Interview: HANNAH ROSE PLATT, Nashville Meets London

Liverpool’s own talented singer, songwriter and guitarist Hannah Rose Platt took some time to speak to me about Chanel and Cigarettes, underrated artists, and her Gibson guitar. Read more below!

Ciara’s Country (CC): Hello everyone, I’m joined by Hannah Rose Platt after her set at the Nashville meets London festival in Canary Wharf. So Hannah, thank you very much for joining me today!

Hannah Rose Platt (HRP): Thanks for having me!

CC: So first of all, I wanted to know, how are things going for you today?

HRP: Oh, it’s just amazing! I was just saying to someone back there that my face is aching from smiling because it was just so fun, such a great adrenaline rush, a great day.

CC: Well it seemed that even at this time in the day, everyone was enjoying themselves.

HRP: Yeah, it’s a beautiful day today as well so we’re really lucky.

CC: Can you tell us a bit about the songs you sung for us today?

HRP: Yeah, so most of them are from my debut album Portraits which I recorded out in Nashville last year. I tend to write songs about other people rather than myself, and threw a few of the new ones in there today which will hopefully be on the next album, hopefully giving you a taste of what’s to come!

CC: It’s interesting that you choose to write songs based on other people’s experiences – is there a particular reason for that?

HRP: You know, I think it’s just habit because I used to write stories and poems as a child, it was kind of a narrative, so I think I joined it up with my love affair with country around my late teens and just started to write songs instead of stories really. That’s where it came from. There’s an element of me in all of them, but most of them are about other people, and things I find moving, or interesting, or sad or funny.

CC: So once you have an idea in your head for a song, how do you turn that into the finished piece?

HRP: Sometimes it’s a lot of hard work, and it’s like chiselling away at a piece of wood. Sometimes it comes in a flash and that’s great. There’s no rule really, there’s no set way.

CC: And what would you say has been the most interesting or your favourite song to write so far?

HRP: My favourite song is actually the last song we played today, the Chanel and Cigarettes song because I’m a big blues fan and it’s a lot more bluesy than some of the other tunes. It’s actually a ghost story that I wrote when I was about six or seven that I found in a box that my mum gave to me, and I just thought ‘wow, I’d love to turn this into a song’. I just kind of made it more adult, and turned it into a ghost song. It was a lot of fun to write that song.

CC: So you had a lot of influences in your show today – country, blues – what were some of the influences for you when you were finding your musical style?

HRP: Definitely the alt-country scene, kind of the J Hooks, Wilko, Ryan Adams, and Whiskeytown – all kind of alt-country scene – those were the main influences.

CC: And in terms of the type of music that you listen to, are there any underrated artists out there that you think deserve a lot more recognition?

HRP: Ah, so many! I can’t even think! The person that springs to mind is Don Gallardo – he’s actually doing quite well for himself now. I met him last year as he was over here from Nashville. He’s just a really nice guy, a really talented write, he’s just fantastic. I’m hoping for big things from him in future as he’s so underrated. But there’s so many artists who should be more recognised.

CC: Well hopefully with the growth of the genre in the UK, we’ll hear more about those kinds of people soon.

HRP: I’m sure we will, no doubt.

CC: Finally, my last question for you today is what’s the one question you wish you were asked in interviews but never have been?

HRP: Oh wow, that’s so hard!

CC: It’s always a difficult question asking people what they’ve not heard!

HRP: I mean I think your question was great – what’s the most interesting song for you to make because most people don’t tend to ask that question, but I need to find one that you’ve not asked! Probably about my guitar playing, people don’t really talk about that.

CC: I was very impressed with your guitar playing today!

HRP: I have this thing, especially when I was younger and used to go around gigging, people didn’t used to take me seriously with a guitar, and then they saw it was Gibson and said ‘oh, she must actually be able to play it!’ and that used to be quite frustrating at times. I learnt from my step-dad, watching my step-dad play and he used to teach me guitar but I don’t actually know what I’m doing half the time. I think it works, it seems to work anyway! It’s more about listening and feeling it rather than knowing exactly what chords to play.

CC: So when you’re songwriting, what comes first – the vocals or the guitar?

HRP: You know it all completely varies. I have a bank of guitar riffs on my phone but more often than not, when I think of a good lyric that’s the way I go. But it’s there, kind of like a safety net if I’m struggling and is helping me write quite a few good songs.

CC: Well that sounds exciting for future albums! Thank you very much Hannah for joining me today, and thank you for answering my questions.

HRP: Thank you for having me!  

Want to find out more about Ciara’s Country or Hannah Rose Platt? Check us out on Twitter at @CiarasCountry and @HannahRosePlatt and let us know what you thought of this interview!