LaSalle Grandeur's Journey Through Ghost of Self

“My goal since I began making music was always: ‘I want to save people’s lives,’” LaSalle Grandeur says on a sunny day at South Facing Windows studios. And as you can probably tell through that sentiment —and his very name—the up-and-coming artist is not shy about his drive to create music that moves people’s cores.

Donning a green monogram jacket layered over a relaxed white tee and accentuated by three gold necklaces during the photo shoot for this profile, LaSalle's style might be more understated now than in his previous multicolored hair era. Yet, his dedication to pushing the boundaries of artistic expression remains. Ghost of Self, his latest album, stands as a testament to his artistic ambition. It’s an alternative-sounding body of work that speaks to his fears, musings, and wide-ranging genre preferences.

Hailing from Oak Park —right down the street from Austin to be precise—LaSalle first recognized his fandom for music as a kid on a trip to Alabama. “My dad was driving, my grandma was in the car and Ludacris was playing,” he recalls. “It was Ludacris’ ‘#1 Spot.’ My dad used to play rap all the time, like 2000s rap or ‘90s rap around that time. And I remember my grandma going like, ‘I like this song.’ And I was a grandma's boy. So, I was like, ‘Oh well, if my grandma likes it, I like it.’”

In high school, he found his own lane of hip-hop, gravitating towards artists who prided themselves in being vulnerable on proverbial wax, such as Childish Gambino, Kid Cudi, and blog-era legend, XV. “Stuff like that in high school showed me I don't only have to be like a tough guy.” It was then that he also began exploring other musical territories. This felt to him like a truer and more freeing way to express himself and with that perspective, he took on his debut EP Kelly Summers in 2019 and the follow-up tears in 2021.

The latter project was shaped by the passing of his close friend, Dylan, which led to LaSalle "writing super, super personal songs and descriptive situations." It fundamentally changed his approach to songwriting. "Since that point, I've never felt uncomfortable. 'Cause people need the music, you know? I make music for myself first, but it is kind of pointless to me if nobody else hears it."

Ghost of Self was initially conceptualized as the first installment of a trilogy centered around a character named Mr. Lone Lonely, serving as a canvas for themes of self-evolution and the ghosts of the past. “I talk about not feeling how I used to a lot,” LaSalle says, “and ghosts, to me, are kind of like people in your past and entities you can see through.”

However, just as he was gearing up for the album's release in April, tragedy struck LaSalle once more. “My mom and my grandma kind of got cancer around the same time, and around May, my mom passed.” This heartbreaking moment plunged him into a slump, causing him to reconsider releasing the album, admitting, “I was there thinking, ‘I don't even know if I'm gonna drop a project anymore.’”

In June, a sudden resurgence of inspiration sparked within him. “I felt like I got a push, and maybe it was my mom, maybe it was my friend Dylan, one of the two of them. But I feel like I just got this push in the back of me, like, 'no, you need to still do it.’”

“It felt like I just got a voice, ‘You should still put it out there.’

As Ghost of Self arrived on October 24th, LaSalle took to Instagram to reflect on his musical and personal evolution: “Truth is i needed to free myself from that and let go of the old me so i can have space for the new me. I hope this album at the very least makes you guys think about shedding your old skin and getting comfortable with the new you, the current you. [sic]” It reminded me of our conversation at South Facing Window, revealing a contemplative artist navigating life's uncertainties, armed with the profound awareness that his art possesses the power to reverberate far beyond his individual experience.