Artist Of The Week #0077 - Hannah Jane Lewis
This week’s Artist of the Week is Surrey born pop artist Hannah Jane Lewis, who today has released her new self-titled EP via Kobalt/AWAL. She took a moment to talk to us about the release.
Along with your new EP, you have dropped new single ‘Not Yours Never Was’, what is the track about?
‘NOT YOURS NEVER WAS’ is actually about a time in high school when a guy I knew decided to completely blow a situation between him and I way out of proportion to make him look cooler - 'locker room talk' as some may say! This song is calling him out for lying and all about taking the narrative and power back! It feels a bit like a girl power anthem for me, and is my favourite song to sing in my live shows.
The track sees your working with Karen Poole, Jonny Lattimer and producer Lostboy, how did that come about? You share writing duties with them, do you prefer that when it comes to songwriting?
Well I wrote the song quite a long time ago with Jonny and Karen during a session where we had never met before, but hit it off and got a great song out of it! Then about a year later when we decided to release it I took it to Lostboy (my fave producer) and he worked his magic and made it sound how it sounds today. But in general, yes songwriting is super important to me - so in all the songs I have released I have always been a part of the writing process. I love collaborating with other writers!
The EP sees you covering ‘The Middle’ by Jimmy Eat World, what made you choose that song?
I wanted to choose a song that people wouldn't necessarily think I would cover, which is what lead me to this song as its a bit of a pop departure. When I was younger I loved this song, but it wasn't until I went to record it that it fully hit me what the lyrics were about. I really related to it, and I do a lot of work in high schools on anti bullying (which is the theme of this song) so thought it would be a perfect message to send to my fans who struggle with being bullied or fitting in. It perfectly explains that every situation and feeling is temporary and will be alright in the end. Its a song I wish I had written myself!
When it comes to writing tracks, how do you start with an idea and develop it into the final track it becomes?
I usually always go into the studio with an idea of what I want to write about, whether its a situation that I am personally going through or a phrase or word that inspires me. Lyrics are the most important aspect to me when I'm writing. Then comes the melody, and eventually the final track. In 'not yours never was' case, it was a personal situation that sparked the idea, and a photo on Pinterest that gave me a little more inspiration too!
Now the EP is out there, what is next?
Well I've actually just recorded my next EP, which I'm really excited about! It's going to be a little bit different and its coming soon! This year I wanted to release as much music as possible, so expect lots more songs from me :)