INTERVIEW: Jodie Nicholson
With a knack for blending wistful melodies with ethereal nodes and undertones, UK based singer-songwriter Jodie Nicholson just released her latest single titled “What If I” via Quiet Crown/Absolute. The song, which teases her upcoming album set to release in mid-May, artistically tells a story of falling out, potential rumination, and the raw humanness of that journey.
“What If I” is a beautifully arranged slow burner with a soft, electric guitar opening. Nicholson’s voice envelops listeners into a cocoon of warmth and intimacy, weaving seamless layered harmonies as the song builds. Her vocals soar amongst the brooding production, with the lyrics 'What If I lose sight of you' ringing throughout each verse. Nicholson spoke with Noisescape in an interview about the creation and inspiration of “What If I” which can be read below.
Can you please tell us a bit about the inspiration for “What If I”?
“What If I” was written with my wonderful friend and artist in her own right (check out Harri Endersby & ETHR), Harri Endersby-Marsh, back in 2022. It grew from the synth pad that introduces the track, mixed with little conversations between ideas when Harri and I sat down to write together that day. The synth is quite a warm, simple sound, meaning the song could go in a lot of different directions sonically and it ended up sitting somewhere between indie-folk music we both love and the cinematic, Stranger Things-esque, 80s sound that I really wanted to incorporate in the end section.
The lyrics were mostly streams of consciousness between us, seeing what felt right and expanding on lines that resonated with us. Thematically, I guess it’s about falling out with someone, maybe ruminating on something you said or did and hoping you don’t lose that person in the process. To me, I saw that ‘someone’ as my relationship with being an artist and not wanting to lose sight of why I love doing what I do, because it can be a pretty isolating, overwhelming place at times. “What If I” feels like the perfect balance between Harri’s releases (particularly through ETHR) and mine, and I think the biggest part of this song’s inspiration really comes from the love we both have for each other's music; that was really the driving force behind it.
With the release of this new single (and an upcoming album on the way soon) would you say that your music style has evolved or changed since your first release? If so, how?
I think the foundation has always been there from my early releases, but I think the main differences now are I’ve got a lot better at recording demos, articulating my ideas sonically, understanding how texture and dynamics play in making music, and, ultimately, I’ve got more confidence pushing my ideas and experimenting more, particularly when it comes to production and navigating how I want listeners to feel when they hear my music. As a vocalist, I have definitely evolved and now feel like there’s a certain level of ‘it’s not a Jodie Nicholson song without a huge stack of close-knit vocals in the mix’ kind of thing. I also take inspiration from a wider spectrum of places now than what I used to, for example, films, TV series, people in my life etc., rather than being fully introspective, and I think it’s added a maturity to my new music that wasn’t there before.
What was your favorite part of making “What If I”?
When we landed on the key change, which shapes the track’s big outro, it felt like the sun had finally come out after a rainy day and a huge weight had been lifted. We built it up with layers of vocals and my favorite element in the entire track, Harri added whispers saying ‘what if I lose sight of you’ through a guitar pedal plug-in that I love using. Her vocal adds so much movement and texture there, and will always be a reminder of when we first wrote it. It’s a really special moment in the track.
Do you have any favorite lyrics from the song?
‘Got carried away, I daren’t look up this time’— I love the opening line so much. It’s forward, a little vague and really sets the tone for the rest of the song.
Photo by Ellen Dixon
What's something that makes “What If I” unique and special to you?
Creatively, it follows the classic it-starts-off-slow-but-gets-bigger-at-the-end kind of structure that I gravitate towards with my music, in a very bold way! More personally though, it’s special to me because it makes me think of mine and Harri’s friendship and it’s grown through playing music together.
What's a little fun fact you can tell us about your upcoming album?
I have a song inspired by the film Everything Everywhere All at Once! It’s called “Flesh & Blood” and it’s one of my favorites on the record.
Are there any musical inspirations you have at the moment? How about any dream collaborations?
Marika Hackman’s newest album Big Sigh is on heavy rotation at the moment, I love the string arrangements and the breadth of dynamics across the record. I’m really enjoying Lucy Rose’s new single releases, it’s lush hearing so many piano-based songs from her. There’s also SO much incredible music coming out of the North at the minute and/or friends I’ve made through music, including Rivkala, Melanie Baker, Rosie Tee and Morning Company, which is really giving me the itch to get back into writing!
Collaborations-wise, I’ve always dreamed of being one of Roger Waters’ backing vocalists since being a kid. Any chance to sing harmonies/‘oohs/ahhs’ across his music would be an absolute life goal made.
Any upcoming projects or shows fans can expect for 2024?
I’m going on tour! Super excited to be hitting the road with my band in May/June (Gateshead, Leeds, London, Bristol, Birmingham, Brighton, Manchester and Glasgow) and playing cities I’ve never been to before, let alone played, so I’m really looking forward to that. My new album Safe Hands comes out on May 10th(!) and I’ve got something pretty exciting up my sleeve for the back-end of the year. 2024’s a busy one!
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