Artist Spotlight : Bishop Briggs
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Bishop Briggs is one of our favorite up and coming artists right now, so it goes without saying we were pretty damn excited that she took some time out of her busy schedule to do a quick interview with us. Bishop has a sound all of her own combining deep moody melodies with undertones from the golden age soul that inspires her. There is something deeply authentic and pure about Bishop Briggs and we look forward to watching her success grow over the years to come! Thanks again for the interview!
You seem to have a pretty mysterious background, being born in the UK, with some Scottish Heritage all while living in Tokyo, Hong Kong, and LA. Is this correct? How do you feel this experience shaped you as an artist?
Yes that’s right! I think when you grow up in a variety of places, it can really make your outlook a little bit different and I don’t know if it’s for better or for worse, but all I can say is I’m really thankful I got to grow up in those places and I always found inspiration when I was there.
What got you started in music?
From a really young age, I’ve always been passionate about music. In Japan, we would always go to these Karaoke bars, no matter what the occasion, and my dad always went up and sang. I would see the light in his eyes and I really wanted a piece of it.
Authenticity seems pretty important to you and this comes through quite strong in your music. Surrounded by a world of noise why do you feel like its so important to stay authentic with a unique perspective?
Ooh well I really appreciate you noticing that! It’s something that I think would make the world a better place - if we all remained authentic to who we are and were proud of it. I think music is a really cool way to express yourself and I almost feel it’s pointless if you’re not being authentic and true to yourself.
Who are some of your biggest influences? Musically or not.
Where do I begin?! Musically, there are so many classics that I just have to throw out there straight off the bat: The Beatles, Aretha Franklin – the entire Motown era just gave me so much life growing up and in a way, so much to work with. And as far as people that influence me, it truly goes back to that authenticity question that you brought up earlier where truly anyone that remains authentic to themselves and stands up for what they feel is true to them, influences and inspires me.
You've been on tour lately, any stories you can share? Whats been your favorite city thus far and why?
I’m learning some tour stories are better to remain on the road than off the road... We went to Milwaukee for Summerfest and I got to try cheese curds. Needless to say, it was a very memorable experience.
If you could work with (tour, collaborate, etc.) anyone right now who would it be?
Jack Garratt, Jack Antonoff, Tyler Joseph from Twenty One Pilots and Michael Angelakos from Passion Pit.
I love the sound of the song "The Way I Do" , what was the inspiration behind it?
Aw thank you so much. It was actually inspired by a visit to a psychic that I had in LA. I went with one of my friends, who is also a musician, and they told her that she was thinking of quitting music. I brought it up to her after about how ridiculous it was and how none of this was true. Little did I know that she had actually been thinking about quitting music. In that moment, I thought to myself, if you leave now, “you will never know this love, you will never know this pain” and that’s where the inspiration for the song began.
So whats next for Bishop Briggs?
Next I’ll be releasing some new music (hopefully in the near future), opening for Coldplay (which is insane) and joining Kaleo on their Fall tour. I’ll also be playing on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon next Monday, August 1st which is really exciting.
Got any shout outs, upcoming projects, or anything like that to share?
Sketches provided by: Bishop Briggs and photos from Instagram @thatgirlbishop