Not Stupid Anymore (Deluxe Version)

The deluxe version of my EP, Not Stupid Anymore, was released in August 2016 and featured five new original songs along with two remixes of Not Stupid Anymore.  I released the single ‘Call Me Whatever You Want‘ as the lead for this EP as I thought it would be a perfect poppy song for summer!  The EP features all the songs I recorded with The Next Room Productions in London, which all have a similar youthful, girly sound, so if you are into Katy Perry, Taylor Swift or Meghan Trainor, I think you would enjoy this EP!  Not Stupid Anymore (Deluxe Version) is available to buy or stream on all major retailers, including iTunes, Spotify and Amazon Music… so get your copy now!  My favourite tracks are Not Stupid Anymore, No Going Back and Love’s Willing Prisoner.

Falling Back Together

For my second single, Falling Back Together, I thought it would be really fun to do a GoPro type video, following me around my favourite places near where I live, in Manchester.  We shot mainly in four locations: the centre of the city, Crosby beach (near Liverpool), The Edge and Etherow Country Park, which are both in Cheshire. The UKG mix of Falling Back Together was used as the lead mix for the video, which worked really well as it has a real sense of movement in the track, matching the walking in the video.  So many of my favourite places are featured in the video, including The Northern Quarter in Manchester, the cathedral and the forest at Etherow! I decided it might be a good idea to do a black and white lyric video to really emphasise the meaning behind the words of the song, and make it even easier for people to learn them!

 

 

Music Player

Stuck In Limbo: The Remixes

Back in November 2015, I released my first single, Stuck In Limbo.

I was absolutely thrilled to start sharing my music with the world, but also a little nervous!  Luckily I got a really great response to the track, video and remixes.  The single included the Original Mix, House Mix, UKG Mix and Dub House mix, which provided a great variety to appeal to different tastes.

Whilst the House Mix was the lead mix, it was actually the UKG mix which was selected to be featured on Certified’s soundcloud account.  This was awesome for me as the account has over 80K followers and helped more people hear Stuck In Limbo! The UKG mix was played almost 3.5K times, with lots of loves and reposts.  It felt amazing for so many people to like the track!

The Falling Back Together (Deep House Vocal Mix) – released 8th April – will be featured on the EDM Network’s soundcloud page this time around.  I’m so excited for this as they have even more followers (156K) so my music will be shared with even more people!  Hopefully, I get the same sort of reaction as I did with Stuck In Limbo… or better!  Fingers crossed!

Listen to Stuck In Limbo (House Mix) and Stuck In Limbo (UKG) below!

Falling Back Together: UKG Mix

The UKG remix of Falling Back Together premiered on The Popshock, on 16th Feb 2016! 

The UKG mix is the first remix to premiere from the Falling Back Together single.  It’s really exciting to have so many great remixes of Falling Back Together as they all bring something different to the table!  I think the UKG mix is a great mix for the club with a heavy bassline and catchy hook, and that’s why it is actually the lead mix for the campaign.

Along with the Original and UKG Mixes, the single will also feature a House mix, a DUB mix and a Deep House Vocal Mix.  I can’t wait to share them all, but in the meantime, check out the UKG mix below!

After That Night

This song is going to be on my upcoming EP and is unique as it’s the only song I have ever written where the lyrics were the component written last. Me and my producers decided we wanted to do a song with a chilled ambient house type feel, so they sent me a backing track to write to and see what I could come up with.  It was a bit of an experiment to be honest as I had no idea if I would be able to write a song this way, as I usually write at the piano and sort the lyrics before the melody and accompaniment! However, I actually really enjoyed challenging myself and pushing my writing to a new level!

The subject matter of the song is also unique in relation to my other songs as it is completely fabricated and not based on my own personal experiences.  I decided I wanted to write about cheating in a relationship but not condemning it in a black and white way, so I added the complication of a friendship into the mix.  The story is about two friends who, whilst both in relationships with other people, cross the line and spend the night together. The song is about the consequences of a flirty friendship going too far and the implications on the relationships they are in.  It’s about not being able to forget what happened and not knowing whether the friendship could go back how it was before.  Anyway….. I really hope you enjoy the song and stay tuned for the house and garage remixes which will be coming soon…..

Stuck In Limbo

Stuck In Limbo is a song that is very close to my heart and also happens to be the song me and my producers have chosen to be my first ever single.  There are three versions of the track that have currently been produced: the original song as I wrote it, a house remix and a garage remix.  I can be seen performing the original on my YouTube Channel or below, however, it is the house remix that we have selected to be the debut track off the EP, as it’s just so upbeat and catchy.

The song is about a very intense relationship with lots of ups and downs. Like most of my original songs, it is written from a place of personal experience and genuine emotions.  At the time of writing the song I felt like I had no idea where a relationship was going and how to resolve all the issues, despite still loving the other person.  This led me to feel like we were ‘stuck in limbo’ because I didn’t know whether we would or should break up or stay together.  I tried to get across the feelings of confusion and hurt through the lyrics of the song and the awkward position of being trapped in a middle place between being happy together and being happy apart.  The song is one of the slowest and most ballad-like that I have written, with a slow, soulful feel to it.  Below is a video of me performing the original version of this song in the studio in London…. I hope you like it!

My Upcoming Music Video

I would like to talk about the video that is being planned for one of my songs at the moment!  The plan is to release a ten track EP consisting of both a house and garage remix of five of the songs I have written and this should hopefully be happening this summer.  It has been decided the lead track will likely be the house remix of a song I wrote called ‘Stuck In Limbo’, so a video is now in the works!

Stuck In Limbo is about a volatile relationship, which was going through a particularly rough patch, so I wanted a video that managed to get this story across.  I have been working on potential scripts with the producers of my EP and we have come up with a video idea focussing on a young couple in a relationship that is on the rocks.  In the video they will be shown at the start as disinterested in each other and unhappy, whilst contrasted against a loved up new couple.  As the video develops, the couple becomes further and further apart and this builds to a climax.  In the end the couple have the option to either fight for what they have and patch things up or to leave the relationship behind… and I will leave the ending to be revealed when the song and video are released.

The video will also have some art effects employed in order to intensify the feeling that the couple have lost their passion and their way.  The title ‘Stuck In Limbo’ refers to them being lost and not knowing whether the relationship can or should be saved.  The idea is to have a time lapse effect that makes it seem like the main characters are moving much more slowly than their surroundings to make them seem isolated and in ‘limbo’. The colour saturation of the video will be lower than normal too to give a dull and faded feel to the scenes in order to convey the loss of passion.

So excited to finally start planned things like videos and EP releases in order to try and realise my dream of being a singer as soon as I can! Below is a link to me performing the original version of ‘Stuck In Limbo’ in a studio in London.  Fingers crossed that I will be posting the finished music video on here next!

Get To Know Me Q & A

Favourite Artist/Band?

This is a difficult question as there are so so many artists I admire and love but if I had to pick three, I would pick John Mayer, Nirvana and Fleetwood Mac.

 Favourite Album?

This is easy for me as there is one album I will play all the way through whenever I need to relax, and that is John Mayer – Where The Light Is.  The album is the whole of his concert in LA live, so has all of his best tracks along with the audience reactions and great guitar solos linking the songs.  For me it’s just perfect!

Favourite Song?

I have two favourite songs and they are both a bit odd! One is Len – Steal My Sunshine, as it just cheers me up whenever I listen to it and it’s perfect for a sunny day.  The other is Sufjan Stevens – For the Widows in Paradise, For the Fatherless in Ypsilanti.  I just think that song is so beautiful and the banjo part is so relaxing and lovely.

Best Performer I Have Seen Live?

I have seen many great artists in concert, such as Beyonce, Rihanna, Sam Smith, but hands down the best was London Grammar.  I saw them at a festival in Nottingham called No Tomorrow and they were just amazing!  The whole band is so talented, with great songs and Hannah Reid’s voice is mesmerising.  The album is great, but live they are out of this world!

What Instruments Do I Play?

I mainly sing and play piano to accompany myself, but I also play saxophone (badly nowadays!).

How Do I Write My Songs?

I’m a strong believer that you can’t force song-writing or the song won’t have feeling and will be pretty crap.  I carry a notebook with me a lot of the time and always take one on holiday, just in case any ideas hit me when I’m on the go.  Then I go to the piano and work out a melody and chords.  Usually I write lyrics first, then melody and then accompaniment, although occasionally I think of the melody and lyrics together.

How Would I Describe My Original Music?

If I had to label my songs with a genre I would probably say Pop, but I would like to think that they aren’t superficial even though they are upbeat.  I write mostly about my own experiences and emotions, which I think makes my songs heartfelt and easy for others to relate to.

My Music Career So Far?

I’m really just getting started as I have spent the last three years concentrating on my academics, whilst doing music on the side.  My parents wanted me to have a back up plan, in the form of a degree, in case singing doesn’t work out, so I have been at university studying for the past three years, whilst writing music and travelling down to London to record.  At the end of these three years I now have a 1st Class Honours Degree in Chemistry from the University of Nottingham, a fully produced 10 track pop album and a 10 track EP of house and garage remixes of my songs ready to release this summer (hopefully!), so I’m ready to tackle whatever life throws my way!

And Finally, Why Do I Want To Be A Musician?

I’ve always loved singing ever since I was young and when I was 18 I decided I wanted to make the transition from hobby to career.  I’ve spent the last three years focusing on my back up plan, so now I’m ready to give what I really love a shot! Music has got me through some rough times and I love the idea of being able to touch people with my music and maybe provide the same sort of peace for someone else.  The absolute dream would be to perform and have a crowd singing my lyrics back to me; I think that would be the most amazing feeling in the world!

Not Stupid Anymore

Not Stupid Anymore was the first song I decided to perform for my YouTube channel and it is still one of my favourites of my own compositions. When I wrote the song I was almost ranting on paper about how I felt about someone at the time and it was a release to just get it all out!

The story behind the lyrics is how no matter how hard you work to get over someone who is bad for you and no matter how hard you try to shut them out of your life, sometimes it can be impossible to let go of all your feelings for them completely.  It’s about feeling conflicted between the desire to forgive them when it seems like they have changed their ways and the need to turn them away in order to protect yourself from the inevitable fall out when they change back.  Ultimately I was trying to write a positive and upbeat pop song with a deeper message about the issues of breakups when there are unresolved feelings.

On my YouTube channel, Sally Caitlin, the video of this song is me performing a garage remix live in a studio in London.  I really hope you enjoy it…. so go check out Not Stupid Anymore!