From spa-inspired sky-gazing to BBC Introducing spins, the UK-Nashville singer opens up on what keeps her chasing songs.
Fresh off the back of a string of BBC Introducing spins and with a new single in tow, Chloe Clouds is firmly in her ‘chasing songs’ era.
The UK-born, Nashville-based songwriter has built a reputation for heartfelt pop with a punch – equal parts vulnerable lyricism and heavy kick-drum confidence.
Her latest track, ‘Shooting Star,’ captures the dizzy hope of falling in love again, even if reality doesn’t quite match the daydream.
We caught up with Chloe to chat spa-side inspiration, studio compromises, writing for others, and why happiness – for her – always comes back to the magic of a song coming to life.
HAPPY: What’d you get up to today?
CHLOE CLOUDS: Today I was working from home, a meeting with a PR company, a catch up with an old mentor and friend of mine, registering some new songs and rehearsing for an upcoming gig.
HAPPY: Tell us a little about where you’re from, and what you love about it!
CHLOE CLOUDS: I am from a town called Stamford, I love the small friendly familiar vibes and how quaint the town is.
HAPPY: You’ve said this song was inspired by falling in love again. What was the specific moment or feeling that sparked the lyric ‘Shooting Star’?
CHLOE CLOUDS: Honestly, I was in a spa and there was this projector screen image of this incredible sky scape and I took a photo and then took that photo into the studio with me.
I wrote this with the producer on the day. At that time I had just met somebody and there was all this hope of this could be the person, the love of my life.
Unfortunately he was not but I did get a great song out of the inspiration so I’m grateful for that.
HAPPY: How did working with Tyler Spicer in the studio create that ‘funky fresh’ vibe we’re hearing? Was it an instant connection?
CHLOE CLOUDS: I was introduced to Tyler in Nashville, it was like hey have you met the other English person, so we had been working together for a few years then Tyler made the move out to Nashville full time.
‘Shooting Star’ was probably the 7th or 8th track we had worked on together. We had a pretty good method of getting a good song down by then.
We were fooling around on this one but I just loved the heavy kick drum and was adamant I wanted more of it!
Against a really heavy melodic vocal topline so that’s what we did. Tyler wanted more instrumentation and I wanted this under produced so we had to meet in the middle on this one. Im so over the moon with the end result.
HAPPY: You’ve had four consecutive tracks on BBC Introducing. What has that consistent support meant for you as an independent artist?
CHLOE CLOUDS: The support I have had from BBC Introducing and Dean Jackson in particular has been incredible and I am forever grateful.
It means a lot to get a song picked up let alone four! I’m hoping the same happens with ‘Shooting Star’ too.
HAPPY: You mentioned, “You can’t be everyone’s cup of tea.” Has embracing that mindset actually freed you up to experiment more?
CHLOE CLOUDS: Yes it really has. It’s true. Not everyone is going to like what you are doing. I just write and perform what I love and hopefully my passion for writing shines through so everyone can enjoy the love and passion that goes into creating each and every song.
HAPPY: You write for other artists as well as yourself. Do you approach the page differently when you’re writing a Chloe Clouds song versus writing for someone else?
CHLOE CLOUDS: Definitely. You have to be a magician to extract what the other artist really wants to say sometimes.
When I write for my artist project it’s about my life experiences, what I am going through and how I feel so deeply then translated into a way that can be understood by others – so when you write for others you are trying to find that common ground and extract their feelings and what they really want to say.
People will often describe the way they feel before they tell you how they feel or the story that lead to that moment so you have to delve deep.
The best songs are the writes when all writers have their own experience of the same topic with slightly different perspectives, then you know you are on a universal theme and that it will hopefully resonate with others too.
HAPPY: Since 2019, you’ve been ‘chasing songs’. What does a successful day of chasing look like for you now?
CHLOE CLOUDS: I write everyday. Even if its just ten words and not even a full finished song. Then I will usually have a co-write every other day on Zoom with somebody in another part of the World.
Balancing writing with admin, with catalogue admin, publishing and promotion, marketing and rehearsals and plugging for gigs – its a lot as an artist.
I just love the song creation part though. If I could spend weeks on end in a studio creating I would.
HAPPY: If a listener is hearing you for the very first time on this show today, what do you hope they feel when they hear your voice?
CHLOE CLOUDS: I hope they hear a bit of themselves, a bit of girl next door in my voice where they think oh I’ve been through that or I have totally felt that.
HAPPY: Lastly, what makes you happy?
CHLOE CLOUDS:Happiness is enjoying what you have already. And song creating hahahahaha.
Love it when a good song comes together and a lyric on a page turns to musical form that is my ultimate happiness.
That moment when you hear back your freshly recorded track on the studio monitors, That gives me a pure moment of happiness. Oh and beaches.
