Lauren Ruth Ward

A gutsy, raspy-voiced singer/songwriter in the vein of Janis Joplin or Courtney Barnett, Lauren Ruth Ward changed her life drastically to pursue her truth. She grew up in Baltimore listening to Fleetwood Mac and Led Zeppelin as well as Michelle Branch, Nelly Furtado, Mirah, and Elliott Smith, and began performing as a hobby when she was 13. After graduating from high school, she began working as a hairstylist and built a clientele in the hundreds. As time went on, however, she knew she needed to make music her focus and embrace her queerness. In 2015, she quit her job, broke up with her fiancé, and moved to L.A. She soon connected with guitarist Eduardo Rivera, who helped her hone her songwriting and add some rock edge to her sound. Ward fleshed out her band with bassist/vocalist Livia Slingerland and drummer India Pascucci, and they released the Lauren Ruth Ward EP in January 2016. That year, she also lent her vocals to Polarcode’s “I Crave You” and Ellogram’s “Come Home.” To make her debut album, Ward and her group worked with producer/engineer Grey Goon. The results, Well, Hell, appeared in February 2018. ~ Heather Phares