Lu Kala

Lu Kala
Kala performing in 2025
Background information
Born
Lusamba Vanessa Kalala

(1995-07-21) 21 July 1995
Kinshasa, Zaire
OriginToronto, Ontario, Canada
GenresPop
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
LabelAWAL
Websiteigobylu.com

Lusamba Vanessa Kalala (born 21 July 1995), better known by her stage name Lu Kala (stylized in all caps), is a Congolese-Canadian singer. She began her career writing music for other artists, being credited on tracks by Jennifer Hudson and Katy Perry.[1] She gained recognition for her guest appearance on American rapper Latto's 2023 single "Lottery", which entered the Billboard Hot 100 and Canadian Hot 100.[2] Her 2025 extended play, No Tears on This Ride, spawned the viral hit "Pretty Girl Era" and Canadian iTunes number one "Hotter Now". In addition to a solo tour, Kala has also toured with Cyndi Lauper and Aqua.

Career

Kala emigrated to Canada at the age of three. She first grew up in the Regent Park neighbourhood and later lived in Ajax, Ontario.[3]

Kala began her career with songwriting, as she is credited as a writer on Jennifer Hudson's track "Dangerous" from her 2014 studio album JHUD.[4][1]

Kala performed at the Canadian Music Week in 2019[5] where she performed her debut single, "DCMO (Don't Count Me Out)".[6] She also won the grand prize at Royal Bank of Canada's Emerging Musician Program,[7] earning $10,000 worth of studio time among other prizes.[8]

In February 2023, Latto released "Lottery" which featured Kala, marking Kala's first entry on the Billboard Hot 100[9] and Billboard Canadian Hot 100.[10] On 1 March, Latto and Kala performed the song at the 2023 Billboard Women in Music event.[11] In April, her 2022 single "Pretty Girl Era" entered the Billboard Canadian Hot 100,[12] marking her first solo entry on the chart. On 24 September 2023, Kala received the Emerging Artist Award at the Legacy Awards.[13] On 10 December, she performed at TikTok's inaugural In the Mix festival in Mesa, Arizona.[14]

Kala was nominated for two Juno Awards in 2024,[15] and she performed at the opening night of the show.[16] In March, Kala received two No. 1 Song Awards from SOCAN for her singles "Hotter Now" and "Nothing but Love".[17] Following this, "Hotter Now" became her highest peaking song on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100.[18] In April, it was revealed that Kala had written a song with Katy Perry (later revealed to be "OK" from the deluxe edition of Perry's 2024 studio album 143).[19] On 4 July, Kala won the inaugural Billboard Canada Women in Music Rising Star Award.[20] In the same month, her single "Who's Gonna" the entered Canadian Contemporary hit radio chart.[21] In September 2024, Kala released her single "Criminal" after performing it at the Billboard Canada Women in Music event.[22] In October 2024, Kala joined Cyndi Lauper as an opener for two dates on the Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Farewell Tour. On 21 November 2024, Kala appeared as a guest judge on the season premiere of the fifth season of Canada's Drag Race.[23] Two days later, she announced her single "Cry Baby".[24]

On 25 April 2025, Kala released her second EP, No Tears on This Ride. She later embarked on the No Tears on This Ride Tour to accompany the project.[25] In September 2025, Kala was an opening act for Aqua's Canada tour.

Discography

Extended plays

Title Details
Worthy[26]
No Tears on This Ride
  • Released: 25 April 2025
  • Label: Amigo Records
  • Formats: Digital download, streaming

Singles

As lead artist

List of singles, with selected chart positions
Title Year Peak chart positions Album
CAN
[27] 		CAN AC
[28] 		CAN CHR
[29] 		CAN HAC
[30] 		RUS
[31]
"DCMO (Don't Count Me Out)" 2018 — — — — — Worthy
"Body Knew" 2020 — — — — —
"Want You" — — — — —
"No Smoke" — — — — —
"Love Like" — — — — —
"Pretty Girl Era" 2022 49 6 9 23 — No Tears on This Ride
"Hotter Now" 2023 40 4 7 8 13
"Nothing But Love" 2024 — — — — — Non-album single
"Who's Gonna" — 49 10 30 — No Tears on This Ride
"Criminal" — — — — —
"Cry Baby" — — — — —
"—" denotes a title that did not chart, or was not released in that territory.
List of singles showing year released, chart positions and album name
Title Year Peak chart positions Album
CAN
[32] 		US
[33] 		US
R&B/HH
[34] 		US
Rap
[35] 		NZ
[36]
"Today"
(Polun featuring Lu Kala) 		2021 — — — — — Non-album singles
"Lottery"
(Latto featuring Lu Kala) 		2023 51 83 29 17 —[A]
"—" denotes a title that did not chart, or was not released in that territory.

Songwriting credits

Title Year Co-writers Artist Album
"Dangerous" 2014
Jennifer Hudson JHUD
"OK" 2024
Katy Perry 143

References

  1. ^ a b JHUD (Media notes). Jennifer Hudson. RCA Records. 2014.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  2. ^ "Lu Kala: Professional R&B songwriter takes the stage". SOCAN Words and Music. 1 September 2019. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
  3. ^ "Canadian Pop Sensation LU KALA to Headline FanFest ahead of 2024 CPL Final". Canadian Premier League. 24 October 2024. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
  4. ^ jayemkayem. "LU Just Released Her Powerful Debut Single "DCMO"". Complex. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  5. ^ Canadian Music, Week (8 August 2019). "LU KALA 'Don't Count Me Out'". YouTube. Archived from the original on 13 August 2020. Retrieved 13 August 2020 – via YouTube, owned by Google.
  6. ^ "LU KALA Is On The Rise, Watch Her Debut "DCMO (Don't Count Me Out)"". D'ARCC. 1 September 2019. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
  7. ^ "Canada's Walk of Fame". Canada's Walk of Fame. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
  8. ^ Ruta, Mike (1 October 2018). "Ajax singer LU connects with 'Don't Count Me Out'". DurhamRegion.com. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
  9. ^ "Hot 100: Week of March 4, 2023". Billboard. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
  10. ^ "Canadian Hot 100: Week of March 4, 2023". Billboard. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
  11. ^ "Latto Promises She's 'Kickin' Down the Door' for Female Rappers at 2023 Women In Music". Billboard. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
  12. ^ "Canadian Hot 100: Week of April 1, 2023". Billboard. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
  13. ^ "Jully Black, Lu Kala among recipients of 2023 Legacy Awards celebrating Black excellence". CBC News. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
  14. ^ "Cardi B, Niall Horan, Anitta & Charlie Puth to Perform at TikTok in the Mix Event". Billboard. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
  15. ^ Trapunski, Richard (6 February 2024). "Tate McRae, Daniel Caesar, Charlotte Cardin & More Nominated for 2024 Juno Awards: See the Full List". Billboard. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  16. ^ "Begonia, Lu Kala, Jah'Mila and more to perform at the 2024 Juno Opening Night Awards". CBC. 14 March 2024. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
  17. ^ "Music News Digest: LU KALA, Allison Russell and Josh Ross Earn SOCAN No. 1 Song Awards | Billboard Canada". ca.billboard.com. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  18. ^ tolsen (2 January 2013). "Billboard Canadian Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  19. ^ Kaufman, Gil (24 April 2024). "Katy Perry Teases Upcoming Single, Which She Predicts Will Be One of Her 'Biggest Songs' Ever". Billboard. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  20. ^ "LU KALA Wins Billboard Canada Women In Music Rising Star Award | Billboard Canada". ca.billboard.com. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  21. ^ devops (6 March 2013). "Canada CHR/Top 40". Billboard. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  22. ^ Trapunski, Rosie Long Decter, Richard (8 September 2024). "Best Moments at the Billboard Canada Women in Music 2024 Celebration". Billboard. Retrieved 8 September 2024.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  23. ^ "Orville Peck & Shea Couleé to judge Canada's Drag Race S5". www.out.com. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
  24. ^ Becker, Emma Aerin (22 November 2024). "Lu Kala Says She's Not Pregnant 1 Day After Fake Announcement, Reveals It Was Promo for Her New Song". People.com. Retrieved 22 May 2025.
  25. ^ "LU KALA Plots North American Tour". Exclaim!. Retrieved 4 April 2025.
  26. ^ Ju, Shirley. "Lu Kala / Reminding You You're 'Worthy' & The Importance Of Mental Health". Flaunt. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
  27. ^ Peaks in Canada:
  28. ^ Peaks in Canada:
  29. ^ Peaks in Canada:
  30. ^ Peaks in Canada:
  31. ^ Peaks in Russia:
  32. ^ "Latto Chart History: Canadian Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  33. ^ "Latto Chart History: Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved 13 June 2023.
  34. ^ "Latto Chart History: Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 13 June 2023.
  35. ^ "Latto Chart History: Hot Rap Songs". Billboard. Retrieved 13 June 2023.
  36. ^ "NZ Top 40 Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 11 April 2022. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
  37. ^ "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 27 February 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2023.

Notes

  1. ^ "Lottery" did not enter the NZ Top 40 Singles Chart, but peaked at number 32 on the NZ Hot Singles Chart.[37]
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