ME: Firstly, you’re a Nottingham based artist. From your perspective, what is the Nottingham music scene like?
WILTED FLOWER: The Nottingham scene is ridiculously supportive! When I moved here a couple of years ago I was a bit worried, I’d only ever known the London scene which was quite dog eat dog from my experience but I was so nicely welcomed by so many musicians and have made so many wonderful friends through playing shows!
M: One of your songs, Beautiful, but Bleak, has over 43k streams. When writing your most recent album did you ever think you’d reach such numbers?
WF: Never. Not at all. But we are so ridiculously grateful for it, and just love that people love what we do! It’s definitely pushed us to keep working hard and it’s been so nice to see it pay off! But whether 100 people listen or just 1, we love what we do and if we can make just 1 person feel less alone, than I’m happy
M: I personally love your most recent album cover. The colours are stunning and I think it creates a perfect atmosphere for the kind of music you make. How did you feel taking the cover photos? Are you happy with how it came out?
WF: Thank you so much! It definitely fits the theme and we’re really happy with it! I was nervous about being on the cover but I actually really enjoyed the shoot! We (my partner and the other half of Wilted Flower) didn’t know what we wanted, we just knew I was going to wear a black suit for that funeral feel and flowers had to be involved somehow of course so we rocked up and freestyled! Because of lockdown we couldn’t get a proper photographer so we made do with a less than professional camera and our limited knowledge! But yeah, really happy with how it turned out!
M: I found you through Spotify suggesting your song, Monochrome, during a hard time for me. I really related to that song and its lyrics. When you write songs, are they always from genuine experience?
WF: Oh I’m both so glad you had something to relate to but sad that you related! Monochrome is one of my favourite tracks lyrically that I’ve written actually. I always write from honesty and my own experiences, it’s the only way I know how! I pride myself on showing every part of me in my music and not shying away from hard topics and try to keep it as vulnerable and real as possible
M: A lot of your branding seems to be around poetry, was poetry in your life prior to becoming a musician, or was music always first?
WF: Yeah! Poetry is definitely what started it all. I’ve always been a singer, but writing was my outlet. I started writing poetry at around 12/13 and some lyrics I wrote then even made it onto Grow in the Dark which was nearly 10 years later! I’ve published two books so far and I’m working on the third so it definitely still plays a bit part in what I do and feeds massively into my music!
M: Unlike some other artists, you kind of went straight into making albums. Do you prefer writing and creating in bulk over singles as such?
WF: When I write, I don’t seem to be able to stop! I go through periods of writing a lot at once so it always just felt right to put all of that content out at once! I hate sitting on content for long periods of time but sadly I write quicker than we can record and release but I like that I always have something planned for the next record - it never stops! I like to put all of the songs I wrote at a certain time out together because I think they flow with each other and really convey how I was feeling at that time, and portray it as its whole experience which links back to trying to be as open and honest as I can! Saying that, we have got a single coming out soon that was a rare one off before we crack on with the next record!
M: On Spotify your description is, ‘I feel like a wilted flower, I was once beautiful to someone then I died inside’. Can you give any more context behind your name?
WF: So that’s actually the opening line of the first poetry book I wrote! When I started writing and releasing music back in 2014ish I went under my own name, then around April 2019 I decided I wanted to rebrand and because poetry plays such a key role in my music it just made sense to use something that referenced it!
M: When it comes to social media, do you find it important in the role it plays to your music and your streams?
WF: Definitely! I try to be as active as I can on social media, it’s a great way of interacting with people who love our music and to promote it! Plus, I’ve made so many friends through social media and it’s a great way to support and boost other artists!
M: You released your album last year mid-pandemic. Was the pandemic in any way actually beneficial for you music wise?
WF: It was definitely weird not being able to play the songs live, and I can’t wait until we can, but I also really enjoyed being able to do livestreams and have people from around the world tune in that wouldn’t usually be able to see us ‘live’ so I’d say that’s definitely a benefit! We also had to cancel a tour we had planned which really sucked but hopefully next year!
M: Finally, I like to end on a fun one. If you could be any flower, wilted or not, which would you be?
WF: Ooh that’s tough! Sunflowers are my favourite, and I love how bright and positive they are and that’s how I try to live my life so I’d like to be a sunflower!
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