Jade LeMac, Constellations Review

Jade LeMac is an eighteen-year-old who takes pride in her half-Asian heritage and connection to the 2SLBGTQ+ community, which have largely influenced her music. The Vancouver-based singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist creates introspectively poignant songs. Growing up in a tight-knit, multicultural family on Canada’s Vancouver Island, people noticed that LeMac sang karaoke unusually well. She soon fell in love with music at a young age. By middle school, LeMac focused on writing songs and endless practicing. She lent her voice to various dance singles for the electronic tastemaker label Monstercat and started to attract a following on Instagram. Beginning in 2020, LeMac built her audience on TikTok, now exceeding 1.2 million followers, and in 2021, she unveiled the shimmering and starry-eyed debut single “Constellations.” This unorthodox outlier love song likened “the freckles on people’s bodies to constellations.” The independent release shined with 25 million cumulative streams. GLAAD championed her among “10 LGBTQ Women in Music to Listen to this Pride Month” in 2022. Jade’s vision comes into focus on her debut EP which shares the name of her first single, Constellations, out Feb 10 via Arista Recordings.

LeMac has released her debut EP, Constellations, which complies her singles with new tracks for seven songs. LeMac style of pop ranges from darkly introverted to earnest and optimistic. LeMac explains, “I wanted that empowering and edgy darker vibe with it,” she said. “I … envisioned a whole scenario in my head and wrote from that person’s perspective who was kind of hurt and wanted to get revenge on the other person.” LeMac has already enjoyed success with the EP as Teen Vogue spotlighted LeMac’s inclusion onto GLAAD’s 20 under 20 LGBTQ Changemakers of 2022 list.

Opening the EP is “Car Accident.” With a steady keyboard figure and light drums with additional hand claps, the tune focuses on LeMac’s vocal skills. Her tone is warm and very pleasing to the ears. Her sensual aura about her singing style pulls you in and arouses you to listen longer. The song develops nicely, with each section building until the powerful repeating chorus, where the vocal counterpoint builds and adds to the track’s power.

“Aimed to Kill” is LeMac singing lyrics that explore her sexuality as she navigates her queer identity. The heartbreaker anthem blends powerful sustained chords with a pop beat to tell the story of two exes. The title is a “metaphor for being a heartbreaker [but] wanting to be vulnerable with a person, but just not being able to because of your own struggles and habits you have,” says LeMac.

Constellations shows that LeMac is mature beyond her years with her ability to create songs with interesting forms, developing ideas through that form, and have strong lyrics and melodies. In addition, I am thankful she does not destroy that beautiful voice with autotune or overproductions. LeMac is one to watch and listen to!