Interview: Phoebe Coco – Brick Wall

From riding horses in the wild forests of Provence to singing into sleepless sunrises on London’s streets after nights dancing, Phoebe Coco can hear music wherever she goes.

Discovered via submithub.com

I love your single, ‘Brick Wall’. Can you tell me a bit about the writing and recording process?

Thankyou David! The melody and most of the words first came to me when I was cycling, and it was raining, near Old Street. It is quite a vivid memory and I remember feeling very heightened, and sang it as it came to me into my phone.
I first performed it on the piano with my sisters Grace and Dorothy singing harmonies, and then it reached another evolution when we reached the studio, experimenting with synths and drum machines with Mark & Vanessa, who co-produced it with me. When we found that bass sound in particular, it resonated and really encompassed the feel of the song for me.

Who would you cite as your biggest musical influence?

It’s a tough question, that might get different answers on different days, but the tapes I had in my room growing up undoubtedly had a lasting effect. There was Blondie, there was David Bowie, through a boom box in my room that I adored, that I still have in my kitchen.

What are the hardest challenges you’ve faced within the music industry?

The music industry can seem rather faceless and anonymous. It’s a huge industry and one could wonder where to start.
Yet I’m a believer in beginning anywhere- the dots will start connect and as soon as you meet individuals within it all and have that person to person connection, it changes and people help each other out.
The constant experience of multiplicity is also a challenge. Everything is happening, everywhere and at once. It feels like this is specific to where we are now, but maybe this has always been this way! The tricky part within that as a creator, can be to see things through.

What’s the best advice you’ve been given as a musician?

Be yourself. The truth is more interesting. Follow your heart.

To finish with a standard interview question: where do you see yourself in five years?

Well… in this year especially, it feels as though anything can happen- there’s a lot of change in the air. I’m very much looking forward to releasing this album, and also to playing music live again, and for the future I’ve got some major project ideas that I am excited about creating and seeing just where that leads.
But I can be certain I that will playing music, there will be a piano, and I will have a canine companion by my side.