Updated: Oct 19, 2021
This blog post is super exciting and I am happy to introduce Lily Williams! Lily is extremely talented and has blown me and many others away with her songwriting and her perfect tone of a voice. She has over 89,000 monthly listeners on Spotify as well as 1,500,000 streams on 'Lego Bricks' with Euan Allison. So talented is an understatement! She recently released a new single 'Happy For You' produced by Flatmate which passed 37,000 views on TikTok. I have invited her here to tell us her story from songwriting to any song recommendations to sing in the shower (important topic!) So here I am introducing Lily Williams...
Lily: Hi I’m Lily! I’m a singer-songwriter from London and I just turned 25! I’m currently living in LA pursing songwriting.
Lily: I’d been writing music for a long time (since I was like 10!) but decided to release music when I went to Berklee as I met some great producers there who wanted to help me record and release my songs!
Lily: Yay! I’m so glad you like it. I started writing it on guitar in my bedroom and then met up with my great friend Kristian “Flatmate”. He’s one of my favourite collaborators and he helped me write and record the song in his studio!
Lily: Singer-songwriter, indie pop! I love classical and jazz, so I think that combined with my love of folk and acoustic music all blends together into a chill pop kind of sound!
Lily: I definitely do this, and I did it whilst I was growing up all the time. As I now work as a songwriter I am writing songs every single day with different people so sometimes you kind of run out of your own personal experiences! When that happens I love drawing from other people’s stories or something I’ve been loving recently is writing from TV shows or Pinterest boards! There is so much inspiring stuff out there :)
Lily has been gaining views on TikTok. She usually posts content relating to music, this showcases her songwriting, voice and just pure talent! This particular TikTok is her singing about the differences between London and LA, it feels bittersweet but really shows off her voice and songwriting in a 60 second clip.
'Even though I'm still jet lagged, I'm also wide awake' - Lyrics from Lily's TikTok
Lily's TikTok -https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMek6ksds/
Lily: Other than happy for you I think one of my favourite songs I ever wrote is called “Maybe”. I also love the video we made for it so I’ll send it below. I’m also working on an EP which I’m super proud of and excited for it to be out in the world later this year!
Lily: It does!! It’s hard to keep your head up sometimes and not compare your success to others. However, it’s also amazing and I feel so blessed to be able to do what I love with insanely talented and inspiring people.
Lily: Lockdown has been SO annoying! But at the same time I feel like I’ve met sooo many people over zoom sessions that I would’ve never got the chance to work with if lockdown hadn’t been happening! So that’s been a positive for sure, I’ve made some amazing friends through zoom! Can you believe it!?
Lily: At the moment, it’s probably Ashe and Finneas. Their new song blew my mind!
Lily: I DO! I like some jazz in the morning, listen to Chet Baker Sings. It is the most beautiful album ever created.
Lily: I think my first New Music Friday’s and Spotify editorials were a big moment for me!
Happy For You - Lily Williams (hehe)
Til Forever Falls Apart - Ashe & Finneas
Does It Ever Cross Your Mind - The Paper Kites
Lily: I think there is a lot of pressure to be always creating the best content of your life! Every day you’re expected to write the next big hit! Which isn’t realistic. I am learning to be more gentle with myself and accept the fact that everyone has off days, even Justin Bieber.
Lily: I would love to be a sought after songwriter and win lots of Grammy’s (haha!) A more short term goal is to release a great EP this year and get a deal with a great publisher before the end of 2021 :)
Thank you for answering some questions! We are all so excited to watch your journey and looking forward to coming to your shows in the future! Wishing you all the best.
- Amy
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/allthepeopleilove/
Twitter - https://twitter.com/wilylilliams
TikTok - https://vm.tiktok.com/ZSchk43s/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/allthepeopleilove
SoundCloud - https://soundcloud.com/lilylouisa
Website - https://www.lilywilliams.com/
Updated: Mar 5, 2021
Nyah is an aspiring photographer from concerts to filming content. I have known her for a while now after meeting at a concert through mutual friends, so music and concerts have been a big thing for us even if we haven't been able to attend a concert for over a year now! In this interview she talks about her most prized work as well as how she found her love for photography.
Hi! So could you introduce yourself, how old you, where are you from and what area of the music industry are you aspiring to be in?
Hi, I’m Nyah and I’m from the Midlands. I recently turned 19 and I’m hoping to go into a career involving content production and photography, whether it be taking photos of an artist during their show or the journey throughout tour, or even filming content for them to use on their social media to engage and interact with fans.
What is your best piece of work that you are particularly proud of and why?
I think that this has to be one of my favourite photos, not just due to the composition or the editing, but because of the memories that come with it. I remember that I spontaneously bought the tickets to the Shawn Mendes show the night before, and my mum tagged along, we managed to get second row seats and I was so happy. I had such a great night with my mum and also managed to get some great photos as well, which to me was just a plus to a great night.
How did you discover what area of music you liked?
I’d always been creative and had a passion for photography, but I have also always had a passion for music, one of my favourite activities being going to concerts. As I started to follow these artists on social media, I saw these amazing photos of crowds of people enjoying an artist’s music, it captured the joy I felt at a concert. There were also beautiful images of the artist having the best time and I could really resonate with those images and emotions. I knew then that I wanted to try concert photography, to be able to capture that beauty and emotions myself.
I know everyone is so over being in lockdown! How have you made lockdown into a positive thing and how has it helped you in terms of progressing your area of work?
If I’m totally honest, lockdown has really dragged my creativity down, it made me reach a low point, but I’ve managed to slowly pull myself back up and get out of my funk. I think that lockdown has been different for everyone and I can’t compare myself to others, it’s just not healthy. I think that once I realised that I was able to not be so harsh on myself, it also allowed me to realise how much I missed and loved photography. Looking back on pictures I’d taken and remembering how much joy I’d had taking the pictures and how great I felt when they came out, thinking ‘WOW, I really took that!’.
What is something you wish you could say to someone high up in your profession?
I think I’d ask them if that they ever thought of not pursuing photography, stopping because it seemed like it wasn’t possible, and what it was that kept them going. I sometimes myself doubting myself and my talents when I see other people’s work who I believe is so much better than mine but the thing is everyone is at a different stage of their journey and that’s okay, it’s something I’ve had to learn and still am but it has honestly helped me so much.
What is your biggest achievement?
As I previously mentioned, I’ve had doubts about my work and talent numerous times, especially now during COVID when I’ve been unable to go out and collaborate/create. It’s been a really hard time for me in regard to my well-being but also my creativity. However, recently I have been able to start pulling myself out of that dark place, I’ve starting to feel better mentally and also creatively. I’m really proud of me for helping myself to get to a better place, and it may not seem like much to others but when I look back on myself then and now I see progress and even though it’s only a little it’s still a start.
Do you think music has become an aesthetic, so if you listen to Indie music do you think it influences you to adapt to that style such as what you wear and how you act?
I definitely think that we associate particular music genres with different aesthetics, like your example of indie, I think that when we think of an indie musician, we have this certain image in our minds. This could be the style of the artist (in terms of musical style or clothing), the types of music videos they create (and the content within them), or the type of promotional content they produce.
Trends are a huge thing at the moment, but do you think they happen to quickly these days? Do you think this results in new artists having 15 seconds of fame?
I definitely agree, especially with social media, and people emerging from tiktok etc. I think that some of the popular users of the app who are diverging into music are just doing it because others are, a way of diverging into another field. I think that it’s definitely stopping talented artists and musicians from emerging and progressing.
Who is your biggest influence or inspiration?
I think that my inspirations are constantly changing, coming from various sources. People who inspire me aren’t necessarily just photographers but also people like my friends and family. My mum has worked so hard to provide for me and give me the best education properly, sacrificing lots of things to allow me to do the things I do but she’s also been my number one supporter throughout it all, if I’m passionate about something she’ll let me pursue it. Apart from people like friends and family I have a couple of concert photographers who’s work I love but also just their relationship with the artist they work with, I think that these relationships help to create the images they capture: Josiah Vandien, Joel Chamaa, Michelle Hunder etc.
Do you feel any social pressure from the industry? Do you feel like you have to be a certain way or promote yourself in a certain way?
The photography and creative industry in general is so hard to get in and pursue full time, and especially in the concert area of photography right now due to COVID. I’ve definitely had to expand my areas of content, not just taking pictures of people as such and expanding to nature/landscapes, product photography, and self-portraits etc. I also think that with the industry now you have to be able to adapt and be constantly firing out content to keep people engaged and following you. You have to be able to create all forms of content for different platforms e.g. TikTok, YouTube, Instagram as a way to reach all audiences and keep being relevant. I think that it can be really hard to do such things and it takes a lot of hard work which many people just don’t understand how difficult that is to do as an individual.
Thank you Nyah! I wish you all the best for the future and am looking forward to watching you grow.
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/nyahindia/?hl=en
Introducing Abby to my series! Abby and I connected online after I found a video of her singing on YouTube and I saw the potential in her. She is a very positive and excitable young girl and only be aged 14 I am extremely excited to watch her grow over time. In this interview she talks about her first paid gig to how she stays true to herself.
Hi! So could you introduce yourself, how old you are, where are you from and what area of the music industry are you aspiring to be in?
Hey! I’m Abby Warner and I’m 14 from Yorkshire. At the moment I’m keeping my options open! I really enjoy the typical kind of ‘singer-songwriter’ thing of writing, recording and performing but I’m also trying to learn more about music production.
What is your biggest achievement?
I think my biggest achievement was getting my first paid gig. I’d been busking and doing open mic nights for a while and then last summer I got a 45 minute paid slot at an acoustic session my local pub was holding. I loved every second of it and I’m so excited to perform more when it’s safe!
Performing is a big deal for anyone, do you get nervous before performing and how do you overcome it?
I just have a lot of energy all of the time and I definitely get nervous before performing but usually it’s more excitement. I just remind myself that I’m performing because I love it and I know what I’m doing so I just need to go out and play like I do in front of my bedroom wall!
What is your best piece of work that you are particularly proud of and why?
I think my best piece of work is my new single Hide and Seek. I’ve had the idea for this song for a couple of years now and I just never really knew what to do with it. I’ve gone through so many different verses without anything really working. Then last summer I picked up the song again and just wrote something that stuck. I really took my time with this song and delved deeper into the production element, more than I have before with my previous tracks. I worked on every line to get it just right and I’m really proud of how it turned out!
If you could change anything in the industry what would it be?
To have more women in the industry! Whether it’s producers, songwriters or managers I feel like the music industry is sadly still dominated by men. Less than 3% of producers are women and 56% of the most popular songs have no female songwriters. I don’t want the next wave of female songwriters or producers to just stop because of fear that they might not get work or things like that, I think it’s important to keep inspiring whoever is next so that we don’t end up with even less women in the industry!
Do you think social media such as TikTok, Spotify etc is changing the industry, if so how?
Oh 100%. Social media has seriously changed how we consume content and things like Spotify have revolutionised how we listen to music. I mean that has its pros and cons. It’s definitely good in a sense that it’s so easy to get your music out there, you don’t need a label or anything just a YouTube channel now. But that does mean that there’s a lot of competition and also with digital music distribution on things like Spotify, it’s definitely a lot harder to make money than if you sold albums yourself.
Who is your biggest influence or inspiration?
There’s a lot of people that inspire me and influence my music but I’d say my biggest inspiration is Ed Sheeran. I love his writing style and acoustic vibe and try and carry that kind of thing into my music. I mean his story is just so inspiring, how he went from gigging every night with no money and no one knowing him to now being one of the biggest artists in the world is incredible.
Do you feel any social pressure from the industry? Do you feel like you have to be a certain way or promote yourself in a certain way?
To be honest, not really! But I feel like that’s just me, there’s definitely certain pressures but whether it’s in the industry or not, I’ve always had a strong idea of what I want to do and who I want to be. I guess you have to remember that everyone likes different things. So just because your song doesn’t appeal to a certain group of people, you’ll find other listeners by just creating what you want too.
What’s next for you?
Well right now I’m working on my first ever ep! I’m just writing loads of songs at the moment and hoping to get more music out there in 2021!
Thank you for answering some questions! I wish you all the best for the future, is there anything else you’d like to add?
Thank you!
"I’ve always had a strong idea of what I want to do and who I want to be"
Abby's Links:
YouTube - https://urlgeni.us/youtube/channel/jbmu
