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Every Monday we will be bringing you interviews with unsigned UK or Ireland artists for Independent Music Monday. Recently we caught up with unsigned London singer Lily McKenzie to find out more…

Where are you from and how did you first get into music?
I’m from South London, I first got in to music when I started singing with a grime crew that lived locally to me, that experience heavily influenced my sound and helped me find a passion for music!

Who were your musical influences when you were growing up and who are your influences now?
I listened to a lot of R&B, artists like Aaliyah, Nivea, SWV, Sade and Monica, and I also listened to a lot of grime, UK Funky and garage. I still listen to a lot of those artists now, but I also like a lot of house and electronic music too.

How would you describe your sound?
My sound mixes R&B with electronic influences, it’s got a definite London feel. I write from experience so it’s got a raw and emotional side to it, but I always try to make my songs empowering and uplifting.

What is your latest release called and what was the influence behind it?
My latest release is called ‘Best You Had’ which is part of my upcoming EP ‘Caged Bird’. The song is about realising your worth. It’s about the pain of a relationship not working, but also recognises the beauty in putting yourself first.

What’s your local music scene like?
There are so amazing musicians locally from Jazz to grime, and your local scene will always help to build your foundation – but I feel like the pandemic has really made us branch out and connect online with music from all around the world. As we haven’t been able to go to live events for over a year now, we have had to look to different communities, which has been both sad but also exciting – I love to be influenced by different types of music, and seeing all different types through Insta lives/online gigs has really inspired me.

What do you have planned for the next 12 months?
Over the next 12 months I’ll be releasing the rest of the Caged Bird EP which I’m really excited about! I’ll also be releasing lots of new features as well as working on and releasing more singles and EP’s.

Is there anyone you’d love to collaborate with?
There are so many great artists and producers at the moment, SBTRKT, Kendrick Lamar, Ghetts, Jamie XX and Kaytranada are a few that I would love to work with.

Any funny stories surrounding your live performances?
Once I had a show and I was trying out Ableton Live for the first time (a program that allows you to trigger different sounds/samples at different times), but the controller I had borrowed was old and a little bit faulty – half way through my set it stopped working and suddenly every button I pressed was triggering something completely different! It was a total nightmare I wanted the stage to swallow me up – somehow I think I managed to style it out.

What is the one thing that you want readers to know about you?
One thing about me is that I pour myself into my music, sometimes I find it hard to speak about how I’m feeling but I can always write about it – so if you want to know more about me – that’s the best way to find out!

Lily’s upcoming EP Caged Bird is due out on 23rd April. You can find out more about Lily via Facebook, Instagram, SoundCloud, Spotify, Twitter or YouTube.