In the 10 years since Ella Eyre released her debut, she has parted ways with two labels, had vocal surgery and been through a break-up.
Released via Play It Again Sam, sophomore LP Everything, In Time has just been released (November 21).
Here, Ella Eyre discusses her new sound, industry ups and downs, and doing things her way…
INTERVIEW: Lisa Wright
PHOTO: Kaj Jefferies
Having signed your first deal at 16, would you do anything differently now?
“Luckily for me it went well, because for somebody of that age, being thrown into the deep end in that way, it’s very easy to come out the other side with mental challenges much worse than mine. I definitely suffered in terms of my profession. I look at the process I’ve been through to make this new record and there was just no time for that. I’d done a lot of work prior to [2013 Rudimental collaboration] Waiting All Night but, because of the way the industry works, it was just, ‘We want to give the people what they want.’ I got swept up in this BRIT-winning, No.1 record that changed my life, but also really informed the rest of my career. My label wanted to put breakbeats on all the songs I’d written. I don’t hate anything I’ve released and there are no regrets, but I do shelve that era in a specific space in my brain because I just feel so different, elevated and grown now.”
What made you move away from the dance hits that made your name?
“To be honest, it took me a while to realise I wasn’t creatively fulfilled. It was only really in lockdown, after I’d left my first label [Virgin EMI] and was trying to work out what I wanted to do, that I really recognised that the music I was known for was not necessarily the stuff that fills my heart. I’d had extensive vocal surgery where I wasn’t allowed to talk for a month and I was in my head the whole time because I couldn’t communicate. I was listening to this album I was making with Island, and I realised that I hated it and was just making it for the radio stations that my label had in mind.”
Presumably, the surgery underscored the need to make a change?
“Exactly. I was imagining being on stage again and thinking, ‘I’ll be damned if I’m singing these records that I’ve made because they want me to be doing what Becky Hill’s doing right now.’ No shade, Becky is one of my best mates and she’s very good at what she does, but I’m not trying to be anyone but myself. That’s what I learnt from that process, that if I was going to sing again, it would be on my terms, no matter how hard it is.”
Do you still have designs on chart success?
“I can’t even remember when, but I stopped looking at the charts and New Music Friday and what was being played on the radio; but that’s not how people engage with music now. I stopped looking at data because I don’t want it to affect what I’m doing. I enjoy the response at face value of people coming up to me or commenting on videos on social media; that’s what I’m going to take.”
Now you’re signed independently, what are you prioritising in terms of the campaign?
“Marketing, because a billboard doesn’t really cut it anymore, it’s about being clever. I just did a silent disco tour where we went to four different locations, outside, in golden hour. I had 50 people with headsets listening to the album and I had a little Britney mic, talking through the tracks. Being independent has really forced us to be creative about the way we’re connecting with the fans. I’m having to think on my feet and not rely on big budgets.”
What’s next once this album is out?
“I want to keep momentum up, I don’t want it to be another 10 years until the next one. I also have loads of other projects I want to do. I’ve been learning to DJ and I have this vision of re-owning my dance music but not as Ella Eyre, having a faceless alias that’s my voice but isn’t Ella Eyre.”
