Ivy Levan to Perform Miami Beach Gay Pride

L.A.-based singer/songwriter Ivy Levan, who quickly built a name for herself thanks to her show-stopping pipes and undeniable command of sleek, yet gritty pop, will perform her new single "Biscuit" on the main stage at Miami Beach Gay Pride on Sunday, April 12. "Biscuit" is the lead single from Ivy's upcoming debut album, out later this year, which will feature collaborations with artists such as Tomo Milicevic of 30 Seconds To Mars, world-renowned DJ/producer Diplo, and Sting.

Built on the bold and brash sound Levan first revealed on her 2013 EP "Introducing the Dame," Ivy's new songs find her snaking her soulful vocals around smoky, R&B-soaked pop tracks along with fired-up party anthems and heart-stopping ballads.

"The album's a mixture of dark and light and everything between," said Levan. "My intention was to create timeless songs that were fun as well as vulnerable. I connected to so many songs like that growing up, and I wanted to continue to carry that torch."

Levan grew up in Bentonville, Arkansas, where she showed a love of singing right from her earliest years. Raised on the soul, new wave, dance, big band, and rock & roll records that her mother constantly played at home, Levan expanded her musical palette with artists as eclectic as Depeche Mode, Etta James, and The Misfits.

"I've always been drawn to unique voices," says Levan. "So my biggest musical inspirations were Whitney Houston because of her power and presence, Portishead because of Beth Gibbons's distinct and haunting tones, and Wu Tang for the pure fun and raw energy."

In creating her new album, Levan made a point of keeping her songwriting process spontaneous and loose and fueling each track with unabashed passion. "An idea would hit me in the moment and I'd just go with it," she said. "And the lyrics are the same way -- it can be something as basic as being stuck in traffic or a deeper self-reflection about past relationships."

The result includes the urgent, rollicking lead single "Biscuit," a personal manifesto that finds Levan belting out lines like "I think you might have missed it/When I told you to kiss it, my biscuit."

"I really wanted to make a song that summed up my attitude and the way I was raised in the South," she explained, adding, "Southern Belles don't take no lip."