AT ONLY 18 YEARS OLD THIS POP SONGSTRESS IS ALREADY BIG NEWS…WE LOVE HER.

From posting her first youtube video at 14 in 2015, a beautiful song called “Electric” written and preformed by her, you could tell this girl is has real talent. Now she is signed to Atlantic records with a big following on youtube and instagram and she’s still only 18 …amazing eh. We get a chance to catch up with her at THE GREAT ESCAPE festival in her and our hometown of Brighton.

Good morning Maisie… mmm that’s very formal eh .. ha .. What are the kids saying on the street these days for hello…ha?
Oh dear, I don’t know, I’m not very street! Actually, I rate good morning, feels very nice and comforting so let’s bring it back.

Ok let’s start with the obvs .. when did you start playing music ?
I think I was 12 when I first borrowed my friends guitar and taught myself ‘Downtown’ by Lady Antebellum.

How old where you when you wrote your 1st song?
Well, I found a notebook of my first ever written songs the other day and there was one about sandcastles written in 2008 when I would have been 8 – scintillating stuff!

How was the great escape festival?
So fun! Brighton is my hometown and the best city in England (I am biased though) and I saw so many friendly lovely faces at the front which was so nice.

“Brighton is my hometown and the best city in England (I am biased though) and I saw so many friendly lovely faces at the front which was so nice.”

How do you feel when you play on stage?
Excited, very focused – it’s almost an out of body experience where you become simultaneously very aware of everything you’re saying and singing but also very unaware of the world around you.

Where would like to escape too?
Right now I have this random need to go skiing, which, seeing as I?ve been twice and I’m average at best is strange. I am obsessed with snow though so maybe that’s some of it.

Who’s been you biggest influence on your music?
Impossible question! If you make any sort of art there must be at least a dozen huge inspirations that made you start out, so if I was to list just a few I would say Taylor Swift, Lily Allen, First Aid Kit, The Vaccines, so many!

What would your HEY GIRL song be?
Uhhhh, well if we are going for namesake then Maren Morris’s song GIRL is amazing; she talks about female relationships and the intricacies of them, jealousy and understanding that we do not have to preserve societies almost predetermined setting of pitting us against each other. So bang that on your playlist and dedicate it to your best friend!

Fav lyric?
Another impossible question! I have so many, just one of them would be ‘Kathy I’m lost, I said / Although I knew she was sleeping’ from the song ‘America’ by Simon & Garfunkel, a song that actually inspired my song ‘Stay Young’.

What gives you the most ideas?
Being in bed, trying to go to sleep, normally past midnight.

How do you feel about social media?
Overwhelmingly positive, I think it’s become such an invaluable space of learning and friendship and acceptance for so many.

As a women do you feel pressure about the way you look?
Always, largely from myself. But I’m also hugely inspired by Jameela Jamil and other amazing feminists who are trying to break down how women have subconsciously been made to feel about our natural bodies.

“I’m also hugely inspired by Jameela Jamil and other amazing feminists who are trying to break down how women have subconsciously been made to feel about our natural bodies..”

Our next issue is ‘Spirit and Adventure’ …. where’s been your best adventure?
I went to LA for a month at the beginning of this year which was an albeit very work focused adventure haha – it took me out of my comfort zone though which I think is why it counts.

What does the word ‘Spirit’ mean to you?
Determination, an inner strength that you keep as a last reserve for tricky times.

How do you keep yourself positive?
Remind myself of all the good things I have, and weirdly remember that no one gets everything in life, so it?s fine if some things slip away because it’s natural and normal and other things will come!

What do you want people to get from your music?
I want them to feel understood, like they aren’t alone – I want them to be able to take my songs and make them soundtracks for moments in their life, their bus journeys, their pres before a night out. I just want to be necessary to someone.

Chocolate or chips?
Chocolate, every single time.

What question would you like to ask HEY GIRL ?
Answer all these questions! And then send me your answers via carrier pigeon.
Phew thats gonna take a while .. let us find a small pen … or how about we just get a plastic cup and some string and can chat over that .. old school ..ha xxx

Big thanks to Maisie…Love HG x

Pic’s – www.simonclemengerphotography.com

Maisie’s debut EP Dressed Too Nice For A Jacket is out now. Check out her latest releases Stay Young and Favourite Ex