Rosie Simmons sits down with young starlet Liv Dawson and chats about upcoming tracks, life in London, and working with Disclosure and Olly Alexander.

 

For most young upcoming pop stars, working with established chart-topping artists such as Disclosure and Years and Years’ Olly Alexander is the stuff of unattainable dreams. For pop starlet Liv Dawson, this is a reality. At the young age of 18, she is already signed to Method Records, Disclosure’s Record label, and selling out venues across the country. Her mature, intelligent lyrics coupled with her shiny pop-sound have already proven that she has a lot to offer London’s music scene, and 2017 sees her spreading her wings across the country.

Of working with brothers Howard and Guy Lawrence of Disclosure, Dawson has nothing but praise. She gushes about their hardworking work ethic while not taking themselves too seriously at the same time, which is “the perfect combo when you’re writing”. And Liv should know, having started songwriting at the age of 13. Although this was something that she didn’t enjoy at first, as she thought that she wasn’t very good at it, she has “picked up a lot of tips and tricks” from working with bands such as Honne and Disclosure, which has boosted her confidence, and now there’s no stopping her.

London born and raised, Liv has a lot of love for the city that she grew up in. Of the city, she says that “you can walk through London and get a song from that, there’s so much going on”, and that the city has had a hand in inspiring many of her songs. She also garners a lot of inspiration from big female vocalists, such as Beyonce, Lauryn Hill and Whitney Houston, but also takes a lot from newer artists such as Jhene Aiko and SZA. Her influences are clear from listening to her music, but she puts her own unique stamp on it which is what makes her work so compelling.

One new release which deserves particular attention is the Disclosure produced new single, ‘Painkiller’. The song, an ode to a relationship that has gone sour, she felt was very important for her to write, as she feels pop stars often focus on the happier sides of relationships, and that people “avoid writing and thinking about the other side, even though it’s something so much of us go through.” Her catchy hooks draw the listener in, while her poetic but subtle lyrics hold them there, causing them to pay attention and relate to the situation that Dawson finds herself in.

Whatever she’s doing seems to be working. With all this to show for herself at the young age of 18 and lots of new songs on the way, Liv Dawson shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Generating much excitement from audiences across the country and industry professionals alike, it won’t be long until she’s hitting the charts alongside her mentors Disclosure. Watch this space.

Liv is playing Church, Leeds on the 19th of October with support from Etham. If her Live at Leeds set was anything to go by, this is gonna be a big one.

 

Rosie Simmons

Photo Credit: diymag.com