His art and music, born out of struggle, hardship, but perhaps more importantly, out of furious curiosity and biological necessity, has manifested itself in drawing, painting, sculpture, photography, performance, music, and filmmaking. His music and lyrics are improvised on the spot and morph and evolve with every event, concert, and recording.
LONNIE HOLLEY⤬
Since 1979, Lonnie Holley has devoted his life to the practice
of improvisational creativity.
"Holley does with music what he’s done with visual art for decades: He collects our ugliest obscured objects and transforms them into singular reflections on our troubled world." — PITCHFORK
"His voice is the one constant, a symbol of defiance against overwhelming forces." — Q MAGAZINE
In Holley’s original art environment, he would construct and deconstruct his visual works, repurposing their elements for new pieces. This often led to the transfer of individual narratives into the new work creating a cumulative composite image that has depth and purpose beyond its original singular meaning. The layers of sound in Holley’s music, likewise, are the result of decades of evolving experimentation.
"MITH is an insightful record, one that gives its listener pause and feels like a valuable artefact of our time." — THE QUIETUS
Holley has released five critically acclaimed albums––Just Before Music, 2012; Keeping a Record of It, 2013; MITH, 2018; National Freedom, 2020; Broken Mirror: A Selfie Reflection (with Matthew E. White), 2021. His sixth album, Oh Me Oh My, produced by Jacknife Lee, which includes collaborations with Bon Iver, Michael Stipe (REM), Moor Mother, Sharon Van Etten, and Rokia Koné, comes out March 10, 2023, on Jagjaguwar.