FEATURE: Spotlight: L. Devine — Music Musings & Such

FEATURE:

Spotlight

L. Devine

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IN quite a timely Spotlight…

PHOTO CREDIT: Jack Alexander for NOTION

I am focusing on an artist who released a terrific single recently. Girls Like Sex arrives ahead of the album, Near Life Experience Part 1, on 23rd July. It is exiting to hear new music from L. Devine. Real name Olivia Rebecca Devine, the English songwriter is one of the hottest and most promising out there. Keep your eyes on her social media channels to see when you can order her album I am writing this on 29th May; it is not going live for a little while). I want to bring in a few interviews so that we can learn more about L. Devine. It is interesting reading the interviews, as most of them have been conducted earlier in the pandemic. Then, there was not much expectation of much new music in such a tough time. Now, we have something ahead and signs that there is more to come from L. Devine. Before introducing some recent interviews, there is one from 2019 that I really like. It was early days for L. Devine. Even then, there was this buzz and excitement. DORK shone the spotlight on the Whitley Bay-born artist:

“It’s a tale as old as time: a girl moving to the big city to follow her dreams. Dreams that every parent eyes with suspicion because they are simply too big, because the chance of them actually coming true is one in a million. But here is a girl who followed through, who’s making her dreams reality. A girl whose third live performance was a slot at BBC’s Big Weekend. L Devine. Newcastle’s coolest pop star and Charli XCX’s vision of ‘The Motherfucking Future’.

PHOTO CREDIT: Jack Alexander for The Line of Best Fit

Ever since releasing her second EP ‘Peer Pressure’, L Devine has been on a steady rise. “It’s still very surreal. You’re always onto the next thing, and everything goes by so quick. I was so overwhelmed by the show the other night, and now I’m like ‘right, when’s the next one?’ Get my thinking cap on and try to top it, but it’s unbelievable. I’m so happy with how everything’s going, and I’m just really excited.”

And she has every reason to be excited: sold out headline shows in Newcastle and London and a slot at this year’s Big Weekend in Middlesbrough mark the start of her journey as a live performer. A start that most artist can only dream of. Talking about her Middlesbrough adventure, she says: “It was definitely a bucket list moment, just to be on the line-up next to those huge names like Miley Cyrus and Billie Eilish. And if you look at other artists who have played the BBC Introducing Stage in the past years, it’s so cool to be recognised by the BBC.”

But let’s start at the beginning. As she puts it, Liv got into music by copying a friend. “I always thought he was really cool, and he picked up the guitar so I thought I should do it, too. Then I just kinda got the bug for it, and I got really into writing music. I’m pretty impatient. I didn’t want to spend all my days looking at YouTube tutorials on how to learn other people’s songs, so I just made my own up.” Growing up in Whitley Bay, by Newcastle, Liv was surrounded by a culture that was very big on alternative and indie music, but her first songs were all very singer-songwriter. “That was all I had. Me and my guitar in my bedroom. Then I realised that I listened to so much music and I would get tired pretty quickly sticking to just one genre. That’s when I became interested in production and a lot of electronic music. Because I had been playing guitar so much, I was so excited about weird sounds and unique beats. I guess I got into pop music, not because I listen to it more than other genres, but because pop music is the one you can bend the most. It doesn’t really have any boundaries. You can constantly reinvent what it is and what it means to you.”

And so her journey began. From her bedroom up North down to London, where she moved in with a friend hoping to get in with the big guys. Eventually, the labels came knocking, and with good reason”.

“All my songs that have connected with people are the ones that I’ve been so desperate to get off my chest, that are helping me through the situation. I wrote it in 15 minutes. It was so easy to write because it was just me telling the story start to finish. It was completely overwhelming. I was nervous to put that song out because it was the first time I had explicitly talked about my sexuality and it was so out in the open, and I didn’t want to feel like I was cashing in on it or anything. I was scared of what people thought of me after putting out the song, but everyone was coming to me, telling me how much the song had helped them. How much they needed that song. It was really special.”

What sets L Devine apart from the rest of the pop world is her attention to visuals. Similar to Billie Eilish, her music comes alive on screen. But where Billie hones in on the strange and twisted, Liv’s aesthetic takes a more indie film approach. Talking to her about the two improvised short films that accompanied her EPs, it’s clear to see that Liv has an endless supply of creativity and that she is not just excited about music.

“Visuals are super important to me. It’s one of my favourite things if not THE favourite thing at the moment. I love diving into it. Whenever I’m writing, I have visual ideas coming to mind, and I’m always making mood boards. I’m shit at Photoshop, but I’m always trying to make some kind of artwork or designs for T-Shirts”.

The next interview I want to bring in is from NOTION. Conducted earlier this year, one gets a picture of this bold and thrilling Pop artist:

“Loaded with attitude, L Devine’s melody-heavy strain of intelligent pop showcases an unashamed young woman with an innate ability to craft instantly relatable sonic tunes. There’s an organic connection between the young artist and her expanding following; the vulnerability of her songwriting is embraced by fans experiencing similar experiences as they transition to adulthood.

With praise from fellow Brits Charli XCX, Dua Lipa and Lewis Capaldi, Geordie singer-songwriter, L Devine, continues to make huge waves since her arrival in 2017. Her singles “Boring People” and “Don’t Say It” were both named as Annie Mac’s Hottest Record before being playlisted at BBC Radio 1 last year.

Following this, L Devine was able to use her youthful innovation in order to pull off one of the most inventive livestream series to date. Her ground-breaking ‘URL Tour’ gathered huge traction online and garnered praise across the board. The tour took the place of her cancelled ‘IRL Tour’ and was structured around five unique shows on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook Live, TikTok and YouTube across March last year.

More recently, L Devine has linked up with chart-topping DJ/producer Route 94 on the dance-pop single “Sad Songs”, which swiftly amassed over 3 million streams on Spotify.

First song you released?

“School Girls” in 2017!

First CD or record you owned?

My dad bought my first CD for me: ‘Teenage Dirtbag’ by Wheatus.

First time you realised you wanted to be a musician?

I got a guitar for Christmas when I was a child. I just felt really cool playing it and became obsessed with the idea of becoming a rock star.

First gig you went to?

My older cousins were in this band called Slap Stanley or something like that. My dad took me along to one of their gigs – I must have been around 6 or 7, I was really young. And it was so rowdy the band started fighting with security on stage. I loved it!!

First festival you went to and the first one you performed at?

First proper festival I went to was T in the Park with my friends. It was very interesting… we woke up to a cup of human shit outside our tent on our first morning, which kind of set the tone for the rest of the weekend!! The first festival I performed at was The Great Escape in Brighton. I played the AMP stage down on the beach – it was my second ever show!”.

If you have not checked out her music, then have a listen to it and get involved I feel L. Devine is going to be a big act that will be touring the world before long. She is certainly fresh, vital and dynamic. The material she is writing is eye-opening, thought-provoking and urgent. It also has plenty of warmth, heat and depth. Keep your eye out for her. The next interview that warrants highlighting is from The Line of Best Fit. It was conducted at the end of last year. Although a lot of has changed since then, we do get an impression of how L. Devine spent a strange and stressful 2020:

“The pandemic put a pause on Devine’s own release schedule with just singles “Don’t Say It” and “Boring People” offered up this year. Pointing towards more promising progressive pop, these tracks are just a teaser as she's been using her newfound time to work on music, with the hope of releasing a longer body of work next year.

Uncertainty stills reigns though, she laughs that “everything could change [again]," when talking to us over Zoom. We caught up with the songwriter to talk all things 2020 and beyond before we unveil the stripped-back session she's recorded for as part of our Off The Road series.

Despite everything you’ve still managed to drop some new music this year too.

Yeah I felt like it was a really good time to jump on some features, jump on some collaborations and keep getting music out there. I didn’t feel like I could do my next project justice within all the restrictions. They’ve both been really fun, so I’ve managed to keep quite busy, but it has been pretty chill.

How have you found releasing music without being able to play many live shows?

I guess it’s made people think outside the box and think of new and interesting ways to get your music out there. Everyone’s in the same boat, aren’t they? I miss it so much though, playing live is my favourite thing. I forgot how good it was to hear the crowd sing back to you. I was lucky enough to do a gig in Newcastle in September, for this outdoor socially distance festival, [This Is Tomorrow Festival], with 2,000 people. It was my favourite gig I’ve ever done, because everyone was so gagging for it.

It was like pig pens almost with six people, so went in your household and they were all separated, so it looked massive. I went to see Sam Fender, when he played, and it’s kind of like having your own VIP section. There’s certain music where you wanna be squished up against some randomers and getting all sweaty, but at the time it suited me quite nicely.

In this hellish year, what was your highlight?

I know this might sound lame, but I’ve lived in London for four years and I never saw my family, only at Christmas, so it’s been so unreal to be with them again and re-connect. I just feel like northern families, it’s such a close knit thing and I can’t describe it, but we all live on the same couple of streets and I see them every single day. Sometimes it’s a bit much, but when I’m away from it I just wanna be around them. They’re truly my best friends and I just love being surrounded by the kids, my sister, my cousin, my mum, my dad...They’ve definitely been my saviour.

What are you most looking forward to next year?

Going on out on the road. Just going out man, I miss the club, but I just wanna go out and hear those features in a club. It’s such a shame that I released two club bangers and then not hear them in the context they’re meant to be heard in. The “More Life”, Tinie Tempah and Torren Foot one, I just know that would bang so hard in a club. Maybe I’ll put on a little night and play those songs back to me”.

As there is an album arriving in July, more people will hear the music of L. Devine. She is a terrific artist that is primed for big things. Her fanbase is growing and, with songs like Girls Like Sex out in the world, one cannot ignore her. I shall wrap things up now. I have been following L. Devine for a while, but I think this year will be her biggest so far. After quite a rough 2020 for us all, venues will soon reopen. If you can get to see L. Devine then do so. She is someone who puts on an electric live set. If you are looking to get behind an artist who is going to be making music for years to come, then I can recommend…