Ahead of her November performance at Band on The Wall, Olive Jones sat down with MM to discuss her songwriting process, positive touring experiences in Manchester and lyrical vulnerability.
Also known as lead vocalist in electro-soul, hip-hop outfit Noya Rao, the artist is taking her solo career further with her latest project, Three More Nights.
Moving from a career in a band to making music as an independent artist has invigorated Olive.
“It’s so exciting,” she said. “We are creating whatever sonic world we want and I think you can hear that honesty and freedom in the music.”
Revealing a softer acoustic take on soul after previous electronic singles ‘Planes’ and ‘Summer Rain’, the new EP has Olive’s same distinctive vocals and genuine lyrics. Released at the end of October, the four-song project conjures up ideas of a cosy night in with relaxing vibes rivalling Gilmore Girls.
Opening with title track Three More Nights, Olive uses a combination of smooth vocals and honest lyrics to create an EP which is comfortingly relatable.
It feels like a vulnerable project, as Olive explained: “I think it’s through songwriting that I process the world and my experiences of it and therefore inevitably my songs have a lot of ‘me’ in them.
“I’m a very resilient, positive character day to day and it seems my music is where I choose to channel some of my sadness, frustration and introspection, as well as joy, love and happiness.
“I would say the older I get, the easier I find it to write more vulnerable lyrics as I care less about how they reflect on me.
“I hope people will be able to find their own meanings in my words and feel comforted by my honesty and vulnerability.”
The EP brings to mind the similarly sophisticated Rosie Lowe, and lyrically delicate Billie Marten. Olive mentions La Force’s album XO Skeleton immediately as one of her biggest musical influences, alongside artists Feist and Alabama Shakes – influential both musically and in terms of production.
As you might expect from the openness of her EP, Olive described her songwriting process as both a “form of procrastination” and a “meditative practice”.
“Lyrically some songs fall out of me with ease but others require a little more patience to be articulated in the right way,” she said. “Lyrics are very important to me and I have always strived to write words that are personal yet universal.”
For this release Olive worked with producer James Wyatt, who has worked with the likes of Pixie Lott and Lianne La Havas – a process she described as “inspiring”.
“He strives to find something special from each corner of a song and his dedication to my project has been so encouraging.
“We are both so aligned with our vision and our skill sets really complement each other.”
Ahead of her performance at Band on The Wall on 18 November, Olive revealed her affection for touring in the north, describing a recent set at Gorilla as support for Aaron Frazer as the “best show on the run”.
“The thing is, you can find nice people everywhere but it’s just an attitude thing. I find personally in London everyone is trying to be too cool.
“The audience in Manchester was just giving you everything, the audience was so engaged, so interesting.”
Hopefully the audience at BoTW will live up to Manchester’s warm-humoured reputation.
All images courtesy of Olive Jones
