13 November 2023
Every Monday I will be bringing you an interview with an independent band, duo or music artist. This week, I caught up with Welsh artist Caitlin Lavagna to find out more…
Where are you from and how did you first get into music?
I am from Rhondda in South Wales and have Gibraltarian roots. I have always sung, danced, acted and generally been surrounded by music and the creative arts so it makes absolute sense to me that I wanted to make it a career despite the knowledge of that being very difficult. I just couldn’t imagine doing anything else. It brings me absolute joy every day knowing I could be feeling or going through anything from overwhelming happiness to absolute despair and always have music as a form of therapy or support. It sort of acts as a person that’s consistently there to listen and support without feeling like you’re burdening friends and family with things. Because of what music means to me and how it has helped me, I always want to try and create that for someone else. I suppose that’s the reason I write and release songs.
Who were your musical influences when you were growing up and who are your influences now?
I have been constantly surrounded by music. My grandfather sings weekly in Pendyrus Male Voice Choir, my Grandmother also sings in a Rock Choir, my mother plays Cello, Piano and loves everything music has to offer. Wales is commonly referred to as the land of song too, so when you add that with my more exotic musical upbringing (from my Gibraltarian side) with artists like Bob Marley, Sting, Melon Diesel and Breed 77 – I have been spoiled. Having musical icons like Shirley Bassey, Tom Jones, Charlotte Church and the Stereophonics paving the Welsh Music scene, it made sense to me to listen to all genres and to take interest in specifically Welsh/Gibraltarian artists. Lots of my favorite songs by these artists talk about shared experiences and themes. The beautiful landscape and people I have been brought up by have definitely impacted my creativity and it is therefore reflected in my songwriting. I suppose, I always felt like I had something to share and say so doing that through music just made sense.
How would you describe your sound?
I think my current sound is indie pop/folk. I think the key elements to my music are strong bold vocals, honest lyrics and most importantly, rhythm! I think letting people relax when they listen is great for a while, but I really enjoy the subtle rhythmic shifts and intricate percussion and harmonies/vocals I include in my music.
At the moment, I am writing like mad, deciding what my overall sound is, experiencing life and documenting it as I go. To be able to release my original music and then connect with other people is massively fulfilling.
What is your latest release called and what was the influence behind it?
My latest single is called ‘Run A Mile’. I wrote this song after someone really hurt me. I was so shocked by their choice of words when I finally asked if we could make things official, that it made me realise how brilliant it was that they wanted to (and I quote) ‘Run A Mile’. This song helped me process anger, low self-esteem and anxiety because of someone who actually never treated me well in the first place. I hope people enjoy the song and appreciate the production. I hope people understand that although the song came from someone saying something horrible to me, it has actually helped me understand my worth and allowed me to process a lot of the toxicity I experienced chasing something that didn’t exist with someone who never cared.
What’s your local music scene like?
Cardiff is brilliant, Liverpool is crazy and I suppose London never sleeps either. I use these three cities as examples of how brilliant music scenes can be because I am always touring Wales, London or the North. As much as I love being an Actor Musician and working away from South Wales, I am also aware that it takes me out of the live gig scene for months at a time. Now that I am managing to grow my rep, I am starting to gig as I go and in the not so distant future will be gigging way more regularly!
What do you have planned for the next 12 months?
My music video drops soon for Run A Mile, then, I am in Theatr Clwyd performing in this year’s Sleeping Beauty Rock ‘n’ Roll Panto. In Jan I have some time off before the next show and intend on getting to work on the next bit project which may or may not be an EP. As well as lining some solo gigs up and trying out my tracks in a live setting with a band!
Is there anyone you’d love to collaborate with?
I would give anything to work with Florence and the Machine, also HAIM and Pink would be up there in terms of writing and performing!
What is the one thing that you want readers to know about you?
I think I would like them to understand that most of my writing comes from real experiences. If they relate to a song, melody or lyric in one of my tracks then they are really relating to me. Despite being an actor, one of the things that’s freeing about my own writing is that I get to be vulnerable and honest and play the part of Caitlin Lavagna (hence not going under a stage name like many artists do).
You can find out more about Caitlin via Instagram, Spotify, TikTok, X (Twitter) or YouTube.
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