What’s the last song you listened to?
Running – Pip Millett
What artist or album has gotten you through lockdown the most?
What’s influencing your music right now?
At the moment, I’m focusing on writing about my experiences growing up black and Irish, and about my Zimbabwean heritage which are both heavily influencing my lyrical content. Musically, I have been really engaged with jazz, the likes of Jill Scott, Billie Holiday and Gotts Street Park.
Tell us about your new single Where You Are, what has inspired the song?
Where You Are is a song that explores the often chaotic journey of love. We have been fed a narrative of a perfect kind of love, that is effortless and uncomplicated, that means that you will find someone that fits every part of you flawlessly. More often than not, this isn’t the case. It’s the imperfection that makes love fulfilling, it’s in learning and growing that you find happiness that is gratifying because of the time you have spent nurturing it. It’s a really fun and upbeat track, where the musicality takes you on a bit of a journey and reflects the emotions of the track.
What do you hope people take away from listening to the track?
That it’s in being open and vulnerable, and being patient with each other, embracing each other’s shortcomings and allowing yourself to be seen, that you will find something that is pure and unadulterated, if not sometimes a little turbulent. To quote the track “it’s the hard work, that makes it all worth it.
Where You Are by Shiv is out now.