Interview: Katy for Kings
PC: Naomi Kane
Scrapbook Songstress (diary entry like songs and an image filled with color and rugged edges) Katy just wants to write songs and push her own limitations and creative boundaries as much as she can. As well as being her own artist and having acquired four Radio 1 plays in the last few months Katy also dreams of writing songs for other people, TV, and film. The feeling of accomplishment after writing a song is one of the things that keeps Katy picking up the pen to write another, the vivid imagery she can express through words and the poems she can craft over melodies are nothing short of addicting. Her new EP Kinda, Almost is out now and her new single Cherry Baby is to come out at the end of the month.
Preview Katy For Kings’ Music:
What led to you becoming an artist?
To be honest, I think I just fell in love with singing and songwriting at a young age and it stuck. The image and the releasing and the gigging just felt like a natural progression. Even now I have quite a few songs out, I'm always excited and preparing for the next thing.
What inspires your music?
It’s very dependent on my surroundings. I read a lot though, and I’m very lucky to work so closely with the same producer for every release. We both love to experiment as much as possible and more recently I’ve been making up completely fictional stories and telling them via my songs. That's a lot of fun.
Who are some of your influences?
This one is kind of a part two to the answer above as a big influence to both me and my producer are The Beatles, I love Mccartneys writing style especially. Rocky Raccoon is brilliant, and Magical Mystery Tour is one of my favourite albums of all time.
What are some of your favourite memories from your career?
I loved opening for James Bourne at Omeara last month, I also played my first ever headline show too in my hometown. Writing is, and always will be, my favourite thing to do. Nothing beats the feeling of listening to a song you’ve just written and realising that the version of you yesterday had no recollection of it. Does that make sense? Probably not.
What have been some of the greatest challenges of your career?
Finding my own definition of success and trying to stick to it. I often feel like I’m not good enough when I’ve spent too long looking at my phone, and I let myself slip back into letting numbers define my self worth and then when they do start to climb I allow myself to feel the fear of it eventually declining again. It comes to a point where I'm never content, either with my progress or lack thereof. My biggest goal right now is to just let myself fall back into the rhythm of living for the sake of it, and creating because it’s what I love to do.
Which of your songs/eps or albums is your favorite? Why is it your favorite?
Swimmers Ear is very special to me, it's actually a B side for another one of my songs but it's a favourite among my friends. It's very raw and lyrically I think it flows quite nicely. I was also in a position when I wrote it of upsetting people I never meant to upset or make feel uncomfortable in any way so I was trying to come to terms with that. Also, the unreleased music will always be my favourite. I'm not sure why but I love going into my dropbox and listening to songs that I know no one else has had to interpret yet, but then when it does come out it's a great feeling too. Release days are always better than birthdays I feel.
What are you most excited to bring to your fans in the next year?
New music made for summer and hopefully a bigger project than the ones I’ve created before. My work has just started stocking vinyl records and everytime I hold one in my hands I think of how amazing it would be to have one of my own.
What are your goals for this upcoming year?
Stay grounded, keep creating and love more.
How can your fans best support you right now?
Stream, stream stream! Spotify is so important, as much as I hate to admit it. I don't have merchandise yet, but when I do it would mean the world to me if people wanted to buy it
Katy For Kings’ Links: