Interview with http://felicity-jv.blogspot.co.uk

1. Hey Ellie, thank you so much for talking to us! How’s it going, what have you been getting up to?

Hi, things are going great! I’ve been in the studio with a producer I’ve wanted to work with for years called Ian Grimble who is also the co-founder of a record label I love called Communion. It’s been a really good experience and I’m so happy with the new EP which will be released by the end of the year! ALso, I have my first EDM album which will be released soon by A and R Records!

2. So for those of us who aren’t so familiar, tell us about yourself! When did you 

first realise you had musical talent? You’re a singer/song-writer and you own your own label ‘Create your own Reality’?

I used to always sing as a kid and make up songs and tape them on my Aunts cassette recorder and when I got the chance play on my Grandad’s grand piano! I didn’t have lessons but where ever there was a musical instrument I would get on it and make stuff up! So it seems obvious looking back now that is what I loved and somehow I have made a career out of it! Professionally I’ve been doing it for 10 years and have had a big adventure and journey going to America and Amsterdam recording songs that have been played on radio, TV, in shops and with the electronic dance songs there are ones that have got into the 10 in the Beatport charts. I believe in day dreaming about what you want and making it happen!

3. You’re also an ambassador for Quiksilver Women and in 2010 toured Quiksilver stores in the UK and Ireland as part of your sponsorship, have Quiksilver been really supportive throughout your musical career?

I have been with Quiksilver for 4 years and am proud to be the first female Ambassador chosen by them for their Quiksilver Women range of clothes! I get free clothes every season which I love and its our ‘job’ to wear them when making videos and blogs, so as to tell a creative story with their clothing. Im actually addicted to their clothes! Love them! They are a really laid back company and theres never any pressure to do anything and they are very supportive when I present them with ideas that I have! Which I do all the time!

4. What has been your favourite moment so far in your musical career?

I think arriving in New york to live and being made a fuss of, travelling by limousine to gigs and doing gigs where there were cues of people wanting to get my autograph! It was like being at the top of the mountain that took me 6 years to climb! Whilst I was there is was an amazing experience and gave me a good dose of being a superstar for a while!

5. Who are your ultimate musical influences?

Well part of the reason I could never be just a folk artist, or just a singer songwriter is that I have a wide range of influences from Kate Bush, Tracy Chapman, Joni Mitchell, John Lennon, KRS One! A Tribe Called Quest, Guru, Billy Holiday, Bjork, Tori Amos, I went through my eras of listening to each artist and really getting deeply into them. What I love best are the individuals doing their own thing with something to say, so thats what I strive to do!

6. In 2005, your song ‘Down with You’ (from ‘The Philosophy Tree’) was featured on a big glitzy hollywood movie ‘Monster in Law’ featuring JLO and Jane Fonda. How was it listening to your song on a film?!

To be honest it is literally in there for 8 seconds so I nearly missed it when I went to the cinema with my manager to see the preview as I was talking to him at the time! It really funny that it is still played so much, its always on TV but I’ve only seen it the once-and I was glad that it turned out to be a really funny film!

7. So Ellie, you have a brand new single ‘Learn’ coming out on the 23rd September which is very exciting, what can we expect to hear?

Yes, its really exciting as this song means a lot to me and has been re-written a few times and is finally being born! lol. Its about someone in my life that was ‘complex like fractions’ (im rubbish at maths so i used that phrase) and its about ‘sooner or later-‘ the tables turning and learning from the situation which is the most important thing in life to move onto the next better version of your life! Im releasing it myself and its currently a free download on my sound cloud page! Without an official PR campaign Im not trying to sell the song, its just really nice to put it out there! It was recorded with Greg Haver , who is a great producer I recorded one track with him last year as a favour from him. He did a great job and I’m really happy with the recording and the music video we made of it with my new band!.

8. Out of your albums and EPs so far, which has been your favourite album to record?

Well recording in LA on the first album was great fun and an experience I will never forget and is like a dream, but I preferred recording my new EP here in London where my roots are and with all live musicians! It was recorded in a church and upstairs there is a video recording company so people like folk singer Benjamin Francis Leftwich and Raghu Dixit, who are a band from India that I love, just sort of wander into the session wanting to hear the string players! I loved walking through the door to the studio-it looked like the door to the tardis in Doctor who! 

9. What was it like to record your previous EP, ‘Lost without you’?

We had done a lot of the pre production at my Guitarist/Friend/Co-writers house and recorded the final takes at Dave’s house sitting on a bed! It was very DIY! The producer Aidan Love came over from Istanbul for the month of August! Cant say I’ve ever recorded music for an itunes release like that before, but I loved the freedom and how he and Dave got me to playing different instruments like Bass and Glokenspiel. It was great fun and then Aidan took it away and worked his magic! It was an easy and fun EP to make!

10.How was it working with producer and Communion record Co-founder Ian Grimble (Mumford & Sons, Benjamin Francis Leftwich, Daughter), on your new EP and what kind of sound should we expect from this upcoming EP?

The EP has gorgeous harp, double bass, live strings and really interesting rhythms, mostly based on Dave’s interesting take on the songs where he taps the rhythm on guitar  for our acoustic lives sets. Its got a polished sound but  is not over produced which is what we were aiming for. It sounds very natural but still the sort of thing I do, harmonies, folk with an urbanness. Its called ‘Insights’ and the songs are based on things like following your intuition, Giving your best shot and being proud of who you are. I think its quite a female empowering EP in a way. It will be great to hear peoples opinions when I put it out, but always a bit scary too! Ian told me I should be very proud of it, and I am!

12. When can we next see you live? Have you got any tour plans for 2012/13?

I am working on touring plans and will be updating www.ellielawson.com/live as soon as I have dates! I really hope to do a tour of the UK to begin with!

13. What advice would you give to any aspiring singer/song-writers trying to get their foot in the door in such a tough, competitive industry?

Just take one step at a time and follow your bliss. What ever you love doing, keep doing it and you will build up a body of work and you will then become passionate about whatever else needs doing! I have spent years creating songs and loving it, so I also do the business side as well as Im inspired to find the best team for each project to represent it. Its cliche but basically just strive to be the best version of you that you can be in all different areas and it will all come together. Have faith because in the music industry anything can happen when you can record something that people like.

14. Finally, Have you got any messages you’d like to send to all your lovely fans?

Thank you so much for listening and supporting my music. It means more than you know for independent artists like me to receive nice messages of appreciation from fans! I have personal profiles where I love to converse with my fans so check me out on facebook or leave a message on my main facebook fan page to add you to one of my personal profiles or send me an email on my website! I like to be very approachable!