Introducing Interview: Be Charlotte

Fronted by teenager Charlotte Brimner, Scottish three-piece Be Charlotte look set for big things in 2017. Not only have they received acclaim from Huw Stephens and John Kennedy, they’ve also been named as one of The Great Escape’s First Fifty for 2017 and have been confirmed to play SXSW this March.

With their new infectious, glitchy electro single ‘One Drop’ out later this month, we caught up with front-woman Charlotte to find out more… 

Hello, welcome to Gigslutz! Please introduce yourself. 
I am Be Charlotte, singer/producer from Dundee in Scotland.

What is the theme behind ‘One Drop’?
The song was born of frustration but has grown into a good, upbeat empowering message. I think it’s about getting up and getting on with the task in front of you, even when things seem difficult.

Who did you aspire to musically when growing up?
I played violin for about twenty minutes one time! Then I discovered the guitar and that’s when I first started writing songs of my own. More recently I started writing with Ableton and it is that that ended up creating the sound that I was happy to share with the world. All the songs have been written using s combination of live and digital composition, that’s the sound I really enjoy.

What inspires your lyrics?
It’s usually something that is on my mind for one reason or another.  I often write when there is something I need to get out of my system.

We heard that you toured Asia recently, what was that like?
It was great! We are very lucky to have been able to do that tour and meet so many lovely people along the way. We played in five countries and they were all so very different. And I love the food in Thailand! The gigs were all quite different from what you’d expect back home, the people were all really pleasant and they show their appreciation by staying quiet during the songs.

What’s the best and worst piece of advice you’ve been given since working in music?
Best: Focus on what’s important and don’t let anything be a barrier to progress.
Worst: Someone once told me that I shouldn’t let my accent come across so much in my music. I think it’s important that when you are writing songs that are about real life, that you don’t dilute the message by having a different voice tell your story.

What do you have in store for the next year?
We have a single coming out later this month, which is very exciting… Then we go and play our first ever shows in France, Germany and Holland. After that we will do a UK tour in February, and then we go to America in March. So it’s quite hectic! I can’t wait to play my music in all these different countries!

What do you hope people take away from listening to your music?
I hope that the listeners can recognise that pop music can carry a message, tell a story and say something that means something. It seems to be working as people often ask about the content and ideas behind the songs. I’ve never wanted to write about all the usual stuff that people write about in their pop songs.

Huge thanks to Be Charlotte for answering our questions!

‘One Drop’, the new single from Be Charlotte is out 20 January via AWAL/Kobalt Label Service. 

And you can catch Be Charlotte live at the following the European dates:

13 January – Eurosonic – Netherlands
14 January – Hamburg – Germany
15 January – MaisonSage – Paris
18 January – FluxBau -Berlin
15 February – Madhatters -Inverness
16 February – PJ Molloys – Dunfermline
17 February – Garage – Glasgow
18 February – Electric Circus – Edinburgh
19 February – Lemon Tree – Aberdeen

 

 

Mari Lane

Mari Lane

Editor, London. Likes: Kathleen Hanna, 6Music, live music in the sunshine. Dislikes: Sexism, pineapples, the misuse of apostrophes.