UpClose with Jess Spink

We had an UpClose chat with effortlessly raw and captivating London singer-songwriter Jess Spink.

The thing that seems to shine through above all else when it comes to music and songwriting is authenticity. Well written songs and lyrics that come from deep and real places tend to resonate with listeners on another level, and evoke feelings of catharsis and a feeling of being seen and understood. This week, our partnership with CloseUp has led us to an artist who could serve as the poster child for candid and honest songwriting.

Jess Spink is an artist whose work is dripping with authenticity. Her tracks are grounded in a heartfelt, and often heartbreaking sense of reality and honesty. Offerings such as ‘Same but Different’ and ‘Love Last’ from her excellent new EP Where It Goes From Here serve as wonderful examples of the nuance and gravity to Jess Spink’s sound, and the immeasurably high ceiling the the artist has. We had a quick chat with Jess to get a closer look at the future of one of our favourite emerging artists.

Jess! It’s great to sit down and have a proper chat (Kinda). We’re such big fans of your music as you well know. Tell everyone a bit about the musical world of yours?

Thank you so much, it’s a pleasure to share my music with you! The songs I’ve been writing and releasing this past year have been extremely personal and 100% inspired by the experiences I’ve been going through, navigating difficult relationships and the transition into ‘adulthood’. This first EP has allowed me to express myself honestly which is both a weight off my shoulders but also a scary process to put raw feelings into words for people to listen to and interpret themselves. I hope that people are able to relate to the songs and find comfort in my songs through this.

Working with songwriters, producers, designers, videographers and photographers to bring the music to life and capture the different moods I wanted to portray within the lyrics, whether that be hope, loss, sensuality, or love, has been so much fun and I’m so grateful for the people I’m collaborating with. We’ve found the balance I wanted between vulnerability and strength in the songs, which I think reflects who I am as a person.

The last 12 months has been such a crazy year for musicians & artists, how much has it had an impact on your music?

It’s definitely been a roller coaster year! In some ways it was a blessing in disguise and gave me more free time to actually finish songs remotely that I’d written before lockdowns kicked in. With other parts of my life put on pause, I was able to really focus on how I wanted to roll these first few songs out. It’s meant spending more time online, which I’ve loved as I’m able to chat directly to fans of my music more on socials, as well as having to be creative with assets, like making a music video from my kitchen using a laptop camera!

On the other hand, a lot of the things I imagined doing around releases weren’t possible. I’ve missed live music and being in a studio immensely and the whole year definitely had an impact on my confidence and inspiration, as being around other creatives and experiencing real life is a huge help for me to write the best music I can. I’ve been trying to prioritise my mental health because there’s no denying the pandemic has been a real challenge for so many people including me. I haven’t done a gig since first releasing music in October so I’m SO excited to do a headline show later this year where people might actually know the words to the songs (!!!) as well as get back into the studio to work on new music for 2021/2022.

We for one are absolutely missing live shows and festivals more than ever thought. if you were to create a ‘Spink Festival’ then WHO would be your 3 headliners? (and can we come?)

You can definitely come with VIP tickets of course! So hard to pick just 3 but my headlines would be 3 queens… Lorde, Beyonce and Halsey.

What are your plans for 2021, fill us in with all the info you can!

Gigs, gigs, gigs! I can’t wait to perform this first EP to new audiences in the UK as well as meeting fans in person, that will be the coolest thing. I also have new music that I’m really excited to finish and share, one song in particular is my favourite song I’ve ever written! There will definitely be music video plans too. For my first few videos I worked with a young female director, Mila Austin and the whole process from start to finish was one of the best things I’ve ever done, creating these visual worlds around songs that mean so much to me.

I really want to take some risks this year and put myself out of my comfort zone, collaborating with new people across all aspects of the project and pushing more boundaries with my music.