Long Beard

Leslie Bear (born 23 October 1990), professionally known as Long Beard is an Asian-American^[1] musician from East Brunswick, New Jersey. She became a performing artist after joining the music scene in New Brunswick.

Bear released her debut studio album, Sleepwalker in 2015. She subsequently performed the bass guitar for the band Japanese Breakfast in 2017. Her second studio album Means to Me was released in 2019.

Leslie Bear was born on 23 October 1990 and was raised in East Brunswick, New Jersey.^[2] Bear listened to '90s Cantopop and Mandopop musicians such as Faye Wong growing up.^[3] During her childhood, she would sing along to songs and recreate the melodies on a keyboard before her mother offered to hire a piano tutor for her.^[4] At the age of fifteen, she began playing guitar after a friend let her borrow their Squier Stratocaster and later began learning the instrument after buying her own Ibanez guitar.^[5] Bear first became interested in being a musician after she found the musical scene in the neighboring city of New Brunswick to be supportive of local acts. During this time, she began using the moniker Long Beard, stating it came from the name of a fictional wizard she created.^[6] She graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in computer science and temporarily worked as a software developer before deciding to pursue music as a full-time career.^[2]

In 2014, Bear released her debut extended play, Holy Crow. She released the EP due to a desire to put herself "'out there.'"^[3]