East Meadow musician drops new ‘glam pop’

Music has always been a part of Stephanie Lombardo’s life, and her journey in the music world has evolved over the past decade, leading up to the release of her song “Closer” last month.

The East Meadow native started learning to play piano around the age of 3, and that she began performing in local shows for live audiences at the age of 14, with her first performance ever taking place at Eisenhower Park’s Harry Chapin Theatre.

“I’ve been pursuing music ever since,” she said. “I went to school for film production and business, so not music. However, music has always been there. It’s like my second career.”

Lombardo, now 34, graduated from East Meadow High School in 2006 and attended Nassau Community College, where she studied media. She later earned a bachelor’s degree in film studies and production from Hofstra University, and a master’s in business administration from Long Island University, which at the time was still known as C.W. Post.

“Closer” is a collaborative piece that she took on with the electronic dance music artist known as Korvez. Back in 2010, she’d never written music or thought about pursuing anything original.

“I always wanted to write music, but I never thought I could start, or I’d have writer’s block the whole time,” she said. “But in 2010, I was just around a lot of new and inspiring music, and I started writing my own stuff and my own material.”

The first song she wrote, “Get Out of Bed” was released a decade ago. Lombardo described it as a ballad and love song.

“It took me, like, a year to finish it,” she recounted. “I put the pen down, and then I picked it up a few months later and finished it.”

When she decided to record the song, with the help of a friend who had a home recording studio, she also decided to produce a music video, and put it on YouTube.

“I got, like, over 10,000 hits pretty quickly, and got some radio airplay as well,” Lombardo said. “And I was, like, OK — I should definitely continue with this. I started writing more and more material, more songs, more dance stuff.”

Lombardo labeled her genre as “glam pop.”

“I like to describe it as rock ’n’ roll and a little bit of pop-dance,” she said, “but all glam, you know, it has like a flair for glam the whole time.”

Lombardo works as a full-time a video producer, and said her music endeavors throughout the years have allowed her to live a corporate life and a rock-and-roll life. Her new song, “Closer,” she said, took some time to make.

At Nassau Community’s College’s radio station, WHPC 90.3 FM, Lombardo hosts a show on the weekends called Party MC. Her work at the station has helped introduce her to a lot of new songs and artists throughout the years, including her “Closer” collaborator, Korvez.

“Years ago, there was a mix tape that was sent to me, and it was by him,” she said. “He had different artists on there, and I recognized one of the singers because I had worked with her before, actually. I loved the track and I’m, like, let me try and get in touch with this guy and just see what happens.

“That’s usually my philosophy with most things that I approach in life,” Lombardo added. “Like, just see what happens and let me try it out, because if it gives you energy and you enjoy it, that’s what you should be doing.”

Lombardo said she initially reached out to Korvez two years ago, and though it took some time to get things moving with their song, the completed piece is something she’s proud of. Korvez sent her an instrumental track and some ideas, and Lombardo wrote the lyrics.

“That’s pretty much what happened with ‘Closer,’” she explained. “He gave me a theme of what he wanted and then I wrote some things, and then he wrote some lyrics and, and then I came up with the name ‘Closer,’ because it was kind of like a seductive dance (song). I ended up recording it in his home studio. I loved it — I believe in the tracks so much. And that’s when I said this has to have a music video to it.”

Her background in video production has helped her tremendously in music, Lombardo said, especially with her music videos.

“Professionally, I started as a video editor,” she said. “So editing is the last part of the production phase, and that’s where everything comes to life. When I’m thinking of a new project idea, I’m already putting the pieces together on how I want it to flow and look, and then working backwards from there. So I’ve definitely tapped into all of those skill sets when producing a music video.”

The official music video for “Closer,” along with other work by Lombardo, can be found on her YouTube Channel, YouTube.com/@StephanieLombardoOfficial.

Moving forward, Lombardo intends to continue pursuing different avenues in music. Recently, she scored an independent film, a process she said was “so much fun,” and something she’d greatly enjoy doing in the future.

Lombardo still performs locally at venues on Long Island, and for the most up-to-date information on her career and new music, visit StephanieLombardo.com, or her Instagram, @StephanieLombardoOfficial.