Quilla — the moniker of Montreal-born Anna Luisa Daigneault— is an electronic music producer, vocalist, songwriter, and educator based in Greensboro, North Carolina. She is known for her piano riffs, hypnotizing beats, and vocal loop compositions, as well as for teaching music production workshops for women and femmes. She currently composes scores for podcasts and films. She was a featured vocalist on hit dance tracks released by Universal, Revealed Recordings, Armada, Vicious, and Ministry of Sound.
Quilla’s first indie pop album Beautiful Hybrid (Ritual Fire Records, 2014) 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 techno label Visionquest Music and garnered interest in the international dance music community.
As a featured vocalist, Quilla has 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 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 2016, Quilla shifted away from being a featured EDM vocalist and began producing electronic material that is influenced by house music, downtempo pop, folk and world music. She produced an acclaimed release entitled “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 her label, Ritual Fire Records, and received positive reviews. She became a mother that year, which shaped her creativity in new, visceral ways. In 2018, she produced Johanna Breed’s debut future-soul album, “Is It Too Late?” which was also released on Quilla’s label.
In 2020, Quilla released her third album, “The Handbook of Vivid Moments” 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 score for WUNC’s Creep podcast, a fascinating and innovative show about invasive species and the environment. She is currently working on her fourth studio album.