Singer-songwriter Gracey spent the beginning of her music career writing songs for other artists such as Jonas Blue, Olly Murs and RAYE. But for the past 3 years, Gracey has been flourishing as her own independent artist. We spoke with her to find out more about her career switch to front of stage..
Introduce yourself! Where are you from and how did you first get into music?
I’m Gracey, I grew up just outside Brighton, in a little commuter town called Haywards Heath. Not loads happens down there so decided to put some of the little songs I was working on in my bedroom on Soundcloud, and that’s how I managed to find my way into music. I was writing for other artists for a year or so, before deciding I wanted to release music myself. And now here I am!
If you could collaborate with anyone, who would it be and why?
It’s got to be Pharrell. He’s such an inspiration – an incredible artist, writer and producer. I genuinely think everything he touches is gold, he’s got such a brilliant mind and recognisable touch to his music, even when he’s writing for other artists (like all his work with Gwen Stefani, who I’m also obsessed with). He’s a genius my opinion.
You’ve written a lot of songs for a lot of people, but how does it feel being the person on the other side, performing those songs now?
It’s always really special seeing people react to songs you’ve written live, but actually getting to be the one performing them is a whole other world. Naturally the songs I choose to release as part of my artist project are a lot more personal to me; all of them are from my own experiences and emotions, so seeing first-hand people connecting with that is very fulfilling (and pretty therapeutic to be honest).
What does your songwriting process look like? Is it the same every time?
It’s similar but never the same. I always find myself jotting down concepts from everyday life – little things people say that stick out, quotes from books or podcasts, even just from watching Netflix. Then once I get in the studio, I’ll be playing around with chords until one of the concepts I’ve been thinking about match the feeling of the track. The main thing is I always like to write from a place of honesty, so if it’s writing for someone else it tends to just start by a long deep chat about life, haha.
What’s your most pinch-me moment you’ve had in your career so far?
It’s 100% got to be sitting at the BRIT Awards two meters away from Taylor Swift. Felt a whole lot of imposter syndrome that day I can’t lie; my song that was nominated became big during lockdown, so I was doing all the promo and stuff from my parent’s house over Zoom. The BRITs was the first red carpet event I’d ever been to as an artist and it was a bit of a trip to say the least, haha.
You’ve recently been added to the Neighbourhood lineup. Are you excited to perform? Is there anyone else you’re looking forward to see play?
Yes I’m buzzing! I played Manchester whilst on tour with Ruel earlier this year and the crowd was absolutely fire, so I cannot wait to come back. I’m a huge Everything Everything fan, I saw them on tour in Newcastle a few months back, so I’m definitely hoping to catch them! Also very excited to see artists like Baby Queen, Alfie Templeman and Dylan!
What’s next for you, anything exciting in the pipeline?
I’m heading out on a headline tour this September/October! I’m honestly so excited, I’ve been waiting to do this tour for so long now so my band and I will most definitely be bringing the energy. There’s still a few tickets available so make sure you snatch them up now if you want to come party with us!
Listen to Gracey here!