All articles filed in Interviews

During Rainy Miller’s teenage years, grime ripped through Preston. Kids would write their own lyrics and send for each other on beats ripped from Limewire. “In every friendship group or every estate throughout the city, there was someone who had got hold of a USB microphone or managed to jank some recording software,” he says. …

At a time when their formative moments are being stifled by the pandemic, Cathy Jain speaks to an introspective generation’s desire for authentic experiences. Sometimes we just wanna be some melodramatic teens, she reassures fans on green screen, a track from her debut EP artificial. The release explores the curiosity and naivety of youth and…

“It was too personal, too deep – too dark.” This is one of the reactions that Mancunian-raised, Kenyan-born sisters Millie and Hope Katana received from industry heads on their 2019 EP Life Under Siege. With thick Lancashire accents and bold humour, the twins, who perform as The KTNA, represent a wave of artists from the…

Last month, SVMI released his debut EP MA MOOD on Manchester-based record label NQ. In the three years since SVMI was behind the camera filming Aitch’s breakout hit Straight Rhymez, his own career and the scene in Manchester have rapidly picked up momentum. This is something he sounds at ease with when I speak to…

Chloe Foy’s debut album Where Shall We Begin has been a long time in the making. The Manchester-based singer-songwriter’s latest folk release features haunting, introspective lyrics that tell a story spanning ten years. I caught up with Foy to discuss the album, her difficult relationship with streaming services and the live music scene in Manchester.…

Classical music has a reputation for being uppity, a bit exclusionary. But Manchester Collective, co-founded in 2016 by their music director Rahki Singh, and chief executive Adam Szabo, set out to be different: “We had just both got to the point where we were really sick of seeing audiences that were old and white and very affluent.”   In fact, when I spoke to Adam, he was…

Sharing tracks with friends is one of the joys of discovering new music. Whether face to face in someone’s kitchen, or through a text message, it’s a nice feeling when your appreciation for a particular song is reciprocated. It was from this simple love of exchanging tracks with friends that the music recommendation platform Dance…

Joey San has had a momentous year. In the haze of summer after the first lockdown, he was featured on BBC Radio 1’s show Introducing Dance. Joey lay in bed with his earphones in, waiting for his song MeToBe to play. It had been a long, boiling hot day and it was not until 12:30am…

Up-and-coming South Manchester artists Akemi Fox and Teo combine heartfelt lo-fi R&B with striking visuals.

Those working in the music industry have been hit especially hard by the loss of work opportunities and many have subsequently experienced a dip in their mental well-being.