Today we’d like to introduce you to Leni Luxo.
Leni, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
My journey began at a very early age. Both my parents being from Puerto Rico, we always had some sort of Latin music playing in the house, but they always mixed it up with some RnB, Hip Hop, Motown, etc. In middle school, a lot of my friends wanted to be rappers, but I personally never had an interest in lyricism. For me, growing up in Virginia, back when Timbaland and Pharell were heavy on the come up, I was always attracted to the beat and how the rhythm compelled people to move on a subconscious level. My earliest memories of me exploring with music production was on a DM2 Digital Music Mixer. I would prop a cassette player up next to some computer speakers and try to record the beat and transitions all in one take. I also had a cool Spanish teacher in middle school that would let me play my beats during class and have my classmates rap over them.
Right before 8th grade, my parents separated. My mother, brother, and I were forced into very unstable living conditions… we were even homeless at one point. During all of this, I became very active in my school’s music program. It became my escape from everything that was going on in my personal life. I played percussion and guitar, but I would not attempted to produce my own music again until my sophomore year of college, six years later.
During my sophomore year, my roommate took a music production elective and invited me to the studio on campus one day. As soon as I walked in the room, I could literally feel the built-up anticipation of wanting to produce records come rushing back to me all at once. That summer I moved back home, dropped out of college, and started building and setting up my studio.
Not long after moving home, due to some things well beyond my control, I found myself homeless for the second time. I moved all my things into a storage unit and spent the next nine months living with a family friend; I kept only my clothes and my laptop to keep making music with. I don’t regret any of those hard times though, because I believe your biggest growth often comes out of your darkest moments.
During all of this, I met my now wife. She has been my rock through everything ever since and I can honestly say that I would not be here today if it wasn’t for her. She is one of the first people that I ever shared my music with, that encouraged me to go after my passion. So, in May 2019, we packed up everything we had and moved to Atlanta.
Wasting no time, I hit the ground running; I’ve spent the last six months in the city establishing my Record Label/Publishing Company Modern LUXE Entertainment. It’s wild to think about the countless studio sessions I’ve been in throughout the city, with some very influential producers, artists, engineers, etc., some of which I now consider friends. Music is interesting, too, because it has a way of creating and expediting the depths of relationships that you build. As a result, I’ve been blessed to meet some amazing people I would now call my brothers and sisters out here. I am excited about the direction Modern LUXE Entertainment is headed right now. As Owner and Executive producer, my main focus is working with as many artists as I can in order to get the music out to my fans that they deserve as quickly as possible. My goal is to create as much value to the people I have around me and ensure that the artists I work with hold as much ownership of their art as they possibly can.
It’s been a wild ride thus far to say the least– from winning beat battles throughout the city to speaking on panels at this year’s A3C, and being a part of some pretty life-changing studio sessions, it all feels like a dream at times. Through all of this, I’ve been allowed the opportunity to understand how important not taking any of this for granted can be; it’s why we as creatives have a responsibility to give back and pass the blessing on to the next. Modern LUXE Entertainment has some initiatives coming down the pipeline that will give back to the community in our own backyard, as well as keep music programs alive and well in schools.
I would encourage anyone who has a dream, vision, or passion, to pursue it with everything you have and let it begin to manifest itself into existence. I encourage you to keep people around you that feed your soul and will sharpen you. Always hold yourself accountable and never settle. What you want can and will happen if you do it with the right motives and understanding that what you are building is far bigger than you are.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
To say it’s been easy to build my business and continue to progress my music career couldn’t be further from the truth. As I mentioned before, there was a point where I was homeless… not once, but twice. However, my perspective on struggles or any sort of hardship is that it is all a learning experience and often just things lining up to prepare you for your next blessing. I think the trick to it all is to take things one at a time and calibrate why it’s happening and what do you need to do to ensure it doesn’t happen again? More times than not, the bigger the challenge, the bigger the blessing that awaits on the other side.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Modern Luxe Entertainment – what should we know?
I am the Owner and Executive Producer of Modern Luxe Entertainment – an indie label and publishing company that is dedicated to developing talent and bringing artists from all genres together to create the best work possible. I think what I am most proud of as a company is giving back; I strive to provide opportunities for other creatives, as well as the people in my own backyard. As creatives, for better or worse, we influence people all around us constantly. I believe we have a responsibility to not only influence people with our art but to be great role models behind the scenes as well. No one is perfect, but to be able to do what I do every day is wild. I know that I personally have been given so many opportunities in the past, so it means that much more when I find myself in the position to pass that on to someone else.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
Honestly, this one is a very tough question to answer and almost don’t want to approach it because I know that most certainly I will be leaving way too many names out. I’ll preface by saying that if you have been in my corner and supported me from the beginning, I know who you are, you have my number and at the end of the day its all love. That said, off the top of my head, I have to start with my wife. She is my number one fan, my manager and teammate in life/music. She does an amazing job keeping me on schedule, holding me accountable and making sure I am taking care of myself so that I can continue working at a high level. Her insights on so many different things are out of this world and I appreciate everything she sacrifices to keep me inspired about the mission at hand.
I would also have to name my brother Smart Boy Beatz. He is one of the first people I met when I moved to Atlanta and we just click on so many levels. It’s easy when you have someone who is on the same wavelength as you and is running the same race. We share a similar journey to where we are today and sharpen one another’s sound through constructive feedback almost daily. I appreciate his honesty and know that it has always come from a place of love and wanting me to be the best version of myself possible. You don’t find people like that everyday so when you do it is very important to keep them around. I can not wait to continue watching his career grow.
I have to show some love to my mentor/engineer Amond Jackson too. I feel like since I’ve sat with him the quality of my music production has gone through the roof at a very fast pace. I am so grateful for the amount of time and energy he has invested in me over the past few months. Before meeting him, I honestly did not believe I was capable of producing the quality of records I am in such a short amount of time. His outlook on sound is so abstract but once you get where he is coming from its almost like the lightbulb goes of in your head and you instantly perceive the sound of the world around you completely different. While it’s awesome for my music production, its almost a blessing and a curse at times for every other aspect of my life.
For the sake of time, I will conclude with giving a huge shout to my iStandard family. Because of them, I’ve been able to build some crazy relationships in addition to growing my knowledge about the music industry. Courtney “Cizzurp” Carroll has been nothing but a resource and complete open book on so many different levels as well as providing me with some pretty wild opportunities. Additionally, I have to show love to J Hatch from istandard who has gotten me into some pretty cool studio sessions as well as on a few panels at this past year’s A3C conference. Super grateful for them and I know we still have so much left unfinished to keep building off of.
The people mentioned are just a few of the many people that have either mentored, supported or cheered me on along the way. If you are reading this and weren’t mentioned, by no means does it mean you haven’t played a significant role or have forgotten all that you have done. The people I keep in my circle mean the world to me and again at the end of the day you all know exactly who you are. I appreciate everyone that has helped me get to where I am even you reading this article right now!
What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I was never the popular kid in school, I was the quieter type and stayed to myself most of the time. My parents split at a very young age, and through that, I was exposed to a lot of things that children should not and are not prepared to deal with. I remember watching my pops leave. I felt powerless because I was not able to help my mom out financially and I had a younger brother looking at me for answers that I just didn’t have at the time; like why we had to leave our house and share a mattress on the floor of someone else’s basement. Having gone through all of this, I found myself to be a very quiet kid. I played some sports and had a couple of friends but always felt so unsure of myself in anything I did. For me, music was always the one thing where I knew exactly who I was and how to express what I was feeling at any given moment.
Contact Info:
- Phone: 404-445-1297
- Email: modernluxeent@gmail.com
- Other: If you are an artist producer, engineer or just looking to connect you can find me personally @leniluxo on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter
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