LACHSA alumni are everywhere you turn and prove that LACHSA is worth every investment. LACHSA is a creative home, a fertile, innovative training ground for those who were born to create throughout LA County. Jordan Patterson ’20, the soulful singer-songwriter captivating audiences with her raw emotional depth and genre-blending sound, traces her artistic roots to LACHSA. Her time there as a theater major laid the foundation for a creative journey that now spans music, poetry, and performance. Her exposure to different art forms while at LACHSA was inspiring and expanded her creative process, however, she’s been writing songs since she was a child, calling them “poems that want to move.”  

Born in North Carolina and raised in Los Angeles, The early impulse toward storytelling found fertile ground at LACHSA, where she immersed herself in theater. But it wasn’t just acting that shaped her—LACHSA’s interdisciplinary environment exposed her to new forms of artistry, expanding her creative vocabulary and igniting a passion for music that would later define her career.

Now 23, Patterson is known for her cathartic blend of blues, alternative soul, and poetic lyricism. Her music invites listeners into a world of vulnerability and imagination, often described as “perfectly and imperfectly human.” Tracks like “Your Love Is Killing Me” and “Life of Misery” showcase her ability to channel personal experience into haunting melodies and evocative lyrics.

For Patterson, LACHSA was more than a school—it was a launchpad. The exposure to diverse artistic practices helped her develop a multidimensional approach to storytelling, one that continues to evolve with each performance and release.

Patterson guest DJing on 88.5, the SoCal Sound, radio station.

She recently had the opportunity to guest DJ on one of LA’s local public radio stations, 88.5 the SoCal Sound. During her set she spun an eclectic mix including Stevie Wonder, Feist, and Corinne Bailey Rae interspersed with songs from her new album, Hermit.” You can hear her guest DJ set here.

With the release of her new album, recent sold-out shows in Los Angeles, and a growing discography, Patterson is carving out a space that’s uniquely hers. She is a new authentic voice on the music scene, and her LACHSA roots remain a vital part of her narrative—a reminder that great art often begins in places that encourage exploration, risk, and emotional truth.

Whether on stage or in the studio, Jordan Patterson carries the spirit of LACHSA with her: bold, expressive, and endlessly curious. You can check our her music here on bandcamp.