of his release of new music, which is available to stream today – click here. We talked about the cold weather, London, DJ’ing, and how he hopes one day to hear Adele perform live.
Based in Seoul, but originally hailing from nearby Incheon, Laune is following his dream and forging for himself a music career. He had hoped to study Music Engineering at University, which Laune explained is the final process in song-making. It involves mastering works to finish a song before its release, to produce the clearest sound possible. Although Laune did spend a year in Berlin in 2019, his plans changed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Having returned to Korea, Laune is building a career for himself through working instead of studying.
Laune shared with me that he first considered a career in music as a result of the support he received from his friends during middle school. “Me and my friends went to Karaoke one day after school,” he laughed, “and they were surprised when I sang. I decided to become a singer first, and then really got into music.”
“When I told my parents that I wanted to go to an academy to train my vocal skills,” Laune continued, “they were a bit apprehensive and wanted me to focus on just studies”. Although Laune did attend university for a while, he admits that he could not shake the feeling that he had to decide his own way. Forging a career for himself remained “inside my heart. I kept wanting to make music.”
Whilst Laune admits that he did find it hard to open a door into the music industry, he continued to stand by his dream and eventually his efforts were rewarded when his path crossed with artist Oceanfromtheblue (“OFTB”) about 2 years ago. This afforded Laune the opportunity to work as part of the team that created OFTB’s first full-length album. Talking of this experience, Laune shared that “it was a really good experience and a huge opportunity for me and it led to more chances for me. He [OFTB] has helped me a lot and continues to do so. I’m very lucky.”
We spoke about some of the challenges Laune faces when it comes to writing music. His answer to that is waiting for inspiration to arise. “Personally,” he said, “my philosophy and motivation in life is not to overthink, just feel. It takes a long time to overcome a broken heart, for example, and there are lots of things I cannot control directly so I just keep carrying my life on as usual. I don’t need to think too much. You can get sucked into overthinking and music is something that you need to feel instinctively.”
Talking about his music, Laune is keen not to confine himself to a genre and instead wishes to experiment with many different musical styles. “I am”, he said “still figuring that out. I want to explore as many [music styles] as I can.” Laune instead seeks to “express [my] feelings in the way that suits what I’m trying to convey the best.” Laune focuses on heartbreak and issues surrounding relationships because these are “things that happen everywhere in this world. Because humans cannot live alone. We need people. Ending a relationship is difficult. It takes a while to heal. So that pushes me to work.”
Laune hopes that his music can be a safe space for those who feel lonely, or broken hearted; that listening to his music makes people feel confident and comforted by hearing something that they can relate to.
What has been the best show or tour you’ve ever played and why was that performance so special to you?
It is impossible to choose one city or performance because I feel like every show is the best. But, I think if I had to pick one I would be in the Bubblepop festival in Barcelona with OFTB. That show was special for me because it was my first time performing abroad.
How did that feel?
I was nervous! But despite my nerves, I felt great and it was an amazing experience to achieve one of my goals. I think it has been my biggest achievement so far.
Do you have any upcoming shows or tours?
I’ll be touring in December and performing as a DJ as part of OFTB’s Way to Blue Tour. We will be visiting and performing in Australia and New Zealand. My friends tell me that is a really good time to visit so I am looking forward to getting a break from the cold as well as touring. I would like to spend some time travelling afterwards after the schedule ends, to explore and chill out.
How did you get into DJ’ing?
I learned DJ’ing in Berlin during the pandemic. It was an enjoyable and great way to keep myself busy during a difficult time stuck in my house when Europe was under lockdown. Luckily my very close friend there who is a DJ agreed to let me borrow his equipment and teach me.
I’m interested to know more about your experience of touring Europe.
I felt impressed throughout the whole of it. The schedule was tight and we visited 14 cities but I was really happy to be doing music with really good friends – there were 8 of us in total. I felt a sense of brotherhood. I feel thrilled to have been a part of OFTB’s team. When I started music, one of my goals was to visit and tour as many cities as possible so I have achieved something I’ve dreamed of. It feels largely indescribable. Just wonderful.
Are you working on any new music or planning anything exciting that we can look forward to?
My new single, which will be released on November 8th [today!] is called ‘Real love’. The lyrics are inspired by stories about love and relationships. When I wrote this song I was thinking about how quick and fast everything moves in this modern world, and how easy that makes it for relationships to end. I wanted to convey the message that building a relationship and falling in love is best done slowly.
I am also working on an E.P. which I am planning to release early next year.
Finally, if you could perform as the opening act for any artist, who would it be and why?
I would pick New Jeans! I really love their music – it’s so catchy.
You can follow Laune on Instagram: @Laune_kr
He also has a YouTube channel worth checking out 🙂 here’s the video for Scent:
