Taken from the AW20 issue of Rollacoaster. Order your copy now.
Hannah Grace’s new album is the perfect Remedy. Pulling from three years worth of songwriting, the album has something for everyone. After releasing singles for the last few years in including hits “Praise You” and “December”, Remedy is Hannah Grace’s first album. And after a highly productive quarantine for writing music, there’s more to come.
Check out the interview below…
What’s your lockdown experience been like?
I feel very lucky that overall my lockdown experience has been good. I spent the first lockdown at home in Wales, where I spent a lot of time in the countryside and with my family so there were a lot of silver linings. Then for the second half, I came back to London, finished my record and I’ve just been spending as much time as possible doing music, and spending time with my housemates who are all my best friends. I’m grateful that I’ve been able to continue to be creative and make music this year.
Your new album is set to be released this fall, how did you come to the title ‘Remedy’?
I’ve been working on this record for the last three years and all of the songs are a reflection of my life in that time. I wrote and recorded it when I was at my happiest and my saddest and the process became like a homemade Remedy for me. So even though none of the songs are called remedy it just felt like the perfect word to sum the album up as a whole. I hope it can become a sort of remedy to people when it’s out in the world!
You released ‘Missing the Show’ as the single ahead of the album, what is the song about?
I wrote ‘Missing The Show’ with one of my best friends, Martin Luke Brown, someone I’ve collaborated with a lot on the album and another great writer Frank Colucci. We wrote the song about when a relationship is over but you just don’t want to let it go. When you feel like you’re giving everything to this person but getting nothing in return. It’s about realising that the potential was always stronger than the reality.
With all the diversity in the album and years worth of music to choose from, how did you decide what songs to include in the album?
I spent a lot of time thinking about what songs to include on the record. I had been writing songs for so long and there were so many songs that I loved. It was important to me to make sure it felt right as a whole and that each song had it’s own place on the record. Both in terms of the sound of the music and what the songs were about. I feel like there are two sides to the album, happy upbeat uplifting songs and more reflective melancholy ballads. I am so happy ad proud with how it’s turned out and I feel like all of the songs I chose tie together.
It’s been a few years since you started releasing music, what is the biggest lesson you’ve learned up to now?
That’s a really hard question. I feel like I’ve definitely had to learn to balance my perfectionism with living in the moment. I’m really quite hard on myself sometimes with how good the track is or if I’ve recorded the best vocal I can do. This has helped me take my time on this album and work hard but sometimes the best moments are more raw and natural rather than always overthought. Sometimes I just need to let things happen and not worry about every little thing.
What makes someone inspiring to you?
One of my first inspirations was Eva Cassidy. I was in love with her voice and I used to listen to her on repeat growing up. She made every song sound like her own even though she hadn’t written them and I think that’s so special. After Eva I just listened to so many different people, from Aretha, and Stevie Nicks, Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan and Joni Mitchell and Carol King. These women have inspired me so much, not just with their voices and words but they have also inspired me to put my own character into everything I do and stay true to myself. I’m inspired by their honesty. I think any kind of art, including music, has to be as honest as it can be to have a chance of making a real connection.