Amber in ‘t Veld, Sura Salomon and Marieke Werner met about eight years ago when they were all studying Anthropology and Sociology in Maastricht, the South of Holland. The three girls came from different backgrounds but matched instantly and were involved in several activities that a local cultural centre offered about political and cultural activities.
After graduating, each of them took her path. But destiny was waiting for them to reunite again a few years later, this time in the streets of Brussels.
Photos courtesy by Las Lloronas
“I wanted to learn and produce more music because I believe it enhances the quality of life, but not necessarily professionally.” says Amber.
“It all happened as an accident. I moved to Brussels for a few months and started living with Sura. Playing in the streets was for fun but felt really honest and authentic. She knew that she wanted to be a musician, but I still didn’t know what to do with my life. We kept playing, we were receiving amazing feedback, so somehow Las Lloronas just happened. It was a very nice surprise and something I was not expecting at all.”, she concluded.
Then they started reflecting and talking about the conscious choice of somehow making their music an empowering platform for themselves.
They mix acoustic music and slam poetry, combining their voices with instruments such as the ukulele, the guitar, the accordion and the clarinet. Sura and Amber are the ones who write the lyrics.
“Part of the spoken words of the spoken poetry in our songs has to do mostly with our personal experiences. We write about topics like feminism, female empowerment, gender roles or privilege. Other topics talk about emotions and certain things that we have inside ourselves and the way we try to express and accept them.”, they say.
In November 2020 they released their first album, Soaked, a project that was postponed due to the pandemic.
“We learned a lot from it. We chose the name soaked because it felt like a project that we were soaking in, that we were deeply absorbed by. It was a long process and tedious work but we are really proud of it.”, says Amber.
Maria Olalla, 23, is a music teacher and a fan of Las Lloronas. "Their music is fascinating. I believe the group can transmit good emotions and a good message about being a feminist with their songs and lyrics.", she says.
After months of postponing it due to the pandemic, Las Lloronas will be finally releasing their album in Brussels with a live concert.
Kenza Ismaili, 24, is a good friend from the group. “I just love what they do. I am very excited and can’t wait for them to release more music.”, she says.
This summer and if all goes right, you will find them performing in various concerts around Europe.
Listen to Las Lloronas Live by Sofar Sounds
Listen now to Soaked on Spotif
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