After a daring cross-country move to Manchester, a city unknown to her, the remarkable singer-songwriter Chantelle embarked on a journey of self-discovery and growth. Now, she stands at the heart of the music scene once again, ready to unveil her powerful narrative through her melodic creations.
Chantelle’s latest release, “wish you the best”, is a radiant blend of upbeat hip-hop-infused R&B, serving as an anthem of closure to a toxic and emotionally abusive relationship. The song is a testament to Chantelle’s resilience, aiming to shed light on her personal experience and inspire others to find their path to healing, even if it isn’t the conventional route.
This captivating track began as an unfiltered acapella expression, evolving into the mesmerising hip-hop R&B sound we hear today, thanks to the masterful production, mixing, and mastering talents of Sarah Lee. Chantelle’s soulful vocals, accompanied by an old-school sample, weave a tapestry of emotion that captivates from the very first note. The music video, recorded by her sister and meticulously edited by Chantelle herself, is a grace to our screens.
Chantelle is more than just an artist; she is a relentless advocate for authenticity and vulnerability. She is determined to utilise her talents and knowledge to inspire growth and change. With unwavering dedication, she pens her own lyrical narratives, independently produces her music, all from the confines of her homemade studio—a true testament to her passion and commitment.
We sat down with this extraordinary artist to get to know her early days within the industry, new music releases and big future plans…
Watch the video…
Read the exclusive interview below…
Hey Chantelle, how are you? What does a day in the life look like for you right now?
Hey Wonderland! I am doing really well, thank you so much for this opportunity. A typical day for me right now is waking up and having a tea, because I can’t do anything without one honestly. Then I do a little bit of journalling, working on my gratitudes before I pick up my mobile phone (although I must admit it’s very hard not to just pick it up the minute I open my eyes). I’m currently working on a few collaborations and projects with people all over the world so my current go-to is to catch up on messages and emails. I spend the morning listening to producer demos who have requested me on their song and see who I really click with. After that I head straight up to my little in-home homemade studio and I relisten to all of my new songs that I’m currently working on. I have a new single coming out in a couple of months so the perfectionist in me is in a tunnel vision trying to make sure it’s perfect enough to send off for mastering.
Just before lunch, I speak to my social media managing team and decide what content I would like to post that really aligns with me and my brand as an artist, something which I have been working on solidifying for a while now. After that I go for walk trying to clear my head to avoid getting burnout or feeling overwhelmed. Then for the rest of the afternoon I catch up on recording songs, singing harmonies and submitting for playlists and press for whatever song I am or have been working on. Then I finish the day replying to more messages, talking to my friends and going out into the city to enjoy some drinks or just vibe. Then I do it all over again haha!
Where did your love for music first originate?
My love for music first originated when I purchased my first CD’s. One was by Jojo, the other two by Rihanna and Christina Aguilera. My family is very musical and me and my sister put on little musical shows for the family all of the time. Singing professionally never really felt like a possibility for me and so I just loved it in secret. Where I grew up in Essex, in my school if you sang or loved music class you were a totally uncool. Then one day there was a task to sing a song in a group and we chose to sing “Let Me Love You” by Mario and I had never been more excited. We even shot a little music video and I was over the moon about how it came together. Then Disney Channel and YouTube specifically came to my attention and I found Ariana Grande, Tori Kelly and Miley Cyrus and I just was in awe at their singing talents. YouTube introduced me to people doing covers so I decided to give it a try. I sang so many (all privated on my channel now) but gosh they are funny. My family had no idea I sang or even wanted to so I would always sing when no one was home – you can clearly see in the videos where I’m checking the door or windows to check I’m alone. It’s so funny to think about now.
How has your music evolved over the years?
My music has evolved in the sense of finding my sound and being truer to myself. I think I am way more honest in my music now because I have grown up and been through so much that I’m not really afraid to speak it now. Also, in more of a songwriting sense, in the past I was just putting journal entries or poems and trying to link them to music that didn’t always fit but now I really pay attention to all the details and what can make it encompass a deeper story and feeling. Since coming to terms with being mixed raced and having a huge identity crisis about it, I found my love for R&B and I really wanted to start to embrace that culture in my music to remind me of and help me feel closer to my family and that community. My music is becoming more like me every day and it’s really fun and exciting to grow with such a craft.
How did the moving to Manchester impact your music and creativity after taking a music hiatus?
Moving to Manchester was quite literally petrifying. I didn’t know anyone here; no friends or family and I had just gone through two really hard breakups over the past year and a half so I was the most vulnerable ever. Moving up here and spending so much time on my own really helped me reflect and start to heal and I knew I needed a change. After a month or so when I turned 25, I had this big pivotal moment where I realised I had so much more I needed and so badly wanted to achieve but couldn’t because my energy had always been consumed by toxic people or situations. One unfortunately being my cute little dog who because of behavioural issues held me back quite a lot mentally, physically and financially. So, I sadly had to give my dog to my family (one of the hardest decisions of my life). After that I knew that I didn’t have a choice anymore to be sad about it, I just needed to make the pain worth it and so now I am. I knew that nothing was going to change unless I put my all, every second and every breathe into it. It also helps that the atmosphere in Manchester is so motivating and friendly — full of kind people and creatives who are so genuine. It was one of the best decisions I have ever made.
Coming back to music was a whole other scary mindset to shift. I worried if people wouldn’t care enough after being away, but it turns out a lot of people were just waiting on me. I’m very lucky that I have the support that I do, it really helped my anxiety with releasing my first track back.
Congratulations on your new single “wish you the best”! Could you share the message and meaning behind the track and how it reflects your personal journey?
Thank you so much! So, the message for this track is, as I would like to call it, a “passive aggressive closure anthem to a toxic relationship”. After ending a 4-year engagement with an emotionally abusive narcissist I really needed some kind of closure because I certainly wasn’t going to get it from them. And anyone who has been in a relationship like that knows how hard the aftermath is when it’s over. It was a few months after the breakup and all of my exes stuff was still at my flat and I had ranted to my friend about how I really wanted to do something bitter, like pop the hot tub or rip up a shirt but couldn’t because that just wasn’t in my character. So, in annoyance I wrote the song just singing in acapella around the house about some things that I wish I could do to be spiteful. I was just really angry but I don’t think I could ever be as hurtful to them as they were to me and I just really needed something to help me stay focused until the stuff was gone. Without realising it at the time, this song was really distraction therapy. Now a year and a half later since I wrote it, it still is therapy for me. I listen to it all the time. I have moved on from them now and I’m so glad it’s behind me, but the song represents how far I’ve come and how much better off I am without them. I feel pride when I listen to the song now, I got myself out of that in the best way I knew how and I hope and will try to never get into that situation ever again.
How did meeting Sarah Lee influence the production of the track?
So, I met the lovely Sarah Lee at a livestream opportunity I did. She was the one who liaised with me on emails and logistics, and was also one of the engineers on the day. I really liked her style and her jumper but obviously I wanted to be professional. After the event was over, I found her on Instagram and realised she made music herself. It was amazing, really heartfelt and simple vocals and harmonies which are my favourite types of songs. I emailed her and just asked if she’d ever be down for a collaboration and to my luck, she was. “wish you the best” was originally really slow. I sent her an acapella version and Sarah sent a version back with her playing the guitar over the top. It was really pretty and bedroom vibey but we realised it needed something more. Summer was around the corner and we wanted something upbeat and personally I needed more upbeat music because it was currently all quite slow and sad haha. So, she went away and added some oomph with some old school samples and it just hit off from there. I love both versions of the track but this one really gets your blood pumping and makes me want to dance and heal instead of cry and heal haha. She really hit the nail on the head, it was an honour working with her, I’m so grateful and she really is a good friend of mine now.
The music video for “wish you the best” was recorded by your sister and edited by you. Can you tell us about the creative process behind making the video?
My sister is my number one fan and has always been a part of my creative processes. I was low on funds honestly and knew that I couldn’t afford to professionally pay for a video so I decided to just try and make one myself. I had done so before for a previous release during lockdown and it was actually really fun. Being in my new house which is quite old school interior and color wise, I thought it would be quite simple. I had an idea of theme and color schemes so I went shopping and made a big mood board. Since the beginning of time me and my sister have taken pictures and videos of each other so there’s no one I trusted more. I really wanted a retro vibe for the video so I asked my dad if he had any old-school phones and he had a couple that were actually my sister’s old mobile when she was like 10! During the move I had also found my old car DVD player and I just knew I had to use it somehow. For my birthday, she came down to see me and we shot the video in one day in my little house. The acting and being in front of the camera was the hardest part for me but after ranting it became quite easy to imagine being on the phone to my ex. It was a really fun and comfortable shoot. Then I edited the video over the weekend. I’m proud of what we created, I really give my props to professional videographers and film makers because it’s not easy, but it’s a set of skills we can both tick off for trying and I think it went well! Thank you to my sister!
As an independent artist, how do you find the experience of managing your music career and releasing your music on your own terms?
I love it! It’s so much more rewarding. It’s definitely overwhelming but with anything great there’s always certain downsides. It’s just all about balance which I haven’t totally found yet but the more I grow and insert myself into this industry the more exciting it is. It’s my job but it doesn’t feel like it because I truly love it and music is the only thing I want to do in my life. The hardest parts are probably the rejections, finding funding and trying to balance a social life and your career. I have been quite fortunate to have had a good and bad experiences with people in the industry, plus just growing up and believing in myself more to really knuckle down and get whatever I put my mind to. I know what works and what does not, but as things are constantly changing in this industry I personally think being independent makes it a little easier to stay grounded when everything is going fast. You have your own back; you step into a community of other independents all just trying to do the same thing and make a name for themselves. There’s no hierarchy and I personally love that. I’ve been in very male driven organisations before where being a young girl, it was hard to be listened to. Well now the only person I have to listen to is myself and people that genuinely have my career in their hearts that I get to choose. I’m sure one day I may be reached out to by a label and I wouldn’t ever say that I’ll decline it because who knows. But right now, I am really enjoying being independent and learning how to stand on my own two feet in this industry. My women idols that I look up to have always said how important that is.
Being an advocate for mental health, how has your music allowed you to express your stance on the topic and contribute to eradicating the stigma around it?
I think I make my stance on the topic by genuinely just being myself. I have always been an open book and oversharing is one of my many perks. I thought that was a bad thing about myself until the more I wrote about my feelings, the more I felt like this healing journey was going to be okay. My favourite messages are the people that say that my music has helped them realised how they’re feeling or that I helped them release some emotions they didn’t know they had pent up. Thankfully I think we are getting to place where vulnerability, especially in music is becoming more common. I just want to make a mark on the world and let people know that feeling and being vulnerable, being silly and open, talking about embarrassing moments or times where you were hurt, you know that that is all okay to do? I have been made to suppress a lot myself in my personal journey and I’m finally at a place here I know that I deserve to speak up about what goes on in my brain. Individualism is slowly killing our society where no one seems to care about others as much as they should and it’s really sad to see. The purpose of making music for me is to help myself and others know that they have a safe place with me to feel all the feels and still have a laugh and dance and cry and all of those things can coexist and it doesn’t make you any less than.
Can you share any upcoming projects or collaborations you have in the works for us to look forward to?
Yes! I have so many exciting projects coming out. I’ve really been enjoying speaking to and collaborating with different lowkey startup artists and producers around the world. I have a few album features with someone in the US and multiple places in Africa. I have a few singles coming out with London based artists and it’s just exciting to help elevate each other!