Hannah began her career at the age of 17 by busking on the streets of her hometown, Leeds. She has since completed sold-out, international tours, supported the likes of Jess Glynne, Jake Bugg, and Boyce Avenue, and her debut album, Red, was a top ten hit across international album charts.
1. Tell us about your background, your upbringing, and your introduction into the world of music.
I was introduced to music by my parents who played things like pop/rock/motown around the house. I also really loved the Disney film soundtracks. I was very sporty when I was younger, a lot of time was spent on playing football and cycling, but then when I learnt the guitar I felt like I’d found my calling and music replaced a lot of sport for me. I was obsessed. I would write songs in my bedroom on my grandad’s nylon string Spanish guitar and sometimes go downstairs to perform them to my family if I was feeling confident. I wanted to create music that made people feel how I felt when I listened to my favourite songs.
2. How did you get into music songwriting performance? What are some of the highlights?
I was writing songs alone for many years, just in my bedroom, but my love for songwriting grew much more when I started posting covers online. I posted a cover every week for two years – you learn a lot about what makes a pop song a hit song. Highlights of my songwriting career would be scoring a number 1 single in Vietnam and working with Grammy Award-winning producers to flesh out songwriting ideas that I’d started alone in my bedroom.
3. What were some of the barriers you experienced, or still do experience, as a ‘female songwriter / performer’?
The first year or two of co-writing songs and collaborating with other writers and producers, I don’t think I came across one other woman in sessions. There are amazing female songwriters and producers out there, but sometimes music production can feel quite a male-heavy place. It would have been great to work with more female songwriters and producers when I first got started so that I could see myself in them a bit more and think about what my future could look like. Since then, I’ve worked with some incredible women in music (and video), including producers (Kaity Rae is just awesome), videographers and animators (Sophie Ogden is super talented).
4. What are some of the biggest changes you’ve seen over recent years in regards to the attitude towards being a songwriter, and a woman in music?
Being a songwriter is definitely being shown more credit now in terms of literal credits on Spotify and things like that. Being a woman in music is celebrated more and there are many great communities out there to support women in music too. I follow a few of them online and seeing their posts spurs me on. I also think things like women having kids whilst pursuing a career in music is being talked about a lot more, which is great to see because it’s real life!
You’re the co-founder of Backpocket Club. How did this come about, and what does your average day-to-day look like?
I don’t have an average day to day to be honest! I have a usual week to week routine though. I have lots of jobs within music, my income is very diversified and that’s something I would advise to anyone in music who enjoys doing multiple things and wants a stable income. Backpocket Club is a social-first digital marketing agency. I co-founded this with digital marketing expert Nathan Sharratt after we realised our skillset could be used to help other businesses grow their online community. Businesses often underestimate the power of content consistency and engaging directly with people who interact with them online – we help them seize this opportunity.
What would you say to your 16-year-old self about being a woman in music… what to expect, the difficulties, the excitements?
It’s very tough, but you can start making it happen in your own way. There are so many talented people out there, and there’s an abundance of listeners too. Focus on the journey, not a specific goal or conclusion to your story. Collaborate with other women in music and grow your support network, in business, creatively and emotionally. This industry can be tough because it’s a business at the end of the day, but the product (music) usually comes from a very emotional place. Aside from that… chase happiness, whatever that looks like to you. Don’t follow what someone else’s version of success might be. We’re all gonna die at some point so you better get busy living the life that you want!
What can we look forward to hearing from you in the next few months / year from your creativity?
I have a new album coming! It consists of 9 pop songs that were written about growing up, it’s a very personal one that I’ve pulled together over the last 2 years with Ben Matravers (Easy Life, Josie Proto). I’m writing a book about creating a sustainable music career, and I manage a new incredible artist called Karina who has a very exciting year ahead. Luckily I have an amazing assistant in Anya Wilcock and my wider team is exceptional too – it has taken many years to ‘find my people’ and I’m so grateful I get to create awesome things with them every day!
