Laura Pergolizzi is an American singer and songwriter who performs under the stage name LP. Physically a cross between John Cooper Clarke and Patti Smith, vocally a blend of Gwen Stefani and Cyndi Lauper, LP alchemises that patchwork into something not currently available elsewhere. In front of a bursting full Forum, the New York singer-songwriter is a pop-rock alley cat, watchfully padding across the stage, offsetting her initial jitters with swagger. Her androgynous look has excited a good deal of “Is she a girl or a boy?” chatter. She identifies as female, but there is indeed something genderless about her. Only her voice, which is laced with Stefani-ish hiccups and Lauper-influenced power whoops, is conventionally girlish; otherwise, she’s a feline androgyne. She has released four albums and one EP. She has written songs for other artists including Cher, Rihanna, the Backstreet Boys, Leona Lewis and Christina Aguilera.
