Mackenzie Leighton is a rising San Diego-born, Paris-based indie folk singer/songwriter and musician. Leighton’s family moved to a small, seaside town in Maine, where she grew up. The San Diego-born, Paris-based artist can trace much of the origins of her music career to her father taking her to classical piano lessons as a young girl. When Leighton turned 18, she attended my alma mater, New York University — and while in New York, she played in several jazz and folk inspired bands.
Upon graduation, Leighton relocated to Paris. She landed a day job as a florist and launched a solo career with the release of 2017’s self-titled EP, a singer/songwriter folk effort that was released to praise and comparisons to Phoebe Bridgers and Julia Jacklin. Leighton’s sophomore EP, last year’s Tourist(e) was a decided change in sonic direction that found the rising American-born, French-based artist working with French musicians and producers while pairing folk-inspired songwriting with lush yet contemporary instrumentation and production. Leighton has supported both of her recorded efforts with shows in and around Paris, as well as with tours in Italy, Belgium and here in the States.
musician focusing on the reality of life as an expatriate, torn between two different cultures and hemispheres. And much like its immediate predecessor, Flueriste sonically continues in a similar vein. In the lead-up to the EP’s release, Leighton recently released the EP’s second and latest single, “Un jour la vie.” Centered around Leighton’s coquettish vocals, a sinuous yet propulsive bass line, thumping beats and shimmering guitars, “Un jour la vie” is an infectious invitation to dream of an escape to Italy, where you’d drink endless Aperol Spritzes and dance the night away without a care in the world. Considering the last 18 months, that sounds like a wonderful dream to me.
shot and edited by Celia Marie Petersen and Adrianna Lankford, the accompanying visual for “Un jour la vie” follows the adorable Leighton as she plans for an escape to Italy to drink cocktails, be fashionable, eat fantastic food and dance the days and nights away. That’s life, ain’t it?
