Situated in the hills of Studio City sits a home studio that’s birthed a slew of popular songs.
“The first session I did here was with MUNA in 2019,” says Leland. The 39-year-old producer owns that home studio. It’s first iteration was situated inside the main house on his property and has since expanded into its own little oasis.
Steeped in warm colors, with luxurious candles burning away, Leland’s current studio feels more like a chic getaway spot rather than a workspace. It’s become a home base for him and other creatives in his circle to collaborate. His dog, Crosby, is a frequent visitor and how he’s keeping track of the passing time — the MUNA session had to be in 2019 because he has a photo of one of the band’s members with the dog as a puppy.
The actual studio only accounts for, at times, 50 percent of where the creativity’s happening when artist comes to Leland’s place. “The writing doesn’t have to happen in the studio. The recording can happen in the studio,” the producer explains. “I feel like a lot of it is just sitting out here having conversations.”
Leland in his home studio.
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An artist might be staying in the cottage on the property while they’re there working. “They can just walk down to the studio, which has been really nice,” says Leland. The Shards star Hayes Warner, another collaborator of Leland’s, stayed in his cottage while she was filming the Ryan Murphy show. Leland wrote music for the series, which is set to release a soundtrack next month.
On a day where he’s welcoming an artist into the studio, the producer tends to start the day with a hike. He’ll walk to Fryman — if you ever see someone dangerously walking down Laurel Canyon Boulevard, it’s likely Leland. He’s only had one close call, he points out, and it was actually from a friend. “One of my best friends happened to be driving down Laurel Canyon, and he was like, ‘Girl, did I almost hit you?’ I was like, ‘Yes, but I would’ve wanted it to be a friend,’” he says cheekily.
After his hike, hopefully without any close calls, Leland will get fresh flowers for the studio, along with a candle or incense. His routine tends to change depending on who he’s working with that day.
“I love getting the studio ready for a session. I love that part of it,” the producer says. “Or cleaning up after a session, which is usually just Goop [Kitchen] bags, water and Coke Zero.”
The space is meant to be a space of peace and quiet, even if that’s not always what’s happening in the studio itself. Leland, who’s also RuPaul’s Drag Race‘s producer and songwriter, explains that it can range from longtime collaborator Troye Sivan to Charli xcx, who he says recorded some of the Wuthering Heights album in the studio, to Demi Lovato. A Drag Race executive producer or even RuPaul might be around while Leland’s tinkering on Sivan’s work, so they’ll share it.
Leland in his home studio.
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If Leland’s working with an artist for the first time, he’ll listen to their music on his morning hike— or he’ll listen to anything he’s anticipating will be a good reference point for the work that’ll happen later that day. No matter how familiar with the project or the artist, he wants to be prepared and have something in his back pocket.
Some artists, however, have a good idea coming into their sessions with Leland. “When Rebecca Black came in, I was so excited to work with her and she had such a clear vision for what she wanted to make, and it was just so fun,” he says. The pair wrote the track “Corsetry” from her latest album in the space.
“I have the same feeling about [Black] that I had when Adéla first walked into the room,” Leland says of the pop princess of the moment. The 22-year-old has been blowing up this summer. Leland and the pop star — who broke out as a contestant on the audition project Dream Academy that formed the girl group KATSEYE — worked together on songs from her first EP, “SexOnTheBeat” and “DeathbyDevotion.”
Leland, by his on admission, loves working with women. “I love a pop girl,” he says. But by far, the producer’s most impactful collaboration, both professionally and creatively, remains Sivan. Getting to be part of a gay pop star’s career is something he’ll never take for granted.
“So many songs that you love that are by the female pop stars that we love, a lot of the times there’s a queer person as one of the collaborators when you look up the credits,” Leland says. “I think now my ear is trained to where I can tell if a gay person was in the room or not.”
He adds, “I really think for songs, you can tell. And not that every song needs to have a gay person in the room, obviously, but I think depending on what you’re going for, you can really hear if there was some queer energy in the room or not. I feel like it’s been so fun to sometimes be that person with the different artists that come through.”
Leland in his home studio.
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Leland and Sivan collaborated once again for the pop star’s upcoming album She’s the Best, set to be released next month. Many of the great pop stars of the past weren’t publicly out, so watching Sivan’s career get to the point it’s at now has been almost surreal for Leland. “People like Troye are allowed to be pop stars, and you’re allowed to have that experience, and maybe not allowed, you’re demanding it,” the producer says.
“I always want the music to speak for itself. I don’t want opportunities because I’m queer. I want opportunities because I’m good. I don’t want opportunities for Troy because he’s a gay pop star,” says Leland. “I want opportunities for him and for our music because the music is good and the music videos are good and the team’s good and the energy is good.”
He adds, “I want that support from the queer community because the music is great and the art is great. I want that support from the straight community because the music is great and the art is great, not just because any of us happen to be queer.”