News and Press


Quilla’s solo events

“Bow To The Rebel Queen” Music Video
Soundtrack Series
Airing July 1-31, 2024, before all film screenings
at a/perture Cinema
311 W 4th St, Winston-Salem, NC 27101

GreenHill’s First Friday Performance with Quilla
Fri Aug 2nd 6:00pm – 9:00pm
Free to the public; all ages
GreenHill Center for North Carolina Art
200 N Davie St, Greensboro, NC 27401, USA
Event link

Note: 100% of Quilla’s album sales at upcoming events will benefit a Palestinian family seeking to escape the genocide in Gaza. GoFundMe.




Quilla’s shows with her band, THE QUEEN BEES

City Sunsets Concert Series
Sat. Aug 3rd 2024, 7-9pm
Free to the public; all ages
Center City Park
200 N Elm St, Greensboro, NC 27401
Presented by Downtown Greensboro Parks in collaboration with the North Carolina Folk Festival, Casa Azul and Lawn Service

  • Thurs Aug 29th – Winston-Salem, NC. Details to come.
  • Fri Sept 6th – Greensboro, NC. Details to come.

RECENT PROJECTS

Quilla wrote, produced and directed an original musical entitled ANCESTRAL. With choreography by LeDarius Parker, and an amazing cast and crew of local artists from North Carolina, the production premiered at the Stephen D. Hyers Theatre in Greensboro in April 2023, with support from Creative Greensboro and the North Carolina Arts Council. Here is the opening song and scene “Bloodlines”, as well as “You Belong Here” – both choreographed by Parker.



STUDIO ALBUM
Quilla’s third studio album, The Handbook of Vivid Moments (Ritual Fire Records, 2020), beautifully weaves elements of her Latinx heritage with dancefloor beats. Uplifting and contemplative, the album explores themes such as climate change, transformation and women’s empowerment.

This album is available on all streaming platforms and as a physical CD. The album is available on all platforms here: https://orcd.co/quilla_handbook

Buy | Stream here
Quilla’s album was written and produced in her home studio in Greensboro, North Carolina. It was created with support from the North Carolina Arts Council and the partnering arts councils of the Regional Artist Project Grant Program (2020). Their support is gratefully acknowledged. The printing of physical albums was also made possible by an Artist Support Grant from ArtsGreensboro and the NC Arts Council in 2021.

ALBUM CREDITS
Music, lyrics, electronic production and mixing by Quilla
Vocal production by Quilla and Mike Garrigan
Violin on Track 5 by Kate Musselwhite Tobey
Mastering by Holger Lagerfeldt
Cover art by Marty O’Connor

ALBUM REVIEWS
“Mixing elements of heritage and genre in tune with body and space, The Handbook of Vivid Moments, the third record from Greensboro electro-artist, Quilla— the artistic persona from Montreal-born Anna Luisa Daigneault— serves as a vessel for expression and empowerment in a time of dystopia, laid amongst dance floor beats.” YES!Weekly

“The Greensboro musician and producer emphasizes biological cycles, family relationships and women’s liberation in her music. And those themes stand out… [in] her most recent album, The Handbook of Vivid Moments. While the album features multilingual lyrics and ranges from dancehall beats to ethereal soundscapes, the electro-vocal tracks remain extraordinarily accessible. The welcoming groove is a product of Quilla’s thorough checks on audio quality.” The State of Things (WUNC)



INTERVIEWS

Quilla is a member of the Queen Bees, a trio who recently graced the cover of Triad City Beat (Nov 30, 2023)

A triforce: Kate Musselwhite Tobey, Molly McGinn and Anna Luisa Daigneault are the Queen Bees – Triad City Beat interview (November 2023)
Buzzin’ About the Queen Bees – Yes!Weekly interview (October 2023)
33 Questions with Quilla – Creative Greensboro interview (April 2023)
In Residency at the Hyers: Quilla & LeDarius Parker interview (April 2023)
Digging into the sounds of CREEP with Quilla – WUNC interview (Oct 2022)
Anywhere But Here GSO – Podcast interview (June 2022)
UNCSA Changemakers (January 2022)
Authority Magazine (April 2021)
The State of Things (WUNC Radio, January 2021)
Pathways: Art & Technology (October 2020)
Yes!Weekly (September 2020)
Off the Beat podcast with Dr. Wally Wallace (Ep. 6, Dec. 2018)
Artists at Work Podcast (Artstitution, November 2018)
Gate City Live Podcast (October 2018)


RELEASES & PUBLICATIONS

BOOK LAUNCH! Quilla is featured as the letter “Q” in this new book published by GIA Publications. Order today. Read more on Quilla’s blog post.


BOW THE REBEL QUEEN | Music video out now! Choreographed by LeDarius Parker and directed by Alexei Mejouev, this video was filmed in Greensboro in 2021 with Triad-based multimedia artists.


BIT ROSIE | Quilla was featured in an episode of a documentary series that explores the home studios and creative processes of women and gender non-conforming music producers around the globe. Bit Rosie is produced, directed and edited by multimedia artist Adele Fournet


BEANS BEANS BEANS | Quilla’s music video for her viral track “Beans Beans Beans” premiered on PBS Kids NC & Rootle in July 2021! Read more.
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RAVENS AND THE WRENS | Out now! Quilla co-produced a dreamy electronic folk track written by one of her favorite songwriters and collaborators, Molly McGinn. Read more about this production. 

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SAGITTARIUS

Music video directed and produced by s/n (Jennida Chase & Hassan Pitts), in conjunction with the Media Studies Department at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. The track is available for streaming everywhere. Sagittarius was officially featured at multiple film festivals in in 2019 and 2020. See blog post for the full list of festivals.

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TV APPEARANCE | Quilla was on UNC-TV / PBS (Public Media North Carolina) on May 2nd, 2019, during “MUSE: The Arts Show” which also included segments on A/V Geeks and Art-o-Mat. View full credits here.

About


ABOUT QUILLA

Quilla — the moniker of Montreal-born Anna Luisa Daigneault— is an electronic music producer, vocalist, songwriter, and educator. She is known for her songwriting, piano riffs, hypnotizing beats, and vocal loop compositions, as well as for teaching music production workshops. She was a featured vocalist on hit dance tracks released by Universal, Revealed Recordings, Armada, Vicious, and Ministry of Sound. She currently composes theme songs and scores for podcasts and films, and frequently collaborates with other artists. Her full list of collaborations are described here

Photo by Ashley Johnson. https://hiaj.co/

BACKGROUND
Quilla’s first indie pop album
Beautiful Hybrid (Ritual Fire Records, 2014) contained a range of musical influences and styles. It was met with critical acclaim and was featured on the iTunes US ‘Ahead of the Curve’ section. A series of limited-edition Beautiful Hybrid Remix Project vinyls were released by electronic label Visionquest and garnered interest in the international dance and techno music community.

As a featured vocalist, Quilla has penned and released dance hits with over a dozen producers on the world’s top dance labels, including Revealed Recordings, Armada Music, Vicious Recordings, Ministry of Sound, Visionquest Music, Neon Records, and Musical Freedom.

Quilla wrote and performed the lyrics for “Close To Me” by Tiësto, Sultan + Ned Shepard which appeared on Tiësto’s hit album, A Town Called Paradise (Universal Music, 2014). The song was the follow-up to the international radio hit “Walls” by Sultan + Ned Shepard (feat. Quilla), which appeared on Tiësto’s compilation Club Life: Volume 2 (2012) and was later re-released by his label AFTR:HRS as “Walls (Deeper Shades Mix)” in 2017.

Other celebrated EDM tracks written and sung by Quilla include “Universe” by Australian duo Feenixpawl, as well as “Secret” which became a classic track for Argentinian trance duo Heatbeat and appeared on their hugely successful album Global Monster. The song was regularly featured on Armin van Buuren’s radio show, A State of Trance. She also penned the lyrics for the dance anthem “Unless We Forget” by German duo Jewelz & Sparks, which rose to #4 on Beatport’s Progressive House Chart in 2014.

In 2016, Quilla shifted away from being an EDM vocalist and learned music production skills, in an effort to become her own producer and diversify her skillset. She began producing electronic material that is influenced by house music, downtempo pop, folk and world music. She produced the folktronica anthem “Wild and Kind” in collaboration with Americana artist Molly McGinn, and the duo toured cities in North Carolina promoting the track.

Quilla’s second electronic indie pop album “You Got It” was released in 2017 on Ritual Fire Records, and received positive reviews. She became a mother that year, which shaped her creativity in new, visceral ways, constraining her time but also stirring her heartstrings and curiosity to keep making music. In 2018, she produced Johanna Breed’s debut future-soul album, Is It Too Late? which was also released on Quilla’s label.

Quilla released her third album The Handbook of Vivid Moments in 2021, with the support of two grants from the North Carolina Arts Council. She wrote the musical score for WUNC’s Embodied radio show and podcast, an award-winning series about sex, health and taboos. In 2021, she wrote the theme and score for WUNC’s Creep podcast, a fascinating and innovative show about invasive species and the environment.

In 2023, she wrote, produced and directed a musical entitled ANCESTRAL. Later that year, she formed an electronic folk trio named The Queen Bees, whose debut performance was at the North Carolina Folk Festival. She also wrote the theme song for WUNC’s daily news show, Due South. Quilla is currently writing the score for a PBS documentary entitled “The Motherlode” (directed by Jennida Chase) which is about motherhood and the arts.

Photo by Steel String Photography


SELECTED MUSICAL PERFORMANCES (2016-2022)

  • 2022. Quilla was a featured performer at the Women’s History Month event organized by North Carolina African Services Coalition at the Greensboro Historical Museum.
  • 2021. DJ and Curator of music and dance performances at Elsewhere’s Annual Extravaganza in downtown Greensboro, NC.
  • 2021. Quilla headlined at Fun Fourth in Downtown Greensboro.
  • 2021. Headliner at “Sunset Series” – Center City Park, Greensboro.
  • 2020. Quilla & Molly McGinn: “Ghostlight Series Concert” at The Carolina Theatre. Greensboro, NC.
  • 2020. SoFar Sounds Greensboro “City Exchange” with Sofar Sounds Tel Aviv. Online.
  • 2020. Siembra NC’s “Sábado Gigante” Telethon to Benefit Undocumented Migrant Families. Online.
  • 2019. Molly McGinn & Quilla at #RepresentNC Music Series at Joymongers. Greensboro, NC.
  • 2019. 11th Annual Extravaganza at Elsewhere Museum.
  • 2019. La Migración es Hermosa: A Benefit for the Border. Motorco Music Hall, Durham, NC.
  • 2019. Still The Days Music Festival. Gibb’s Hundred, Greensboro, NC.
  • 2019. Ships in the Night, Quilla and Tide Eyes. Monstercade, Winston-Salem, NC.
  • 2019. Molly McGinn & Quilla open for Bernie Sanders at Earth Day.
  • 2019. SoFar Sounds: International Women’s Day Concert. Greensboro.
  • 2019. The Wake Forest Listening Room. Magnolia Roots Lounge, Wake Forest, NC.
  • 2018. Mill Day Festival. Revolution Mill, Greensboro NC.
  • 2018. Castella: The Enchanted Music Festival. Castle McCulloch, Jamestown, NC.
  • 2018. Greensboro Strong Community Concert. LeBauer Park, Greensboro NC.
  • 2018. The Richmond Forum: Quilla opens for Peter Diamandis. Altria Theater, Richmond, VA.
  • 2017. Quilla’s Album Launch. The Crown at The Carolina Theatre, Greensboro NC.
  • 2017. Psychic Revolution Art & Music Festival. Winston-Salem, NC.
  • 2016. Mykki Blanco & Quilla at Duke Coffeehouse. Duke University, Durham, NC.

SELECTED PRESENTATIONS

  • 2021. Songwriting Workshop Facilitator, PEN America Piedmont Chapter’s “Prompt Party” at Scuppernong Books, Greensboro, NC.
  • 2021. Guest speaker, Youth Leadership Conference, NCCJ of the Piedmont Triad. Greensboro, NC.
  • 2021. Guest moderator, “Thirty-Two Words for Field.” Irish Arts Center, New York, NY (Online).
  • 2020. Featured writer, “Dear 2020.” The Ink Project & PEN America Piedmont Region (Online).
  • 2020. Panelist, “Writers Read.” Scuppernong Books & PEN America Piedmont Region. Greensboro, NC.
  • 2020. Featured artist, “Pathways: Art & Technology // Digital Exploration & Empowerment.” International Contemporary Ensemble, Bespoken. New York, NY (Online).
  • 2020. Featured artist, “Bit Rosie Presents: Quilla In The Studio.” New York, NY (Online).   
  • 2019. Featured musical performer, “Muse: The Arts Show” on UNC-TV. Chapel-Hill, NC.
  • 2018-2019. Guest lecturer, “Music Entrepreneurship.” University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Read more about Quilla on Wikipedia. 

Blog


The Queen Bees’ debut EP “Live at The Flat Iron” is out now!

The debut EP by The Queen Bees, is out now on Spotify and all streaming platforms. We are super thankful to everyone involved in the production of our first record. It takes a village. Big ups to musicians Josh Coe, Cliff Greeson, Izzy Hayes and Lee Atkinson, who appear on this live EP. Many thanks to engineer Jeremy Chereskin, …

Quilla’s Solo Show at GreenHill Center for NC Arts

Join me on Friday August 2nd for my last solo performance in Greensboro for the year! I’ll be singing songs from all my albums, and DJ-ing a dance party at the beautiful GreenHill gallery, surrounded by the new “Indelible” art exhibit. All ages; free to the public. 💃🏻 First Friday Performance with QuillaFriday August 2nd …

“Bow to the Rebel Queen” is screening at a/perture Cinema

My music video “Bow to the Rebel Queen” has been airing at a/perture cinema in Winston-Salem, NC, during the month of July, in the pre-roll before film screenings! I’m very thankful for everyone’s support of this video and all the kind msgs I received about it. Catch the video on the big screen until July …

Videos


Music


With Peruvian and French Canadian roots, Quilla draws from many musical genres and vocal traditions to create multi-faceted works. Fresh and empowering, her music feels dreamlike while also being uplifting. Quilla is known for her poetic lyrics, vocal loop compositions and hypnotizing beats. She explores a palette of moods ranging from silly and absurdist to sacred and profound. Her latest projects include the use of bioacoustic sounds. Short nature-inspired loops made in collaboration with visual artists such as Hoot Alex and Liz Clayton-Fuller and can be found on her Instagram page


Quilla’s top tracks on Spotify:


Quilla – Around Town Sessions (2021)


Quilla – “Beautiful Hybrid” (2014)

Quilla’s dance music collaborations on Soundcloud:

Contact


To contact Quilla, please send her a DM request on Instagram @quillamusic

A new contact form will be posted here soon!