Vocalist, Songwriter, Producer

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: Digital, I love the flexibility.

Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A: Don't be afraid to say you don't like something!! The best direction you could give me is what you *don't* want/like to hear on your track. While part of my role is to contribute ideas, the biggest part is being attuned to your sound/vision and contributing in a way that feels authentic to your artistry, so if I add something that doesn't feel right - for any reason - it's an opportunity to explore/experiment and see what does!

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: You don't need to re-record every element for the final track. If it sounds good, keep it in! I find this particularly with guitar parts, if the demo version really captures the moment/that feeling, you'll probably lose that magic by re-recording it and trying to get the 'perfect' take. I'm a big fan of keeping some of those demo elements in!

Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.

A: Adding backing vocals to a client's track. It can often be one or two sections of a song (e.g. second verse and chorus, oohs/ahhs underneath an instrumental section, or lyrical BVs in a chorus), rather than adding my vocals throughout. Clients tend to come to me with a set direction already in mind with what they would like me to add, but I'm also comfortable with no pre-discussed direction (if this is the case, I will add what feels natural to me and send a demo back to you for approval).

Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?

A: Backing vocals are just more layers to a song. YES, but I believe our voice is one of the most versatile, complex, nuanced instruments that can cover such a wide spectrum of sounds and emotions. Backing vocals can add so much warmth, texture, depth, dynamic variation and totally change the emotion and colour with harmony choices. To me, it's one of the most beautiful, rewarding and underrated crafts of songwriting/production.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: - How do you want the listener to feel when they hear this song/your music? - What do you NOT want it to sound like? Is there anything you don't want? Do you have any references? - What's the song about? Do you have any lyrics/key moments that stand out to you? - Do you have any lyric topics/ideas that you'd like to focus on? (Topline/Songwriting)

Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?

A: I was part of a short-lived, indie band (Circle Time) when I was a teen, played in local pubs and open mic nights from the age of 16 and became a session vocalist for a rock opera (Tyneside Rain), which got the attention of BBC Introducing presenters in the North East. I taught myself piano, guitar, how to use a 16-track recorder and Logic Pro, and recorded a collection of my own songs at home, which became my debut album 'Golden Hour' in 2019. From there, I was approached by management and we've worked together since. Across my career, I've been awarded PRS Foundation's 'Women Make Music' and 'Open Fund', Help Musicians' 'Do It Differently' and Sentric Academy Fund to support the releases of my own music, received extended support from The Glasshouse International Centre for Music, including a residency in 2023, attended 'Culture of Belonging' (a course for womxn producers/creatives in music, led by Catherine Anne Davies/The Anchoress and Dr Isobel Anderson) at Battery Studios in London, and spoken about my experiences as an artist at industry conventions such as Manchester Unconvention, North East Music Industry Meet Up (NEMIMU) and Twisterella (Un)Conference. My career excelled throughout lockdown with releases recorded and produced remotely with Tim Bran (Aurora, Birdy, London Grammar, Rae Morris) over Zoom. Since then, I've been carving my name as a producer, songwriter, session vocalist and topliner, in collaboration with other artists. This year (2024), I signed a publishing deal with Wipe Out Music Publishing, released my self-produced, second album 'Safe Hands', which landed in the Official UK Charts, and I continue to work on new releases for my artist project and topline alias respectively.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Intuitive, progressive, considered.

Q: What type of music do you usually work on?

A: Indie folk, chamber pop, electro pop (for songwriting, additional vocals and production) and EDM, trance and house (for topline writing/vocals).

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Knowing when to stop adding elements to a track; I feel like I've got a pretty good intuition for finding that balance between adding elements and textures that compliment the mood and feel, to knowing when it begins to distract from the message, key moments and vocal performance/lyrics. I tend to keep touches minimal and gradually build, instead of throwing lots of ideas at a project and seeing what sticks. Vocally, tailoring my voice to the nuances of the lead (so it sits comfortably behind) and being able to bring different vocal delivery styles to a track, depending on the mood, genre, lyrics, what you're looking for etc.