Laura Lizcano talks about jazz school, musical theater, and the journey to her debut album Heart on 25 O’Clock

Locally-based singer-songwriter Laura Lizcano has had quite a journey to her debut album Heart, and she shares it with Dan Drago on the latest episode of the Philly music podcast 25 O’Clock.

Lizcano grew up in Bogota, Colombia, and as she tells it, she doesn’t remember a time when music wasn’t something she wanted to do with her life. She shares memories of taking lessons at home and seeing music at her city’s ornate concert hall. “I was always interested in the conductor,” she says. “He just waves his arms and people play music? That to me was magic.”

She shares her family’s move to Pennsylvania — particularly the town of Lykens, north of HBurg — where Lizcano interest in musical theater blossomed. In it, she found a strong sense of teamwork, as well as an entry point down the Cole Porter rabbit hole.

Lizcano and Drago also discuss her schooling at Temple — as well as the mysoginy of jazz school in general, “how women and nonbinary people are left out of the history of the tradition, and how that’s harmful.”

They also talk about making collages, writing poetry, experiencing pandemic dreams, staying active and centered in quarantine, and the process of making her beautiful debut record Heart at Rittenhouse Soundworks with Michael Cumming.

Listen below, and check out Lizcano’s album on Bandcamp.