Meet L3NA | Producer & DJ

We had the good fortune of connecting with L3NA and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi L3NA, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
Okay, looking back, I’d honestly laugh in anyone’s face who told me that I would become a DJ and producer. It wasn’t something I considered quite literally ever. Not even when I was starting to play house and hip hop at my friend’s birthday parties in San Francisco for fun — not even then. Life is insane.

If you were to rewind, and pull who I am apart, I guess it makes sense. I’ve been music-minded since I was 4 — my mom trained me to perfect my pitch while playing piano: she’d hold a book over playing keys to hide her hands, and ask me what the note was until I got it right. I explored other instruments here and there, like drums, ukulele, violin, viola, but found piano the most intuitive. I listened to a lot of angsty emo pop, pop punk and alternative rock to escape the monotony of my studies, and then found myself stumbling upon heavy hitters like Deadmau5, AC Slater, Tchami, Green Velvet when he was still Cajmere, etc.

One of my best friends did breakdancing, and we’d hop in the car, drive into deep Chicago, and I’d watch cyphers from the sidelines. They’d always be at like a community center, or warehouse, and I remember people moving their feet to extremely driving beats: whether it be footwork, techno, hard groove, and mainly house. I went to raves, and a circuit party or two. I absolutely love pulsating basses and kicks, and my ADHD brain particularly resonated with bass house and wubs a lot. This really, really evolved my taste in music. I produce different stuff now, primarily techno, house, and hard groove, but I will always be a basshead at heart.

My good friend Nicole introduced me to a DJ in SF, his name is Vik and goes by Sato. I kept asking him to play for his collective as someone who had been zero club lineups. One day, he booked me for my first show, and I will be always grateful for the way he believed in me. From there, I started getting asked to play all over the Bay, even in Oakland, by this crazy domino effect. I couldn’t believe what the heck was happening. Soon, I was playing clubs that I thought I’d take years to even touch the decks.

Almost a year and half into it, I remember trying to curate a set at my favorite club, Halcyon, and thinking: I wish I had a track that sounded more like *this* — and vocals that sounded cheekier and more…like mine? Wait. It was almost a no-brainer realization that I should start making my own music to solve this problem. It’s just been taking off from there.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
In SF, I was struck by how different the music scene was from anything I’d experienced before. There’s a unique energy here—an openness that feels rare in an industry often that can defined by exclusivity. I see fresh new names all the time on flyers even now, and in my experience, there are enough gigs to go around, so there’s very little gatekeeping.

I spent a lot of time the first few months of being in the scene observing, supporting others at shows, making genuine friends that I’d hang out with outside of shows, and eventually got asked to join a collective. I wouldn’t say it was easy, but finding my people came faster than expected. I think this is the best approach to take: observe the ecosystem, understand the key players and their motivations, then carve out your unique position within it all.

Then I made a move to LA. It wasn’t just about pursuing music—it was about discovering myself. Before this city, I was constantly second-guessing my choices, wondering if I was on the right path. The relocation forced me to rebuild everything from scratch: my social circle, my daily routines, my understanding of success. There were nights I questioned everything, sitting alone in my apartment surrounded by equipment and half-finished tracks, wondering if I’d made the worst mistake ever. But that discomfort pushed me to dig deeper into what I truly wanted, not just in music but in life: I found a lot of my people through the Qwerk & Quack collective, as well as a bunch of Never B Alone artists. Our group chat gives me a lot of life. The vulnerability of starting over became my greatest strength, teaching me resilience I never knew I had.

I guess the biggest lesson I’ve learned is staying consistent. No matter how many venue owners or booking managers, or even bigger DJs I knew, nobody can make tracks for me with the exact sounds I want, other than myself. In this game, the biggest battle will ALWAYS be against yourself. I’ve seen this statement so many times on artist threads and whatnot: “stay true to yourself — the releases will come”. Yes, the “stay true to yourself and the releases will come” thing holds weight, but with an important addition: success requires community. Find where your authentic style intersects with what’s working for others. Study their content, their strategic moves, then adapt those approaches with your own signature.

Navigating this journey while managing ADHD has been its own complex adventure. The traditional advice for creatives—establish a routine, set aside dedicated hours, follow linear processes—nope, that didn’t do it for me. I’ve had to build systems uniquely tailored to how my mind works: zero notifications on my phone, understanding when concentrated creation bursts and hyperfocus kicks in, and technology setups that minimize distractions without stifling spontaneity. What I’ve learned is that there’s no universal framework for creative productivity — you have to find out what works for you. My breakthroughs came when I stopped fighting my brain’s natural patterns and instead designed workflows that harmonized with them. This realization extends beyond music—it’s about honoring your authentic cognitive style in everything you do.

Ooh, another lesson I’ve learned is cutting out alcohol pretty much entirely. It truly feels like you rip off a layer of fog in your brain.I feel like there’s a reason a lot of young people are sober these days, and they’re probably onto something! Also, fueling my body is something I prioritize, and making sure that I challenged myself in the mornings at the gym so I could set the tone for the rest of the day.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’m probably not the best person to ask about LA, but I do have a few ideas.

If they do music, it’d fun to rent out a cool space for a few hours and jot a bunch of ideas down, and then save those templates for later to do on our own time.

Food is my absolute love language. We’d head over to Dan Modern close to where I live, or Elephante which I recognize is this basic LA girl thing to do — but it’s so close to me and it has an absolutely killer view. I’ve been loving Italian recently, so maybe we’d head over to Ospi in Venice, Cento in Culver, or Il Pastaio in Weho. Ooh, or some killer k-bbq spot in Koreatown with the best banchan selections I’ve seen. I also absolutely love cooking for friends and feeding loved ones, and so at some point in the week I’d make them some ribeye steak, or a rack of lamb, or hot pot — whatever they want, I will figure it out.

Then, we’d head over to my loft, where I bought as much fuzzy furniture and things with round edges as much as possible, maybe watch a horror or psych thriller movie, then go dancing at Sound. Then, at like 2 or 3 am, we go pillage for al pastor at a taco truck.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Record Labels: Never B Alone, Slothacid, Quack Squawk Honk, Qwerk Records
Organizations: GH Entertainment, Qwerk & Quack

Website: https://l3na.com

Instagram: l3namusic

Soundcloud: l3namusic

Image Credits
Kenny Cordeiro
Julian Gigola
Brandon Greenstone