Lawrence with Swatkins

As NPR writes, “siblings Clyde and Gracie Lawrence are not your typical pair.” Clyde Lawrence and Gracie Lawrence have been writing songs and listening to countless Stevie Wonder, Randy Newman, and Aretha Franklin records in their family’s New York City apartment since they were little kids. After years of playing together, they officially created Lawrence, an eight-piece soul-pop band comprised of musician friends from childhood and college. The band has since gained a devoted following for its high-energy, keyboard-driven sound, which features tight, energetic horns, explosive lead vocals, and fully-live arrangements.

In June 2019, Lawrence became the first band to sign with Beautiful Mind Records, the label of Grammy-winning producer/songwriter/artist Jon Bellion, and within a few months embarked as support on Bellion’s Summer 2019 Glory Sound Prep Tour. Lawrence has since released the Bellion-produced singles “Casualty” (performed live on NBC’s Today Show), “It’s Not All About You,” “The Weather,” “Freckles,” and “Don’t Lose Sight,” which have garnered tens of millions of streams across all platforms and have had multiple viral moments on Tik Tok and Instagram. The singles are a part of the band’s new album, Hotel TV, which is out now and will be performed on their 2021 Fall headline tour.

The signing to Beautiful Mind followed the release of Lawrence’s sophomore album, Living Room. Upon its release in September of 2018, Living Room promptly reached #2 on the iTunes R&B/Soul chart, earned a featured placement on Spotify’s “New Music Friday” playlist, and led the band to its late-night television debut on NBC’s Last Call with Carson Daly. Co-produced by bandmates Jordan Cohen and Jonny Koh, as well as Brooklyn-based producer Eli Crews and Clyde and Gracie themselves, Living Room chronicles the trials and tribulations of growing up, including break-ups, make-ups, a family loss, and the attempt to find harmony between excitement, anxiety, melancholy, and empowerment.

Lawrence first rose to prominence in 2016 when they released their debut LP Breakfast (2016), which received attention and praise from a variety of sources ranging from NPR’s All Things Considered to Stephen Curry’s social media. Produced by Grammy Award winner Eric Krasno (Lettuce/Tedeschi Trucks/Soulive), Breakfast includes guest performances by NYC soul/funk mainstays Adam Deitch (Lettuce), Cory Henry (Cory Henry & the Funk Apostles, Snarky Puppy), and Maurice “Mobetta” Brown (Anderson .Paak, Tedeschi Trucks Band).