Image credit: WUNDER BETA photographed by James Tye.

Brazil-born, London-made and endlessly evolving, Beta Lucca, aka WUNDER BETA arrives at this moment with Live In The Now, the luminous closing single from her debut EP Love You To Beats. It’s a track shaped by loss, presence and the radical act of paying attention, echoing the same constellations that have guided her through an extraordinary life: from computer scientist in Rio to BAFTA-winning games founder, to a multidisciplinary artist building her own instrument, the MOrgana. Throughout her journey, wonder, play and reinvention have been her compass.

Now, through electro-bossa soundscapes and multi-sensory performance, she invites us to feel more deeply, live more boldly, and reconnect with what makes us alive. And London, with its intimate venues, nocturnal spark and boundary-pushing communities, continues to be the city where she experiments, gathers and expands.

You began as a computer scientist in Rio and became a BAFTA-winning games founder in London before finding your way to music. Looking back, can you trace the thread that connects those worlds – technology, play, and now sound – into one creative continuum?

Play and wonder. Whether I was coding, building games, or now making music and crafting multisensory performances, it’s all the same impulse: create worlds people can feel something in. Technology gave me tools. Games taught me immersiveness. Music lets me feel it all out loud. I feel they’re not separate worlds, but building blocks that led me to this chapter.

It reminds me of what Steve Jobs said “you can’t connect the dots looking forward, only backward.” Whether you love or hate him, he was right about that.

Your story celebrates reinvention – a reminder that we can start again, again. What have you learned about transformation, and what helps you shed an old skin and step into a new one without fear or apology?

I’ve learned that reinvention isn’t about becoming someone new. It’s more like sculpting. You remove layers of yourself that no longer fit. Then you give yourself permission to take risks, and to fly into the unknown with your heart and soul, trusting the net will appear and you won’t crash on the rocks. Besides, I love being a beginner again, to be clumsy, to learn as I go, to not have all the answers.

Mind you, the fear never leaves, but wonder takes over. You allow yourself to feel like an imaginative kid again, in a world where everything is possible.

Image credit: WUNDER BETA photographed by James Tye.

What moment or feeling sparked the creation of this musical persona? Did WUNDER BETA arrive like an alter-ego, or as a truer version of yourself finally ready to emerge?

It felt like coming home. An emergence of that beautiful part of us we usually bury under achievements, accolades and expectations. I feel that WUNDER BETA had been whispering for years and she finally got a mic. It showed up the moment I let myself create without a business plan.

Coming up with the name was a long journey though. At some point I had a list of about 20 names. But then gravitated to WUNDER BETA and went with it. Different from “wonder” in English, which is about awe and admiration, “wunder” in German is bigger than that, it’s more like a miracle, a highly unexpected event. And when we say something is in “Beta”, it means it’s still evolving, not ready. WUNDER BETA is about realising not only me, but all humans are in this miraculous journey of becoming. It’s like a call for all of us to embrace it.

Image credit: WUNDER BETA photographed by James Tye.

Your debut EP feels both nostalgic and futuristic – Bossa Nova meeting electronica. What were you chasing sonically and emotionally while making it? And how did the MOrgana, your self-built instrument, shape the sound?

When I was in the studio with my producer Paul Stanborough, we spoke a lot about feelings. That’s my sonic language. I wanted to make music that makes you feel like flying, floating. My imagery was the sunset, looking up and into the horizon, feeling that awe of a vast beach that makes you feel deeply connected.

There’s a juxtaposition in my lyrics though. I touch on our deepest fears and desires to be loved, seen and falling in love with someone, a moment, your life.

I grew up listening to Bossa Nova and the Brazilian artists my parents used to play at home, and then going to underground electronic music clubs to dance until 6am. Those two rhythms are in my bones.

MOrgana was a magical accident. I’d need a whole other page to explain her. In short: she glitches, projects light, lets me play differently and discover unusual chord progressions. On stage, she makes the music embodied and adds an unexpected visual layer.

Image credit: WUNDER BETA photographed by James Tye.

You’ve said this song came after losing someone unexpectedly, a reminder to seize the present. How has that experience reshaped your daily life or creative practice? Do you find it easier – or harder – to “live in the now” as an artist?

Losing someone made every moment feel urgent, sacred, fragile, but also braver and appreciative. Life on Earth has existed for billions of years. We get 80-100 if we’re lucky. Such a short ride, gone in a flash. Why is that most of the time we’re not living to its fullest?

Also, “now” is slippery, as an artist, as a human. We’re bombarded with distractions, living mostly in our heads, feeling anxious. For artists it’s a notch worse, as we have to be “on” on social media 24/7 to cut through the noise and connect with new fans.

Some days it’s easier to be in the now. Some days it escapes me completely. But music pulls me back – there’s no way to write or perform fully if I’m not present, feeling everything through my body. There’s no real human connection without presence.

From Brazil to London to Japan – three cultures with deep rhythm, design and spirituality. What unifying forces between them speak most strongly to you, and how do they filter into your music or worldview?

How they gather. In Brazil, music is collective. Everyone’s in the “roda”, clapping, hugging, singing and dancing together. In London, it’s the pub, the club, the intimate gig where strangers become family and buy rounds for each other. In Japan, it’s quiet reverence and radical presence, sharing a moment of beauty in a busy city or honoring a ritual without needing to fill the silence. All three taught me that music isn’t just sound. It can be multisensory when we want it to be. Ultimately, it’s how we find and connect with each other.

Image credit: WUNDER BETA photographed by James Tye.

London has clearly played a transformative role in your life. Which venues or communities inspire you most right now – where do you feel that spark of wonder? Could you name three examples (that our readers can attend or join)?

I’m terrible at planning gigs. I usually stumble upon great shows last minute. Right now I’m inspired by places where art feels alive and human:

The Jazz Café (Camden): I’ve seen incredible Brazilian artists there like Rubel, ÀVUÀ and Céu. It’s 450 capacity with excellent sound, but still feels intimate. I always watch from the front row.

Spiritland (King’s Cross): Audiophile heaven. Great DJs playing vinyl you can’t even Shazam – you have to go ask what they just played. Understated vibes, delicious drinks.

HERE at Outernet (Central London): I saw Halina Rice there recently and was blown away. The impeccable sound system paired with state-of-the-art lights and visuals that move with the music makes a one-person show feel truly immersive.

During Summer I love local festivals like All Points East at Victoria Park or On The Beach in Brighton. I crave that layer of nature connection a show can bring. In the colder months, I’m hunting for venues that give me multisensory experiences indoors.

If you could project a wish onto the skyline of your future – personal, creative, or planetary – what would it say?

“Wonder. Play. Stay close to what makes you feel alive.”

Find WUNDER BETA at wunderbeta.com

New Single, ‘Live In The Now’ – out now.

From the debut EP Love You To Beats.

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