Lu Kala

Lusamba Vanessa Kalala (born July 21, 1995), better known by her stage name Lu Kala (stylized as LU KALA), is a Congolese-Canadian singer. She is best known for her guest appearance on American rapper Latto's 2023 single "Lottery", which entered the Billboard Hot 100 and Canadian Hot 100.

Career
Kala began her career with songwriting, as she is credited as a writer on Jennifer Hudson's track "Dangerous" from her 2014 studio album JHUD.

Kala performed at the Canadian Music Week in 2019 where she performed her debut single, "DCMO (Don't Count Me Out)". She also won the grand prize at Royal Bank of Canada's Emerging Musician Program, earning $10,000 worth of studio time among other prizes.

"DCMO (Don't Count Me Out)" was described as "powerful" by Complex. Kala's second single, "Body Knew", was praised by Unheard Gems and Sidedoor. Her third single, "Want You" also received good reviews from critics. Sidedoor described her 2020 single "No Smoke" as "upbeat, catchy, and empowering".

In February 2023, Latto released "Lottery" which featured Kala, marking Kala’s first entry on the Billboard Hot 100 and Billboard Canadian Hot 100. On March 1, Latto and Kala performed the song at the 2023 Billboard Women in Music event. In April, her 2022 single “Pretty Girl Era” entered the Billboard Canadian Hot 100, marking her first solo entry on the chart. On September 24, 2023, Kala received the Emerging Artist Award at the Legacy Awards. On December 10, she performed at TikTok's inaugural In the Mix festival in Mesa, Arizona.

Kala was nominated for two Juno Awards in 2024, and she performed at the opening night of the show. In March, Kala received two No. 1 Song Awards from SOCAN for her singles "Hotter Now" and "Nothing but Love". Following this, “Hotter Now” became her highest peaking song on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100. In April, it was revealed that Kala had written a song with Katy Perry. On July 4, Kala won the Billboard Canada Women In Music Rising Star Award. In the same month, her single “Who’s Gonna” the entered Canadian Contemporary hit radio chart.

Extended plays

 * Worthy (2020)