Bianca

Bianca chats to LeftLion

Hello Bianca, how are you?
Hiya. I’m great thanks. Looking forward to this interview of course! How are you guys?

What have you been doing today?
Today so far I have been sending loads of emails, doing interviews and listening to a demo that I just received back from a session a few weeks ago which is always exciting.  Plus the sun is shining outside which is a bonus! Shame I don’t have a garden to go out and enjoy it.

Where in Nottingham are you from and what sort of stuff would you do growing up in the city?
I’m from Gunthorpe just outside Nottingham. I’ve always done music so I spent a lot of my spare time back in Nottingham doing music, singing and playing in local orchestras. But I of course enjoyed going to see a cheeky film at the Cornerhouse and chilling in the square with a Starbucks.

Is this you who took part in BBC Nottingham’s Karaoke Kids feature? 
Haha, indeed it is. I applied for that thinking that I wouldn’t get anywhere because I hadn’t been singing for long before it. So when I got to the finals I was majorly surprised. But I remember it being a lot of fun.

I understand you have been involved in music from a young age and was a finalist in the Nottingham Young Musician of the Year Award…
Yeah. I started playing the cello when I was quite young because my parents thought it would be good for me to have a hobby outside of school, but because none of my family is musical, they weren’t sure whether I would take to it. But I loved it straight away and carried on playing and studying the cello until I was about 16. I didn’t really start singing properly and seriously until I was about 15 and knew straight away that it was something that I wanted to do for a job. 

How do you go from having a place at Royal Academy of Music to joining a pop group?
Honestly, I don’t really know how it happened. I started at RAM as a cellist and then changed to be a first study singer as I started to take singing more seriously. I can’t really remember how I started auditioning for more pop stuff, but I was asked to go to the Parade audition by a casting director I had auditioned for before, but never thought in a million years I would ever get in because I was a right plain jane. So when I was asked to be in the group, I was genuinely amazed. But it was such an amazing opportunity that I had to take it.

When did you make move from Nottingham to London?
When I was cast in the group in October 2009 we were all put together in a house in London and lived together for two years. It was a massive change for me because I was only 18 and I’m an only child so it was crazy different. But I loved it. We had so much fun!

Why did you decide to leave Parade before the group’s second album was released? Was it because you felt the songs weren’t good enough or had you been offered a better deal to go solo?
It was simply a matter of feeling that the group had run its course. I didn’t leave the group to go and become a soloist, I left because I thought it was time for us to start a new chapter and couldn’t see where else we could go from where we were. I think we were all really proud of what we achieved in the group, at a time when the industry was saturated with girl and boy groups, and it was time to try something new.

How did you break the news to your bandmates?
I spoke to them all individually saying that I was going to leave, but to be honest, I think we were all of the same mind frame. One of the girls said to me after the split that it could have been any one of us who could have been the one to say it. We felt it was time to move on from the group.

Are you still in touch with any of your old Parade colleagues?
Yeah I am. It’s always nice to see and hear what the other girls are doing and have a catch-up.

You song Step It Up has a similar 80s disco vibe to another Nottingham-born singer, Ronika. Are you aware of Ronika’s music and if so what do you think of her?
Yes, I’ve heard a couple of her songs. I really like her sound and I think she’s really quirky. Forget Yourself is a proper tune.

Who are you currently working with and what do they bring to the songs?
I’ve been working with a mix of writers and producers such as Anu Pillai, Ali Love, Roy Kerr and Eliza Doolittle who I co-wrote my first single Step It Up with. But I’ve also worked with Biff Stannard, The Nexus, Steve Anderson, Quiz and Larossi, Hygrade and Holter and Erixson. They’ve all been great to work with because they’ve really embraced me as an artist and they all really understood what I wanted to achieve musically by taking inspiration from 80’s music but giving it a contemporary feel.

When can we expect a solo album from you?
The album is nearly finished and I’m really proud and excited for everyone to hear it. I’m hoping to put the album out some time next year.

You could have some of the best songs in the world, but breaking through and making it in the pop always appears to come down to lucky breaks, knowing the right people, and a big money injection from a label for promotion and radio plugging. Am I just being cynical and how do you see your music career going?
I definitely agree that there is a certain element of that. The nature of the industry as it is at the moment makes it very difficult for new and upcoming artists and bands to get a break independently – particularly if you are a pop artist. However, I do think if you have a really strong product and great material, it is honestly as much about perseverance and self-belief. If you are confident and prepared to work crazily hard, have a thick skin and put up with the horrible parts of the industry, you have as good a chance as anybody of getting your material heard.

Apart from your own what other music are you listening to at the moment and anything you would recommend to the LeftLion readers?
I’m in love with Jessie Ware’s new single Say You Love Me. It so simply beautiful and I adore her vocal on it. I’m also really getting into the band Prides. Their song Messiah is one of my favourite songs at the moment.

Do you ever come back and visit Nottingham?
I try to get back as much as I can, but sadly, it’s been less more recently as I’ve been so busy putting the record together and I’ll be starting to gig soon. When I get home, it’s normally only for a few days, so I spend most of it with my family and dog. I’ll also try and go for a little drink at my local, and catch up with any friends who are in Nottingham at the same time.

Any final words for the LeftLion readers?
Just that I’d love you to check out my new single Step It Up on my Soundcloud page  and have a gander at my Facebook page . A massive thanks for reading my interview and big love to you guys at LeftLion for the great questions.

Listen to Step It Up the debut track from Bianca on Soundcloud.

Bianca Facebook