Samantha deLuca

The Long Version

Samantha deLuca was born 3 days before Christmas 1995, with The Sound of Music playing on the TV in the delivery room. That movie choice would foreshadow the love for music that would be instilled in her by family, movie musicals and musical theatre throughout her childhood. Samantha has loved music and performing ever since and spent her early years performing and singing whenever possible. She had her first voice lesson at the age of 8 and performed in musicals and choirs from ages 10 to 21. As someone who was relentlessly bullied and treated like an outsider her entire life mostly because of her body, Samantha found solace in being on stage and sharing her voice and talents with an attentive audience. 

When it came time to make big decisions about what to pursue professionally, Samantha knew performing was the only thing she could ever see herself enjoying as a job. So in 2017, she drove cross country to live in Los Angeles, CA to attend music school with a focus on contemporary vocal performance. There, she learned vocal and performance techniques, contemporary songwriting, piano, music theory, and the basics of the music industry. However, attending a small school in a huge city was not without it's challenges. 

Like many others, Samantha has overcome harrowing experiences of sexual assault and abuse in romantic relationships, along with continually being ostracized for living in a body that the world (and especially LA) deems unacceptable. Unfortunately, this resulted in ongoing mental health struggles throughout young adulthood. Since difficult experiences like these are all too common, Samantha always hoped that she could somehow connect with other survivors and songwriting would be a perfect way to do that. 

Samantha first became seriously interested in songwriting at age 19, after her first experience with sexual assault, through listening to artists like Lana del Rey, Marina and the Diamonds, Halsey and Melanie Martinez (2015 sad girl tumblr icons). She saw how these talented female artists were able to take their pain surrounding similar issues and turn it into something beautiful and she wanted to do the same. Samantha began to write small sections of songs and poems and kept the interest in songwriting alive in the back of her mind while pursuing her education in vocal performance. And after attending music school, in 2019 Samantha started writing (and finally finishing) original songs with the help of her music education, mentors, and songwriter friends.

Learning to channel the damaged parts of herself and use language and music to express the darkest and most painful emotions has been a life-saving endeavor for Samantha. She writes from the heart and often sings about longing for love in a world that is more likely to show her mistreatment. 

Taking writing and sonic inspiration from other alternative pop and theatrical pop artists like Ashe, Sara Bareilles, and Olivia Rodrigo, along with other artists who write deep and personal stories through song, Samantha hopes that her music resonates with people who have similar life experiences as herself.

Samantha deLuca’s debut EP “Reluctantly Staying Alive,” entirely solo written and produced by Larry Shotter, was released everywhere in November 2025. The EP touches on continued loneliness and ostracization with eloquence and deals with dark subject matter with light-hearted wit and humor.

 You can find all of Samantha deLuca's music on Spotify, Apply Music, Youtube, and anywhere else you listen to music.