Car Tune 

• Courtesy Photo

There are folks who sing in the car or the shower. You may be such a human. Less likely, though certainly possible, is that you're the type to write songs in the car or in the shower.

Luke Leetham's definitely one to sing in those environments. And they're the kind of person who can write in those spaces, as well.

Their latest track, "Patience," was a car song. While they were stacked up on I-15 and then finding things at a dead stop, the basics of the song started to come along. At first, as they explain it, the song was a bit more literal, about finding patience in the day-to-day of life. But the young pop songwriter and performer began to add to the initial, hummable words, making it a song about waiting for a lover to just hurry up and commit. With the song in progress, Leetham added some lyrics and vocal ideas from fellow SLC artist Peytn. Eventually, after Peytn "cranked out his verse and got the ball rolling," the track went to "be mixed by Deekei, who's worked with Kanye West and other artists."

Now found on the usual assortment of streaming services, the cut's one that Leetham (who performs under just that name) is using to kick off a series of singles over the summer; a second single, "Drama," will appear in mid-to-late July, with a self-titled EP, Leetham, as the later-year conclusion of this batch of work. Leetham says that "everything is produced and recorded. There's a bit more mixing and a little more vocal production to thicken the songs up. But we've got a full release strategy, and we're wanting to make this (summer) as successful as possible."

As a musician, Leetham plays a bit of everything—keyboards, for sure, and drums a bit, though they're "more comfortable on drum machines." Guitar lessons are under way, and bass is mixed in there, as well. An increasing comfort level is happening in the studio, too, with an emphasis on "chopping vocals" to create interesting sound textures. Creating a sound that's got modern references, while maintaining originality, is a constant push/pull.

"I think that a lot of pop music, you get that cookie-cutter stuff," Leetham says. "At the same time, if it works, it works. You make the music you want to make. And if you're a professional, you're making music that's going to have to appeal to people. For me, personally, I try to be as original as possible, while bringing some familiarity to my songs."

As a gay, ex-LDS member who came out at 17 (and is now 24), Leetham clearly has some interesting fodder for lyrical songwriting. But the LDS background also brought a good amount of ... good.

"Without my LDS background," Leetham says, "I wouldn't be in music, to be honest. I took voice lessons and sang choir, all my music teachers were LDS. My family wasn't very wealthy, so we took whatever we could get, and my teachers taught me for free or at a very-discounted rate. I'm very grateful for my experiences with those teachers."

That said, "I come from a family of converts to LDS, so we don't have a long lineage in the church. My parents were always a little loose with the rules, and I didn't really have any crazy experiences in the LDS church, except for the trauma of being gay within it. I felt trapped for most of my life."

This week, Leetham, with a backing band, will be performing a couple of shows around town. On Thursday, June 2, there'll be a JRC Pride Kickoff Extravaganza at Kilby Court (741 Kilby Court), an all-ages show including a host of acts, including: Sarah Prollem, Icky Rogers, The Pho3nix Child, Corbin Bronson, Courtney Lane, Ellissdee, Agony Ray, Ben D. Dickson, Mari Cona, Jenna Talia and Whorechata. Doors open at 6:30 and tickets are $15.

The next day, on Friday, June 3, Leetham and company will be among the headliners for a Youth Pride event at Washington Square Park, with an audience that'll be primarily 13-to-20-year-olds. (Ticketing varies, with info at utahpridecenter.org.)

Though usually playing a couple shows a month "just to be relevant and push new music, testing it with different audiences," Leetham adds that this pair of shows is a bit more important, more meaningful.

"I just love celebrating Pride," Leetham says. "That I get to come out to these events and celebrate with my music is a big honor. That the Utah Pride Center booked me for Pride ... well, I'm so excited for that youth show, specifically. I'll be surrounded by very impressionable minds, and I want to share my story and show them what they can do if they stick to their guns, stay true to themselves."

"Patience" can be found at Spotify, among other platforms. For performance dates, video and music links and other sundries, visit linktr.ee/Leetham.