On love, integrity, and music without borders
Lauren Mia wants to send a message into the world with her music – first an “experience of euphoria,” as she once described it herself, and then the power of love. And indeed, her sound is deeply energy-driven, forward-moving, with a certain cinematic depth that pulls you in before you even realize it. You can strongly feel how big her passion is for what she does – the producing, the collaboration, the endless curiosity for what music can hold, and all the invisible moments in between where music slowly becomes a universe of its own.
Born and raised in Los Angeles, Lauren’s path into electronic music was anything but linear. She began classical piano training at the age of four and carried that foundation with her long before she ever imagined standing behind decks. In her early twenties, after working on the A&R side of the industry and exploring festival culture, she had a life-changing epiphany at Lightning in a Bottle while watching Stephan Bodzin perform – a moment that made her realize she wanted to be the one creating these sonic worlds herself. She quit her job, enrolled in music school, and spent years immersed in analog synthesis, sound design, and studio solitude, slowly shaping the signature blend of techno, trance, and atmospheric storytelling she is known for today.
Her new single Rhythm of Refuge, featuring Gabrielle Roman, feels like exactly that – a place to arrive. As Lauren describes it herself: “A love that saves you, the kind that feels ancient and familiar, the kind that pulls you back into yourself when you lose your way.” More mystical rather than romantic, powerful rather than decorative.
In our conversation Lauren speaks about the meaning of love, creative integrity, friendship as a sacred space, and why art should always remain boundaryless. Read the full interview below to dive into her journey, her vision for music, and the stories behind the sound.
Photography by rex & jones
Hair by Daniel Ramirez, products used balmainhair
Hey dear Lauren, I’m just listening to your new track Rhythm of Refuge, featuring Gabrielle Roman. You described the inspiration and theme behind it as follows: “Rhythm of Refuge is a love story in sound. We tried to illustrate a story about a love which we all want. A love that saves you, the kind that feels ancient and familiar, the kind that pulls you back into yourself when you lose your way.”
To me, the song feels very powerful, almost mystical — not romantic in the conventional sense, which is probably what first comes to mind for many people when thinking about love. But maybe that is what love is anyway – less romantic but with this really immense power once it’s real. What does love personally mean to you, and have you ever experienced the kind of love this track is about?
Love to me is everything. Love is our language, our religion, our birthright. Love is our truth. That’s how I feel when I think of love. We are love. So many people seem to forget this and move away from it, but if everyone came back to their very essence, to love, we all know what our world would be like. Everyone needs to come back to love, and I feel that now more than ever. Love for themselves and love for others. You asked if I’ve ever experienced this kind of love, and the answer is yes. I experienced this kind of love before with someone. We’re no longer together, but we shared almost five years of our lives together. I feel grateful for the love that was shared.
I read that you and Gabrielle worked very intensely on the track — sometimes together, sometimes separately — and that there were many different versions as the song evolved into its final form. How did you finally know when the track was done?
Creating this record was a wild journey, to say the least. We went through so many changes, and the track evolved a lot over the entire year we spent working on it. It was challenging, but also beautiful, empowering, and inspiring. It took a lot of time, but we finally came to a place where the track truly resonated in our hearts, and that’s when we called it. We knew it was done when the song finally revealed itself. The emotion felt clear, the energy locked in, and every element supported the story we were telling. Coming back to it felt exciting rather than corrective, and at that point we knew it had become what it was meant to be.
“Some days she is my teacher, and some days I am hers.”
When we spoke back in 2022, you said that one of the most challenging things about growing up in Los Angeles was finding real, genuine friendships, due to the highly competitive environment, the constant chase for fame, and the strong focus on personal gain. You and Gabrielle not only work creatively together, but you are also close friends and soul sisters. How did the two of you meet? And what do you appreciate most about each other — professionally, but also on a personal, human level?
Gabrielle and I became connected through a group of mutual friends that we share here in Los Angeles. A lot of us that were born and raised here have solidified strong communities of like-minded, artistic, conscious individuals.
We met at a mutual friend’s house. Gabrielle was singing on a table in the living room, haha, and when I heard her sing, I felt immediately connected. That moment turned into a conversation, then into collaboration, and eventually into the kind of friendship that’s built on genuine respect and shared creative values. Gabrielle is a powerful force and an incredible, deep, intentional songwriter. Gabrielle says she admires my work ethic and steadfastness. But I could say the same about her. Gabrielle is extremely dedicated to her craft and devotes herself to her music and career. Professionally, she is one of the most hard-working songwriters I have ever worked with. Me, I give love fully to everything I create and to everyone I encounter, without cutting corners or protecting myself with cynicism. I think we both share really rare and special qualities that have bonded us together. Although we have a bit of an age gap, some days she is my teacher, and some days I am hers. Our bond, our friendship is very unique and extremely special.
I think friendship is something that is often underestimated in general, because it requires effort from both sides. We’re also living in a time where stress is increasing, while at the same time the willingness to show that effort — beyond social media and similar platforms — seems to be decreasing. What do you think friendships need most right now to survive and grow?
I completely agree with you. Thank you for your words. I think friendships need reliability, love, and consistency, because that creates a strong foundation for friendship and also provides the feeling of being safe between individuals. Above all, friendship needs INTEGRITY from both sides.
You founded your own label, Halcyon, last year. Why was it important for you to create your own label? And how does releasing music on your own imprint change the way you approach your creative work?
Halcyon is just an extension of a previous imprint I founded back in 2019. I really just want to create a space, community, and platform for artists to share their music authentically without feeling the need to fit a particular genre, trend, or sound. Artists should feel safe and free to create what resonates with their own hearts. I feel many labels today have made it difficult to allow artists to feel full creative freedom, because of their expectations to “fit in” — fit in to the label, fit in to the genre, fit in to the trend, etc., or be similar to what already exists or is doing well — what the people want. But that limits us. It does. Art should be boundaryless. Music should be boundaryless. Unique. I don’t see painters trying to create similar paintings with the same colors and mediums, do they?
I want Halcyon to be an imprint that yes, harnesses a sound for electronic music, a community and collection of artists and music that create electronic music — but also leaves space for this umbrella of sub-genres which I feel are all very connected — techno, melodic techno, ambient, psytrance, trance, you name it, and that’s the versatility that I have illustrated in my own productions, like in my debut album RE:BIRTH and what I intend to continue to uphold with this imprint and my future albums as well.
“I believe in never saying never. We’re always changing and evolving and life takes you into directions you may have never guessed you’d arrive in.”
I find it always very interesting to know how artists decide on a certain musical direction. You started classical piano training at a very young age. With a classical background, there are so many different musical directions one can take. How did your path lead you into electronic music — not in terms of a detailed biography, but more in the sense of why your heart was drawn in that direction? And could you imagine exploring a completely different musical genre at some point in the future?
I was introduced to trance music very young, around the age of nine, through my older cousins. Something about it immediately spoke to me on a visceral level. Even before I could attend shows, I was downloading tracks and building my own little music library, completely immersed. It felt emotional, cinematic, and expansive in a way that resonated deeply with my classical piano background. At fourteen, I attended my first rave, Audiotistic in San Bernardino, where Infected Mushroom were playing, and that experience truly changed everything. That was the moment my world opened up. I became enthralled by the culture, the community, and the range of sound within electronic music, and I began exploring everything from trance and psytrance to dubstep, deep house, techno, tech-house, melodic techno, progressive house, and beyond.
When I eventually started producing music more seriously, I resonated deeply within techno, melodic techno, and progressive house. But I realized I did not want to confine myself to a single lane. That’s why I even made a deep house track that landed on Anjunadeep back in 2021. My music naturally became an umbrella of influences, drawing from house, techno, trance, and psy elements, all influenced by my classical foundation and love for classical. Trance, for example, carries a lot of sonic parallels to classical music. My debut album really illustrates this better than I can here now with words. It’s a versatile collection from my heart including ambient, melodic techno, techno, and psytrance, and I produced that album back in 2022 and released it in 2023/2024. Now, I absolutely see myself continuing to explore. I already have. Like I said, I have written ambient music, acoustic and classical piano pieces, and even included psytrance tracks on my debut album while touring with Anjunadeep in 2022. I feel I’m just an artist, Lauren Mia, and my sound carries through each of my songs. Whatever sub-genre it may be, it’s still me and you can hear me in it. At this stage, my sound has matured and settled more consistently into techno and trance, with psy textures woven throughout. But I never like to close doors creatively. Who knows, maybe one day I will dive into psytrance full on. I believe in never saying never. We’re always changing and evolving and life takes you into directions that lead to destinations you may have never guessed you’d arrive in, the beauty of life. A beautiful adventure and mystery.
“My most valuable lesson has been to trust and surrender.”
In our last interview you also mentioned that you really enjoy watching films and reading books. What was the last great movie you saw? And what was the last book that truly fascinated you? (smiles)
Aw, I love this question. My dear friends Huey and Juliana invited me to see a film recently in theaters. It was around the holidays. I hadn’t been to the movies in so long so I was so excited. Huey picked the film and I knew nothing of it, but I absolutely loved it. It’s called Eternity. Elizabeth Olsen was the lead actress in it. I just loved it. Another film I recently saw was Wildcat — well, it’s a documentary and it’s absolutely phenomenal. You can watch it on Amazon Prime. It’s a story about a young British soldier who came back from Afghanistan and embarks on his journey to healing in the Amazon jungle. He found love with an animal, and it’s just really special. Heartbreaking in many ways, but touches on a lot of important matters around mental health and grief, which I resonated with. As for my latest book, I’ve been reading The Secret Dowry of Eve, which is about “woman’s role in the development of consciousness,” written by Glynda-Lee Hoffman.
As you were closing out the past year, you wrote on Instagram: “My word for 2025: INTENSE. I feel truly grateful for every moment, experience, and lesson. I shed a lot, I learned a lot, I grew a lot.” What has been one of the most valuable lessons for you this year? And what is one thing you feel most grateful for?
I absolutely love these questions. Thank you. I feel my most valuable lesson this year has been to trust and surrender. Trusting in the divine, in divine timing, that everything is working out exactly the way it’s supposed to, for my highest good. Everything that happens is for us to grow. Surrendering into trust and feeling in flow that everything will be alright. The world has gone through a lot since the start of 2025. I mean, my first week of 2025 was the Los Angeles fires if you recall… It was one hell of a year and still, so much going on. Trusting, surrendering, brings me peace. Above all, trusting in the divine one source creator and releasing control.
Your wishes for 2026?
I truly just pray for peace and love. I know this might sound cliché, but my heart has been broken and is broken from what’s going on in our world. I recently posted about this and all the different matters just to name a few that are clearly illustrating an endless loop of violence, pain, and suffering. Really, our world needs love and peace now more than ever. I wish for everyone to come back to love. I wish for humanity to remember we are one species — one race — the human race. We are one. Division, hatred, violence is not the answer. Love is. Peace for our planet, for our animals, for our children, and for all living beings.
Check out Rhythm of Refuge here:
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