Your EP is a deeply personal project. What stories or themes were you most compelled to explore through it?

For me, my EP is an expression of the pain and guilt of losing friends before 21. In Northern Ireland, suicide is something that has become normal to some. Nearly every person has lost someone to it, or know people who have been affected.

Coming from a small community, most people don’t actually speak about it. There’s a weird stigma around it which just leads people to ignore it instead of talk about it.

Although the EP is themed around losing friends, there wasn’t really anything specific that I was trying to accomplish with it. It’s just an honest truth and journey of grief, including the ugly parts.

How did you approach the production process - were there any unexpected creative breakthroughs or challenges along the way?

I do produce some music myself - but the production on this EP was driven by two insanely talented producers- Angelo Imani and [Youth Music NextGen Fund artist] Lemonade Shoelace.

I stumbled upon Angelo Imani online and instantly connected with his hard hitting, multi-layered, emotional instrumentals. His production really allowed me to reach a side of music that I was yet to explore- which led to me writing some of my favourite songs yet.

‘21’ was the first song that I made for the project. Whilst the production by Angelo was already amazing, I sampled videos of my friends throughout the song which really personalised it for me.

‘confessions’ and ‘middle child’ have more of a psychedelic feel, and were produced by my brother Ruairí Richman - aka ‘Lemonade Shoelace’.

We spent a long time making sure the production was right. ‘middle child’ was actually originally on a completely different instrumental that he had made but after careful consideration and countless reworks, we found a sound that really fit the theme that we were going for- a late night drunken crash out.

You’ve said the process taught you to embrace vulnerability and be open about mental health. How has that openness shaped your music and how you connect with listeners?

I’ve noticed a big trend of artists trying to stay mysterious during promotion, which can definitely work depending on your style of music. But for me, honesty and vulnerability is something that can connect to people on a different level. I’m not aiming to be idolised, my goal is to start conversations and create a safe space where people can be fully true with themselves. Sometimes we feel amazing, sometimes we feel terrible and that’s okay. It’s part of life ~ “nature keeps on taking it’s course- and I can’t handle it” is a line from pangea that I feel captures this honesty

Were there any skills or lessons you learned through the project that you think every emerging artist should know?

Something I think every artist should learn, is how to record their own vocals. This gives you so much more freedom and allows you to save money from studio time, which can end up insanely expensive. Whilst the audio quality may differ from what you can get at a professional studio, the comfortability of being in your own space without limited time can bring so much more life to your recordings than a sound treated studio can.

How did you go about building your press kit and approaching industry professionals, and what advice would you give to others doing the same?

For my press kit I worked with Dylan Murphy, an established writer and music journalist, to create a write up for the EP which I then adapted to my liking. I was struggling to put the EP ‘into words’ and he really helped me explain my vision. I then tweaked the press kit depending on who I was sending it to, but I feel like I didn’t take full advantage of it and should have sent it to more contacts. I’m quite bad at putting things into text (ironic for a songwriter lol) so I often find sending emails and messages quite overwhelming. I think this a very common experience for artists, as it feels weird pitching and ‘selling’ yourself, especially if the project is a personal one. 

My advice to others who are experiencing similar problems is- don’t overthink it. While press coverage is of course amazing, and can help for applications for festivals and funding, it’s not necessary in this day and age. There are so many ways to get your name out there on socials, and if you get traction there, the press coverage will be much easier to attain. 

Finally, if you could go back and give yourself one piece of advice at the start of this project, what would it be? 

Trust the process! Stop worrying!

I really got in my head with this EP, and found myself having big writers blocks and motivation losses. Although receiving the funding gave me a lot of confidence, I think I also put unrealistic expectations on myself. As a chronic perfectionist and over thinker, I can often convince myself into imposter syndrome. Having a deadline helped me let go of this project and pushed me to improve my routine and habits, but I also left it too late when uploading the full EP to streaming which damaged my reach potential. I wish I had organised my schedule better and allowed myself enough time for press emails and uploading.

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