Leana
The Glamorous and Charismatic Blond Singer, Who Performed Her #9 Breakout
Hit “Dance With A Stranger”
As The Anthem To Stockholm Pride 2005 Before Over 25,000 Fans, Is Currently
At #18 On The Billboard Hot 100 Dance Chart With “Faith”
It’s a wonderful cultural fact that can’t be denied--when the world is
looking for the hippest new music, the latest “in-thing” and the dance
world’s next big diva, it turns to the gay and lesbian community, whose
taste in everything is notoriously impeccable. As collective tastemakers,
they’ve done it again, embracing the Swedish born, L.A. based pop dance
artist Leana with an ongoing supportive hug and dance floors that stay full
worldwide grooving to the first two singles from her hot 2006 debut Faith In
Myself.
Leana’s second single “Faith,” is a current sensation both at clubs and
radio and is currently up to #18 on the Billboard Hot 100 Dance Chart. The
song launched as a #1 Break Out Dance track on the Starfleet Music Pool
Chart in company with one of the world’s best known DJ’s, Paul Oakenfold,
and hit #5 on Billboard Breakout. “Faith (Lenny B Remixes)” is currently #5
on the Top Ten Dance Singles Chart at the tastemaker website
www.westhollywood.com.
Driven in part by her powerful immediate connection with the gay community,
Leana’s 2005 breakout single “Dance With A Stranger” was a #1 Billboard Hot
Dance Breakout that became a Top 10 hit on the Billboard Dance Chart,
peaking at #9. In America, it went Top Ten in the DJ Times and also hit #9
on the Top 100 Dance Hits of 2005 on Fusion Radio Chicago. The sensual and
romantic video, which was directed by Gustavo Garzon for Quentin Tarantino’s
production company, is still being played at dance clubs nationwide and is
in heavy rotation at Footlocker, Macey's, Abercrombie & Fitch and Adidas
stores everywhere.
Internationally, the Swedish Import’s infectious track—which was co-written
and co-produced by top pop tastemaker and producer Peter Rafelson (well
known for Madonna’s “Open Your Heart” and The Corrs’ “Dreams,” among
countless hits)—was nominated for Best HiNRG/Euro Track at the International
Dance Awards. It was also the Official Song at Stockholm Pride 2005, a gay
pride event that is the biggest festival in Sweden. The singer sang “Dance
With A Stranger” for a roaring, predominantly gay crowd of 26,000 in a city
that also happens to be her hometown; the song was chosen as the event’s
Song of the Year and Leana was declared Artist of the Year.
Aside from her glamorous high heel and lipstick looks and four male dancers
who perform with the singer, Leana believes the song has resonated as a gay
anthem in part because of its tremendously liberating lyrics. These words
also reflect the intense artist-fan lovefest: “Dance with a stranger/Don’t
need to know any number or name/One last chance to go crazy/Just embrace me
and sweep me away.”
Leana first realized her appeal to gay and lesbian music fans when she
performed for several years at Luna Park, a fashionable nightclub in West
Hollywood; since the release of Faith In Myself, Leana has also performed to
SRO crowds in L.A. at hotspots like The Roxy, Key Club and Edgemar in Santa
Monica.
“It’s the first time they made a straight person Artist of The Year, and I
am very flattered by the ongoing love that my gay fans have shown me,” she
says. “Maybe I was a gay man in a previous life, or maybe they just like the
groove and all the glamour and cool moves I put into the show. Gay men have
always had a thing for female singers, and they are a great, loyal audience.
As long as I keep them happy and get them up and dancing, they will keep
coming back for more!”