GRIFF is an emerging pop musician from the U.K. who is empowering her listeners through artful and soulful lyrics. Influenced by Taylor Swift and soul, GRIFF is offering the pop genre something unexpected. Several songs have already gotten quite a bit of attention, including Mirror Talk and Didn't Break It Enough. Today she releases a new EP with Warner Records, 'The Mirror Talk' EP. Stream it below. RAIN caught up with the musician to talk about her music, unique image, and her upcoming live shows.
You have this great song "Mirror Talk" that speaks about this sort of self consciousness everyone has gone through. Looking in the mirror and thinking you’re not enough. What inspired you to write this song?
I’m always trying to conceptualize and write songs that aren’t your typical break up song. I try to write something that’s relevant to everyone and whether that’s quite literally a mirror in front of you or maybe you just start your day off the mark.
The music video is great too.
That video was important because it felt like the first visuals to connect to my music. I was super involved in the treatment of the video to make sure it felt like it was the right mood. It was also important because it was a performance and people could see who I was.
And your iconic hair!
Yeah, I wanted to do something that was recognizable and could be something continuous.
It’s stuck hasn’t it?
It’s really stuck. In all the live shows, the hair will be there.
I was reading about your unique upbringing in the U.K. How has that informed your music? You also taught yourself music, right?
I think I’m very conscious. My parents ethnicity was pretty unique because I grew up in the white suburbs in London. I think I looked completely different from all the kids around me in school. That I was super aware of. Teaching myself music... it wasn't something I was doing consciously. It was just how I would pass the time. Getting into music was a very natural thing for me. I did it for fun.
Congratulations on the new EP. It sounds great! Are you excited for its release?
It feels good. It feels like it has taken a while to write it because I’ve been in school finishing my exams. It feels nice to collect all of the songs that have been important to me over the past two years and put them together in this EP.
Are your friends at school supportive of your music career? Do they go to your live shows?
I’ve kept the music pretty quiet while I was in school. I didn’t really tell people what I was up to. So now obviously people know. We’ll have a live show on November 27th in London. That will be the first time I present my songs to a live audience.
Are you nervous?
I’ve been thinking about it a lot. How to make a show a really cool experience. We’ve managed to set a nice thing up for the visuals. That’s important to translate it visually onstage. We’ll see how it goes.
How do you see music changing today from when many of your influences like Mary J. Blige or Taylor Swift were starting out?
Today, music feels super saturated. I don't think people are as invested in an artist's body of work. It's more like you click on a song that you find on a playlist and then move on. Our attention spans just aren't what they used to be. That's why the visuals are so important to me for all of the music I've made. That's what gets people locked into the world I'm creating.
Images courtesy of Warner Records.
