Who is Lido Pimienta, you ask? Well, she sees herself as many roles. “I am a young mother, visual artist, and singer who seeks to inspire others to work collectively,” she said in an email from her tour in Mexico. The young musician hails originally from Columbia but is opportunely ours, splitting her time between living in London and studying in Toronto.

In recent months, Lido has exploded onto the scene like a sudden spark of light. Having just released her first EP, Color, back in the spring, accompanied by a music video filmed at the Ontario College of Art and Design, she's been setting stages across Ontario on fire with her music and her energy - like the 2010 Jack Richardson Music Awards here in London back in April.

When asked about the most awe-inspiring concert she's attended, she recounts the time she witnessed Sexteto Tabala, from San Basilio de Palenque. “It was great because the men singing and playing were very old, but their energy and endurance was incredible,” she says, hinting at unspoken influence to her own performance style. “The drums and the singing ... very inspiring to me as a young performer. Well, I am still young, but back then I was only 16.”

“You might have to travel to my country and experience raw music and drums and strong vocals singing about land and love to understand where I am coming from.”

Though outside of music, she describes herself as simply a mom who cleans a lot. She draws inspiration from all aspects in life - people, love, family and friends, even more difficult, controversial fare like racial attacks and queer movements. Her day-to-day life is a balance of school, responsibilities at home shared with her husband and two-year-old son, and finding the music in every thing, everywhere she goes.

“When creating the songs I start with the bass, the bass is the core of it all, the heart. Everything else falls into place afterwards,” she told GopherIllustrated.org back in February. “I sing in Spanish, sometimes in English but the language is not really an obstacle, because the songs are intense, soul and heart full, I put all those ingredients together and bake a song that tastes like love.”

Like any other student, Lido is making the most of her summer, and has big plans for the near future; like wrapping up the Mexico tour, and returning to Canada to begin performing dates in Ontario, including our own Strawberry Social here at Fanshawe.

After the tour, she plans to finish her debut LP, which will be released (even on vinyl) by Ku De Ta Music, a label based in Los Angeles.

“Summer is for creating and preparing myself for better and bigger things,” she says.

Her music is unique and presents a challenge to describe — the closest comparison is that it sounds something like a Spanish Bjork — so allow me to invite you to our Strawberry Social on Wednesday, June 9. Come out into the SUB Courtyard from 11:30 a.m. — 1:00 p.m. to enjoy Lido's brilliant music, along with good food and friends.

And if you'd like to hear Lido's music in the meantime, be sure to visit her profiles on Myspace (myspace.com/lidopimienta) and Soundcloud (soundcloud.com/lido-pimienta) to hear Color and some of the work she's done with other local artists.