LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Kelela is bringing her latest musical era to Los Angeles this week with two performances of her “new avatar live” tour at the Wiltern.
The singer is scheduled to perform Monday, September 21, and Tuesday, September 22, at the historic Los Angeles venue. Both shows are listed for 7 p.m., with keiyaA joining the lineup.
Kelela’s New Album Takes Center Stage
The Los Angeles shows arrive as Kelela tours behind her third studio album, new avatar, released July 10 through Warp Records.
The 12-track album moves across alternative R&B, electronic music, shoegaze, rock and UK garage, giving the project a sound that stretches well beyond a traditional R&B release.
The record includes tracks such as “idea 1,” “point blank,” “linknb,” “crystalize” and “if we meet again.” It also features collaborations with A.K. Paul, Fousheé and PinkPantheress.
The Wiltern Becomes a Key Stop on the Tour
Kelela’s back-to-back Los Angeles shows are part of the North American leg of the new avatar live tour.
The tour continues with a September 23 performance at The Observatory North Park in San Diego before moving through additional U.S. cities, including Phoenix, Minneapolis, Brooklyn, Philadelphia, Charlotte, Atlanta and Miami.
The Wiltern, located on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, is one of the city’s established live-music venues and regularly hosts artists across R&B, rock, pop and electronic music.
A Distinctive Sound Comes to the Stage
Kelela has built a reputation for blending R&B with electronic and alternative sounds, and new avatar expands that approach.
Recent coverage from the Los Angeles Times described the album as a genre-flexing project that brings together elements of Kelela’s earlier influences with guitar-driven sounds, futuristic club music and R&B. The singer developed much of the album while working in Los Angeles.
That Los Angeles connection gives the Wiltern performances an added hometown significance within the current tour, even though Kelela is now based in New York.
Kelela’s Los Angeles Connection
Los Angeles has played an important role in Kelela’s career.
According to the Los Angeles Times, she moved to Venice in 2010 and worked a series of jobs in the area before focusing fully on music. Her time in Los Angeles eventually became part of the story behind her development as an artist.
Her return to the city with new avatar live therefore brings the latest chapter of her career back to a place that helped shape her early path.
Two Nights Give L.A. Fans Another Chance to See the Show
The two Wiltern dates give Los Angeles fans two opportunities to catch Kelela’s current live production.
The September 21 and September 22 shows are both officially listed at the venue, with keiyaA included on the lineup.
For fans following Kelela’s latest work, the shows offer a chance to hear material from new avatar in a live setting while the album remains at the center of her current touring cycle.
The Tour Continues Across the United States
Following the Los Angeles performances, Kelela’s tour moves through San Diego and Phoenix before returning to the Midwest and East Coast in October.
Later stops include Minneapolis, Toronto, Brooklyn, Philadelphia, Silver Spring, Charlotte, Atlanta and Miami.
The North American run will eventually give way to European dates, including a November 4 performance at London’s O2 Academy Brixton.