London-based singer/songwriter Tiggi Hawke is a straight-talking vocalist who shoots from the hip and writes and sings straight from the heart. Tiggi’s ethos and philosophy is pretty straightforward: she wants to bridge the divide between musical worlds of synth-pop. Tiggi Hawke started her career at Tileyard Studio in Kings Cross when she was just 16 and is still there to this day. With no plans of an album in the near future, Tiggi promises many more singles and possibly the release of an EP! Striving to create honesty and realness within her artistry, Tiggi Hawke is the one to watch!
Meditative and super-soulful new single “New York City” has us blown away. Not only is the track explosive and mesmerizing, but Tiggi’s vocals are precise and raw. She puts her heart on display in the most admirable and poetic fashion. The confident, well-produced backing track features infectious synths to create a tension that’s heightened towards the song’s conclusion. The melody continues to build as the track progresses and the rhythmic synths that had accompanied it are a refreshing and welcome addition. Tiggi has outdone herself with the emotive lyricism and powerful vocals. We love what we’re hearing from this up and coming artist and we can’t wait to see what she delivers next.
Listen to “New York City” here and read more below in our exclusive interview!
What was it in your childhood that made you so passionate about music?
I’m not sure there was a particular point that I can say “that is the one and only reason”, my parents love music so there was always music playing when I was growing up and they encouraged me to embrace any sort of creativity, so that definitely opened Pandora’s box. I didn’t start writing until I was in high school and by then it was more of an outlet for me, school and me didn’t go well and I found that I could be more ‘me’ when I was wiring and singing and I never stopped since then!
Can you tell us more about your song “New York City”! What inspired it?
To me, NYC is a reflective song, looking back on a past relationship that still holds a piece of you, so you find yourself looking for that person wherever you are and in whoever you’re with. I don’t like to get too specific about songs, only because I think that if I did it becomes only about why I wrote it instead of leaving room for people to have their own interpretation.
Who are you biggest musical influences?
That’s a tough one! I listened to a lot of different music growing up so I had a really eclectic musical introduction, my mum was into a lot of rock music while my dad was into American classics so I heard a lot of different music! I also started singing classically so experienced that genre too. One of my all time favourites though is Johnny Cash and I definitely think he inspired me with his writing, he managed to tell a whole story in the space of a song and you don’t feel like he missed anything out or carried on too long.
When you write, do the music or lyrics come first?
For me it’s almost always lyrics, I need to know where I’m going with a song, at least roughly, otherwise my mind is all over the place. But after the initial figuring out of that, then it’s a bit of a free-flowing mash up of whatever comes into my head! I don’t really have a filter, so 90% of what comes out can be absolutely nuts and entirely unusable but I love the whole process, especially when I’m writing with other people, it really inspires me to push the boundaries and I get to bounce some ideas off some crazy talented people!
Connect further with Tiggi Hawke and her music via her Instagram!