Inspired #423 - Cristina Hart
Cristina Hart bares her heart and soul on her latest single ‘Like My Father’. The track’s gentle melodies that are blended together with Cristina’s lyrical sensibility makes this a powerful opener into the new year for the rising talent.
Melancholic in sound and in sentiment, Cristina opens up about her ‘complicated’ relationship with her father, and reflects on the way that it has bled into other relationships in her life. The effects of these complications have a way of influencing the way you approach situations and people later on in life, as well as affecting your trust for other people, and in ‘Like My Father’ Cristina articulates this poetically, with grace. It is an honest and sincere account that leaves you feeling sympathetic to her situation, but for those who have experienced similar heartbreak in the family home, it is sure to resonate with them on many levels.
Cristina took a moment to talk to us about the inspirations behind her music.
Who are your top 3 musical inspirations and why?
One of my top musical inspirations is a producer called Dan Nigro. He produces and writes with Conan Gray, Olivia Rodrigo and Chappell Roan and I’m obsessed with all these artists. They all write from such an honest and vulnerable place that a lot of pop music doesn’t really dare going to and the lyrics and production are amazing. Even though I started out as a singer, songwriting and lyrics have meant more and more to me and I look up to artists that pour their hearts out into their songs. I’d say another huge inspiration for me is Noah Kahan. I know everyone is talking about him at the moment but I remember listening to the ‘Stick Season’ album back to back when it came out and I was just in awe of his writing and how cohesive it all sounded. And lastly, I’d say Griff. I love how she creates a whole visual world around her releases and she’s such a great live performer as well, she looks so creatively free.
Is there a certain film that inspires you and why?
I really had to think about that one! It’s hard boiling it down to one film but movies that kept coming to mind were Pixar movies, particularly ‘Inside Out’. It’s such a great example of accepting your feelings and not trying to fight them; allowing yourself to feel those difficult feelings. I think that’s played a big part in how I write my music from a place of non-judgement. Although it’s branded as a kid’s movie I genuinely think that everyone would benefit from watching it - it’s basically a free therapy session!
What city do you find the most inspiring and why?
It’s cliché for a reason… New York! I’ve been there twice, once with my mum and sisters and we just had the best time. A core memory that I have is when I went to New York the second time. It was just me and my mum and she was there for work and there was one day that I was there where she had to work and I remember begging her to trust me to go and explore New York on my own instead of putting me on a tourist tour bus for the day. I was 15 years old at the time and I think it’s such a big memory for me because it was probably the first time in my life I felt independent. I spent the whole day walking in Manhattan, visiting museums, watching street shows, and I literally had the best time and felt so inspired by the city. I was actually dead-set on moving to New York to do music before I settled on London, but I’m really happy with where I’ve ended up!
Who is the most inspiring person to you and why?
It’s so hard to pick one person because different people inspire you for different reasons but I think one of my biggest inspirations in terms of career is Taylor Swift. The way she’s been able to reinvent herself constantly and keeps thriving decades into her career, I think every artist would find that inspiring. I’m in this for the long run and she inspires me to keep going no matter what happens and always put the music first.
What were your inspirations when writing your new track?
So this was an interesting one! I didn’t initially set out to write about this but I do these little re-writes on my TikTok, where I take a song and make it my own or write it from a different perspective. It’s such a fun little creative exercise. So back in 2022 I re-wrote ‘complex’ by Katie Gregson-MacLeod and that’s where the line ‘If he’s like my father, then he’s gonna leave me’ came to me. I posted it and to my surprise, so many people related to it. I’d never felt more seen in my life and it made me realise that my experience wasn’t unique so I decided to dive deeper and write a song around that main lyric as a concept.
How would you like to inspire people?
I would love to inspire people to be kinder to themselves and give them a safe space to hold their feelings. Everything can feel so overwhelming and non-stop sometimes that you never take a pause to actually ask yourself how you’re doing. Feelings of grief and loss aren’t linear and can flare up for different reasons so I hope my music can inspire people to take a breath and know that they’re not alone in what they’re going through.
