'It's easy to be vulnerable in your own space'

"When I was co-producing these tracks I really wanted it to feel as if you were in the room with me as I was writing."

Jessy Blakemore hopes her newly-released music has captured the intimacy of the songs she first composed in her bedroom in Reading.

Her debut single burna is the first sign that she has captured the realness she was aiming for, something "super stripped-back, super honest, and super raw".

The up and coming alt-pop artist is signed to record label Black Butter Records, who helped bring artists like Rudimental, Gorgon City, and J Hus to public awareness.

Blakemore first drew attention to her own talent via TikTok and Instagram clips of her typically stripped-down performances - her Kendrick Lamar and Shiloh Dynasty covers have so far been viewed more than a million times each.

She recently took her own songs to a larger stage, such as supporting SZA at BST Hyde Park, and appearing at The Great Escape and Cross The Tracks festivals.

Surreal experiences have stacked up as the momentum has ramped up - after one gig actor and musician Idris Elba said her performance was like "watching magic", and her face has appeared on digital billboards in London.

"I could not believe it - like wow, what a compliment, it was insane," Blakemore says of Elba's declaration, while the billboard was "so bizarre" but made her feel "super proud".

She adds: "I'm trying to turn my nerves into excitement... it's a super scary thing.

"I've never released music before. I'm just trying to roll with it, take it all in my stride."

Blakemore counts Frank Ocean, Amy Winehouse, and Bon Iver among her influences.

She loves Lauryn Hill too, particularly her 2001 MTV Unplugged performance, divisive upon release but largely since re-appraised as intimately capturing an artist baring her soul.

"I've honestly watched and listened to that Unplugged so many times," Blakemore says.

"I just think it's really nice to invite people into your world, into your space, into your mind."

How does she find that process herself?

"It's something I've had to learn to do, especially with performing.

"It's very easy to be vulnerable in your own space, when you write a song in your own room, but taking it to a stage and performing it is so different."

Blakemore's single burna explores infidelity from a male perspective, a songwriting decision she says "opened up this whole new world", but she constantly draws inspiration from those around her.

"I love whenever I'm on the train or on the bus. I'm always so nosey, listening to other people, because people sometimes say the most poetic and profound things in their daily lives," she explains.

"So I'm just trying to pay attention to how my friends talk, asking loads of questions, kind of collecting data!"

Jessy Blakemore releases her debut EP in September. burna is out now.

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