The 23-year-old Russian singer-songwriter puts a new spin on the classics with a steamy music video to boot.
Up-and-coming musician Anastasia Luna was just 6 years old when she began studying music. A native Russian, she was classically trained to sing, raised by an opera singer for a father, and a mother who owns a theater. “I’m from a very theatrical family,” Anastasia laughs. “I started actually writing music when I was probably 13, 14, but I never really understood my style and what I really like until I came to New York and actually started breaking and doing hip-hop.”
At the end of her teen years, she moved to New York City in the hopes of making it big as an artist. She found herself fresh on the break dancing scene thanks to the advice of a friend and break dance teacher, who she began taking classes with. “The first time I saw it, I fell in love with it right away. Then she showed me all the practices in New York because breaking—it’s a street dance, so you can’t really learn it at school, you have to go outside and see people, and see people breaking in the neighborhood.”
That style of breaking is what encouraged Anastasia to incorporate break beats into her music and land in the hands of producer Tony Lewis. Her genre is something she lovingly refers to as “2012 James Brown”, but adds, “I don’t want to sound like James Brown, or Michael Jackson, because people just aren’t going to listen to it—it’s not something that is popular right now. So that’s why I use some hip-hop. I use some rap in my music.”
Her music video for “Heart Jump” features a confident, sassy and energetic Anastasia showcasing her break dance skills mixed in with more classic forms of dance, that stunning, classical-like voice and a hot-and-heavy scene between her and another woman—something that Anastasia feels is authentic and bold. “At the very beginning I didn’t want to come out as a lesbian artist, ‘cause you know, people start with, “Oh my God, there’s two girls, and they’re kissing or they’re almost kissing…” and people kind of forget about the whole music thing, the dance thing.”
It was the twenty-three year old’s producer who ultimately encouraged her to be true to herself. “He was like, “You’re actually the real deal. So why not go full out? And the whole LGBT community will be grateful to you for not being afraid and actually being who you are. People that like you will support you.””
Anastasia’s modern twist on the classics has inspired her to work hard. She says she’s always recording new material. With three songs under her belt, she’s also on the verge of making her second music video in the next few months, a video that will epitomize the great R&B ballad. The vigor in Anastasia is infectious, but she knows firsthand just how much devotion goes into breaking into the biz.
“Like my voice teacher always tells me: your work is never done. You can never come home and be like, “OK, I’m done for the day,” because there is always a song to write, there is always a dance to do. So if you choose to be an artist, whether it’s a musician or a dancer or whatever it is, it’s really, really hard work, and it’s dedication. I’m just really thankful.”
Watch Luna's "Heart Jump" video below: