If you're based on the Western side of the Atlantic, you may not already be familiar with UK singer Becky Hill. But chances are, you will be very soon. To catch you up, in the two years since her stint on The Voice (UK), the 20-year-old has teamed up with Rudimental, collaborated with Oliver Heldens on infectious dance track "Gecko," and put out a stellar electro-infused song, "Caution To The Wind," with producer Two Inch Punch (the man behind Sam Smith and Jessie Ware). Now, with an LP in the works, Becky Hill is slated to soundtrack house parties and clubs worldwide.
Find out more from the singer herself and then further acquaint yourself via the exclusive video premiere for her latest single "Losing" below.
You essentially started your musical career on The Voice. How have you altered and developed your sound to set yourself apart from the other reality TV singers?
I was in a band before I went on The Voice, so I already saw myself as a singer-songwriter and artist. The Voice introduced me to the music industry, and the sound of the album came quite naturally to me as I had my own musical references that I took to producers. Firstly MNEK helped to properly execute the sound I had in my mind, which was followed by other producers, such as Two Inch Punch, who bought his own style to the sound. I’ve always wanted my album to be seen as leftfield as that’s the sort of music I’m personally into, but I’ve been writing pop music since I was 13. So I wanted to team the cool leftfield production with accessible songs which I think sets me apart.
How would you describe your sound at this point?
Leftfield, soul-pop. Fresh, but with strong references from the 90s.
Who are your musical influences?
My four main tracks that I’d take into session to try to describe what sound I had in my head for the album before it was created were: ‘Sleepyhead’ by Passion Pit; ‘Starry Eyed’ by Ellie Goulding; ‘Further Away’ by Ben Howard; and ‘Skinny Love’ by Bon Iver. I wanted classic, beautifully written songs like Bon Iver and Ben Howard, but with the energetic and quirky production of Passion Pit and Ellie Goulding.
What was the inspiration behind "Losing" and the video?
"Losing" was inspired by someone I was seeing. I was very reluctant to trust him after a traumatic relationship when I was 16 but this person made me feel I could trust him. Our relationship was very intense and we relied on each other for guidance. It was all lies though, as he completely stopped any sort of contact. I was fed up of being let down and left heartbroken and thus ‘Losing’ was born out of that frustration. The "Losing" video was filmed two years after the song was written, so the video has a feeling of a distant memory about it. It’s shot in a funfair in Germany to capture the energetic feel of the song.
Can you bring us into the collaborative process behind "Losing"?
It was the first song that MNEK and I wrote together and luckily he had worked with the guy I had been seeing. I didn’t want the song to be a sad, depressive, ballad but something that calls out to everyone. MNEK really took this on board and came up with the all-encompassing lyric “Someone in the world tonight, is dancing on their own.” We wrote and recorded the song within an hour-and-a-half, so it came very naturally to us.
When will your LP drop and what can you tell us about it?
The album will be dropping next year, it’ll feature production from Shift K3Y, Two Inch Punch, MNEK and more. It’s a collection of music explaining my journey through the music industry that I hope everyone will be able to connect with.
What music are you listening to at the moment?
I’m listening to a lot of Kwabs and Banks at the moment. I think both artists are incredible at writing music that comes from the heart and executing it beautifully with their voices. I also love that tune "Faded" by ZHU! Reminds me of my holiday to Paris with my friends earlier this year.