GABRIELLE APLIN

 

5 MINUTES WITH… GABRIELLE APLIN

Back in December we worked with the incredibly talented Gabrielle Aplin for our latest Rhythm & Muse feature. We spent the morning at the unique venue Hello Darling in Waterloo shooting some vintage looks in the eclectic space with photographer Bree Hart. Want to know a little bit more about Gabrielle and her music? Read on…

For our followers who are new to your music, how would you describe your sound?

I won’t lie my sound definitely evolves and grows each time I get a project going. I love to be inspired visually. Fashion, film, tv, art all play a roll. I like to write the best songs I can, usually about something I know or experience so I can write truthfully, then very much like fashion or interior design I decide what sounds and production would compliment the song the most. I think about how I want a song to feel as well as sound. At the moment I’m really loving warmth in electronic sounds.

What were your musical beginnings?

Very experimental! I didn’t know straight away that it was music for me, I just loved music and also loved making things. I grew up listening to what my parents loved; The Carpenters, Joni Mitchell, Bruce Springsteen to name a few but I also just really loved pop music. But aside from that I was teaching myself to play the piano by ear just making up songs, I was writing poems and little stories, I was making things from textiles and painting and drawing. I still do all of those things too except I had opportunities with music that I followed. It’s always felt like a hobby that I enjoy not work, which I’m incredibly grateful for.

You’ve owned your own label, Never Fade Records for a whole decade now, congrats! What made you decide to start a label and how have you found it running one? 

I felt that it was important to own my work. I signed to a major label after releasing a few EPs independently and I just didn’t think it was right for my own recordings that I had paid for and released myself to be included in that deal. Obviously working with a major label at the time was one of the few opportunities to be a commercial artist and I’m so glad I worked with them but the way he music industry has changed and developed has allowed artists to have many roads to go down when choosing how they release their music. I also love that I’ve been given the freedom to be an artist and I want to be able to give that opportunity to other artists too.

You’re an amazing songwriter, what inspires your lyrics?

Why thank you! I’m inspired by things that have happened to me or I’ve observed. I have to be connected to it in some way. My latest album I was really curious about happiness and how we interact with it and how we define it and how it defines us.

How important is fashion to you and how would you describe your style?

I love fashion history. I really enjoy knowing about what was fashionable in particular eras and why. I love that fashion can time stamp something. I love to work with great stylings for my visuals because I think it’s important that my visuals look like how my music sounds. I’ve worked with Zoe Graham on all my visuals and she really gets a creative! My recent stylist brief was “Elliott from E.T meets Del Boy” and she nailed it.

We know you’re a big fan of vintage clothing, what era would you say has influenced you the most and anyone in particular from that era?

Oh definitely the 60’s and 70’s! I couldn’t pick between the two!! Jane Birkin and David Bowie are big inspirations.

Do you have one piece of clothing that’s more special than the others and what’s the story behind it?

It has to be my vintage Levi 501s. Never will I find a pair that fit me so perfectly again!

We’d love to know one record that’s really influenced you as an artist and why?

Blue by Joni Mitchell. I don’t know how but she’s managed to write something so inward and personal whilst being so relatable.

 

What advice would you give to young females wanting to get into the music industry?

Getting signed to a label should never been the main priority!

Finally, what’s next in the pipeline for Gabrielle Aplin?

I’ve just released my third album Dear Happy! And I’m really excited to see where that leads me! I’ve got a few plans including a UK and Ireland tour in March and a European tour in April

 

Model: Gabrielle Aplin @gabrielleaplin

Photography: Bree Hart @breehart

HMUA: Alana Davison @alanadavisonmakeup

Stylist: Naomi Hession (The Hippie Shake)

Location: Hello Darling, London @hellodarlinglondon