BTS: Can you tell us about how you first got into making music.
Plested: I started originally because my grandad plays guitar, and when I was in school I always played instruments. I started off playing violin and I hated it, and my parents said “you’ve got to do something else, so you can swap it for another instrument.” I picked clarinet, and that wasn’t for me. So I ask them if I could play guitar, because I wanted to be like my grandad. So, I started doing that and it was just a hobby – I never thought it was going to happen. I was never meant to be in the music industry. I went to art school, and then I just got a lucky break. Everyone always has that one little moment, that’s the kind of foot-in-the-door moment. For me, it was when I met this guy called Naughty Boy, who’s a producer in the UK and he’s from the same town as me. He invited me to his studio, and the rest is history really. He gave me that opportunity to write songs and delve into it, and I just haven’t stopped. I’ve been very lucky!
BTS: Who are some of your biggest influences?
Plested: It’s funny because everyone has these stories like “oh I grew up listening to all these cool artists,” and my parents have really good taste in music but not quite like that. My dad used to play Coldplay a lot, and David Gray, and Red Hot Chili Peppers. It’s such a bizarre mix, but we used to dance around the house to those artists and that was good fun. But I started listening to James Morrison, and that was the first time I realized that a guy can just stand there with a guitar and get emotional, and it was really nice to connect with that. So people like that – James Morrison, Damien Rice, and all the other artist that fall into the singer-songwriter category.
BTS: How would you describe your music for someone who hasn’t heard it before?
Plested: My music is very lyric heavy. I love lyrics. Melody is great too, but I just love being able to tell a story. They’re very honest, very heartbroken, and they come from an honest place. It’s just honest, singer-songwriter-esque music.
BTS: You’ve written songs for a lot of prominent musicians in the past like Calum Scott, Kygo, Zayn Malik, and Little Mix – how is writing music for your own personal project different from writing songs for other artists?
Plested: It’s a weird one, because I wouldn’t say that I write specifically for anything or anyone. I write a song and if it works for me, than it works for me, and if it works for someone else, then sick it’s all theirs. But, the difference is that, when you go into a session with another artist or whoever it may be, it’s a lot more free. You can do anything, there’s no wrong or right in music, and in that sense you can just go crazy, which is always fun. Lyric-wise as well, you can just talk about random stuff. But when it’s my project, obviously I want to keep it honest and I want it to be cinematic. So I guess, when you write for yourself it’s just more specific, and you can do whatever you want and hopefully it connects with other people.
BTS: What made you decide to take the step to release your own music?
Plested: I had two songs at the time, both are coming out later this year, and I just didn’t want to give those away to anyone. I really felt like I connected to them personally and it was hard to think of someone else singing them. So I thought the artist thing was something I could try. I did a couple of gigs to play some songs for people and it just went from there.
BTS: Can you tell us about the project you released at the end of last year?
Plested: I released my first project called First & Foremost in December. I had a really great 2018, I was just trying to release as much music as possible on Spotify and Apple Music. I just wanted to tie it up, really. All of the songs were doing their own thing and so my team and I thought that if we just put together some new songs and release it with some nice artwork, I would actually feel like a real professional artist. It just tells the story of looking for love, trying to do the whole love thing with the music industry at the same time, and trying to balance everything. It’s hard, it’s really not easy. But, we’re getting there!
BTS: What was the recording process like for First & Foremost?
Plested: The recording process was sick because I tend to write my best songs with friends, which means when you go in to finish the songs you’re just hanging out with friends. It’s great because it means you don’t have to be shy and you can talk about whatever you want. I think that helps with the honesty of everything. The process was really easy, and I know sometimes it can be super hard. Let’s just hope all sessions go like that in the future.
BTS: You’re on tour with Nina Nesbitt, how’s that been going so far?
Plested: Well, we’ve played literally one show so far, and it was amazing. It was here in New York, which is one of my favorite cities in the world. I’ve been here a few times, but I’ve never been able to play here. First shows are always shaky for me because you don’t really know what you’re doing and it’s a new crowd that you have to win over. Also, I was jet-lagged because I had flown in from London. So my brain was confused because I was technically playing at 2 A.M., but I loved it. I find it really crazy when people come out to shows early for support acts. It’s so humbling and it’s so nice to see their faces and how they react to the music.
BTS: It seems like that’s something a lot more people do now. They show up to shows early because it’s a great way to discover new music.
Plested: They really do! It’s how a lot of people find new music, and I think Spotify has created that, which is great for people like me. I always thank the crowd a lot for paying attention during my set.
BTS: This is your first time playing shows in the U.S., what are you most excited about?
Plested: I’m most excited about people trying to understand my accent. I think a lot of people aren’t going to understand what I’m saying. But, I’m really excited to be on a bus. I was looking at a map yesterday and the fact that we’re driving from the east coast to the west coast is insane. It’s a dream come true, and I get to play shows along the way, so it’s a great time.
BTS: What’s your favorite part about performing in general?
Plested: I think it’s just getting to meet people that I never would of met otherwise. Every show, I get a string of messages from people who really connected to my music and my songs. I think that’s so important to me as a writer. There are so many things in life that are so hard to talk about and to have a song that connects to that, it starts those harder conversations. I always message people back to make sure everything is alright with them.
BTS: What can fans expect from you for the rest of the year?
Plested: Ok, so I just did a huge Europe tour opening for Alec Benjamin, which was incredible. I had two weeks off, then I came here for the Nina tour. This run is three weeks long I think, then I’m going to head home for a bit. I have a tour in Germany, which will be great fun. After that, I’m probably just going to write for awhile. Write songs for me, write songs for other people, and I’m hoping to release a lot of new music every few months. So, basically everything is happening.
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Stream First & Foremost below.
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