lava la rue

headpiece. Syban
cape. Astrid Andersen
top. Cecile Tulkens
trousers. Bethany Williams
shoes. Lucile Guilmard

West London musician Lava La Rue is an effervescent character. In an online exclusive shot by photographer Leanda Heler, we step into her universe of creative power and freedom. Adorned in ornate headpieces and billowing earth-tone layers, Lava embodies an animated heroine. Her free spirit is captured in a visual buffet of contrasting prints and textures mixed with futuristic shape and structure.

Artist Jika Edström‘s illustrations feel straight out of an adventure manga. They capture an other-worldliness reflective of Lava’s music. The 22-year-old lo-fi hip hop artist writes with purpose and creates without boundaries. She’s a vocal advocate for the Black and LBGTQIA+ community and her new EP Butter-Fly is a sincere exploration of queer love, British sub-cultures and political discourse. Through her West London collective NiNE8, her music, and visual art Lava is a vessel for unfiltered self-expression. There’s no stopping a star who writes their own rules and elevates others in the process.