With her self-described eclectic sound, and drawing inspiration from multiple genres, Marissa native Liv Leemon classifies her music as “indie.” The singer and songwriter has explored a lot of areas musically as she’s developed her style, with hints of rock, country, and pop noticeable in her songs. There’s also a throwback to some 90s acoustic artists that’s present in some of her music, particularly on her original song “Where I’m At,” which has echoes of 90s female indie musicians like Lisa Loeb and Ani DiFranco.
Growing up as the “shy kid” Liv says she didn’t consider herself a performer. Instead, she’s always been very creative and has loved to present her creative works to her peers and the adults in her life. One memory she has from childhood is writing fictional stories on the family computer, printing them out, and binding them to give to her friends to read.
A Blackburn College graduate, Liv shares that her writing developed into poetry during her college years and that naturally progressed into songwriting and singing.
“I started singing and writing two years ago,” she says.
The 23 year old self-taught musician learned to play guitar by watching YouTube videos. As she’s gotten more into her musical craft, she finds that she draws inspiration from various parts of life. Whether it’s something out of the ordinary, or a potentially awkward social situation (like attending an ex’s wedding), lyrics come to her from a variety of circumstances. The key for her, has been noticing things and letting her creativity take off from there.
“I’ve always been a lyrics first person,” she shares of her process. “Words are the easiest part to come up with.”
Performance spaces and making art
So far, she’s played at a few local bars, at the Marissa Coal Festival in mid-August, and the New Athens Farmers Market. And she’s created her own venues, with a concert she played in a parking lot at Blackburn College out of the back of her van. That show was called “Liv Leemon Live! From the Van.”
Liv majored in art and minored in music and creative writing at Blackburn, and in addition to her music, she also makes art.
“Art is my first creative love. I have been drawing since I could pick up a pencil.”
And as she says, she’s “dabbled” in a number of mediums – from acrylics to mixed media, button making, creating magnets, and more. Currently, she sells her art at Alton Art Revival, where she also works part-time.
Find out more about Liv by following her on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube or listen to her music, which is available on all streaming platforms. If you want to catch a live performance by her, Liv will perform on Saturday, Oct. 3 at the Pickers’ Market, happening at White Barn Antiques and Mercantile in New Baden.
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