Wales is a nation of storytellers, tell us your story…
I am a quiet person who has always loved music and the written word. These are my tools for telling my story through song. I’m lucky to have encountered teachers and mentors along the way who have helped me nurture these two loves, making music and storytelling something I get to do for a living. Music is very healing, and like many my story hasn’t always been an easy one, but music has been a way of expressing what I cannot do through words alone.
What is your connection to your corner of Wales?
I grew up in Caernarfon, North Wales. My family home is right on the shores of the Menai Strait, which is the tidal body of water that separates Ynys Mon (Anglesey) from mainland Wales. This sea passage inspired me since I was a young girl, and forever provides the space and the solitude that I need as a creative person. I still live along the Menai, but a few miles east of where I grew up. I go down to the shore most days with my dog and often swim there.Wales has stories of legends going back millennia through to the modern today, does your music connect to these, what is their story?
Wales has stories of legends going back millennia through to the modern today, does your music connect to these, what is their story?
I feel connected to the past whenever I sing traditional Welsh folk songs, as some are so ancient. Many visit legends, big and small. We’re lucky to have lots of musicians in Wales who excavate and delve into the archives to find these works and breathe life into them. I’m grateful for these musical historians!
In my own song writing, I love to use the archetypal figures from legends to express universal truths, or to question what we perceive as ‘known’ or ‘fixed’.
Linguistics and language play a huge part in Welsh culture, what is it that makes it so special?
The Welsh language is a thing of beauty. It holds so many stories, words and expressions that would be lost in translation, and I feel very privileged to speak it and learn more every day. It links us to the past and is a thread of wonder throughout history’s tapestry.
Wales has often been known to be a land of storytellers, yourselves included through your music. As Wales evolves and new sounds come to the forefront, what kind of Wales do you see the torch being passed onto in the future?
A diverse and inclusive Wales, where the microphone is passed on to marginalised folk who have been denied a voice in the past. Wales is a country of many cultures and languages and these stories and these storytellers make up a beautiful tapestry. Wales is using the power of storytelling to raise others up. In my music I like to give nature a human voice too, in the hope that more people will listen and tune in.
What are your Celtic connections?
My deep sense of belonging within the land and music of Wales is the most important connection I could hope for. I also have a connection with Galicia, from the time I walked the Camino across Northern Spain, and with Lorient after finding friends and community at Britany’s fantastic Festival Interceltique.
You’re embarking on new international opportunities, what collaborations or opportunities are you most looking forward to?
I am looking forward to going back to Britany as I feel a pull back there. I’m going to be releasing a lot of music over the next few years; my debut album is nearly finished and I look forward to sharing that and taking it on tour. I’m also collaborating with my dear friend Sera on a Welsh language EP, with songs inspired by the natural world.