Lawrence Rothman

Lawrence Rothman
Birth name Lawrence Rothman
Born (1982-05-18) May 18, 1982[1]
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
Instruments Vocals
Years active 2013–present
Labels
Associated acts

Lawrence Rothman (born May 5, 1982) is an American singer-songwriter based in Los Angeles. His debut album The Book of Law was released on October 13, 2017 via Downtown Records/Interscope. The album was produced by Justin Raisen (Charli XCX, Sky Ferreira), and features contributions from Angel Olsen, Marissa Nadler, Kristin Kontrol, Duff McKagan of Guns N’ Roses, among others. Rothman has toured North America with Little Dragon and Tei Shi, and internationally with Woodkid, and Jennylee (Warpaint).

Biography

Early life

Rothman was born and raised in a middle class area of St. Louis, Missouri. From a young age, he identified as gender-fluid, wearing makeup and presenting in an androgynous style. [2] Rothman's mother was receptive, but his father pressured him into growing a beard and acting more masculine, which left him depressed and suicidal. Rothman was homeschooled until the fourth grade and was bullied after entering the public school system. [3]

From the age of 13, Rothman formed a number of punk, alternative rock and hip-hop bands, and toured throughout the United States. During this period, Rothman was physically assaulted by three off-duty National Guardsmen after performing a club in Texas. At 17, he left home and moved to Chicago with no support from his parents. Living with a cousin, Rothman encountered artists and musicians who helped him come to terms with his non-binary gender identity.

2013-2014: Early singles

After moving to Los Angeles, Rothman began writing music under his own name and signed to Mamaroma, the independent label founded by renowned director Floria Sigismondi, known for her music videos for David Bowie, Marilyn Manson, and Fiona Apple and for TV work including The Handmaid’s Tale and American Gods. In June 2013, Rothman released his debut single, “Montauk Fling”, with an accompanying video directed by Sigismondi. This marked the start of a long-term creative collaboration between the two – Sigismondi has since directed all of Rothman’s music videos to date. Throughout 2013, Rothman released subsequent singles on Mamaroma: “#1 All Time Low”, “Kevin”, and “Fatal Attraction”. These saw a largely positive response from press outlets including The Huffington Post, The Guardian, and Nowness.

2015-2017: The Book of Law

In 2014, Rothman signed to Downtown Records and began work on their debut album, The Book of Law, with producer Justin Raisen. Rothman came up with a list of dream collaborators, including Duff McKagan from Guns N' Roses, Kim Gordon, Angel Olsen, and Nick Zinner from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, whom Raisen brought into their studio. The two used Rothman’s journals as the basis for the lyrics and emotional mood of the record. In an interview with The FADER, Rothman stated that the recording process was fraught and dramatic, with “drug ODs [from others in the camp], fist fights, jail, police getting called on [Raisen] by record companies, threatening to cut a guy’s neck off on Thanksgiving”.

Discography

Albums

  • The Book of Law (2017)

Singles

  • Montauk Fling (2013)
  • #1 All Time Low (2013)
  • Kevin (2013)
  • Fatal Attraction (2013)
  • California Paranoia feat. Angel Olsen (2015)
  • Oz vs. Eden (2015)
  • Users (2015)
  • H (2016)
  • Designer Babies feat. Kim Gordon (2016)
  • Wolves Still Cry (2017)
  • Ain’t Afraid of Dying feat. Marissa Nadler (2017)
  • Jordan feat. Kristin Kontrol (2017)
  • Stand By (2017)

Music Videos

  • Montauk Fling (2013)
  • #1 All Time Low (2013)
  • Fatal Attraction (2013)
  • California Paranoia feat. Angel Olsen (2015)
  • Oz vs. Eden (2015)
  • Users (2015)
  • H (2016)
  • Designer Babies feat. Kim Gordon (2017)
  • Wolves Still Cry (2017)
  • Ain’t Afraid of Dying feat. Marissa Nadler (2017)
  • Jordan feat. Kristin Kontrol (2017)
  • Stand By (2017)

References

  1. ↑ Hana Kaplan (August 1, 2013). "DISCOVERY: LAWRENCE ROTHMAN". Interview Magazine. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  2. ↑ Sasha Geffen (October 11, 2017). "Lawrence Rothman on Being Gender Fluid: "Why Do You Have to Check a Box That's Male or Female?"". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
  3. ↑ August Brown (November 1, 2017). "Lawrence Rothman's genre-hopping 'The Book of Law' explores many personalities". LA Times. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
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