gunning for the top

Sophie Lloyd has witnessed a meteoric rise in recent times. From amassing a mammoth following online with her guitar videos to touring the planet with Machine Gun Kelly. Presently, the artist is preparing for the release of her debut solo album.

The guitarist extraordinaire has an action-packed year ahead. “There’s so much happening this year,” explains Sophie. “I’m off out again to America with Machine Gun Kelly in February for a couple of weeks just for one or two shows in Arizona, which should be fun.”

Sophie will be racking up the air miles with her transatlantic adventures. “I’m going to be back and forth from America pretty much every other month.I refuse to move there because I love England too much. I like the rain. I like the grey. I like complaining. America is too happy and sunny. So, I’ll do the 14-hour flight,” she says. “We’ve got a lot on. And then we’ve got our album coming out this year as well.”

Although for some artists life during the pandemic was challenging due to the lack of live opportunities. However, for Sophie Lloyd having a strong online following gave the artist further opportunities for growth. “I was relatively fortunate because my whole music career had always kind of grown online,” explains Sophie. “I came from quite a small town that didn’t really have many live opportunities. So that’s sort of why I got into YouTube and online and that kind of boomed. I felt like there was a big boom with TikTok, Instagram and YouTube over the pandemic because everyone was inside. So, in that sense, it was quite fortunate in that my audiences grew.”

The pandemic came at a time when the artist had started to venture into the live music world. “At the beginning of the pandemic, I did my very first solo gig just before everything hit. In the February I played Paris Fashion Week. I was just starting to get out there and do some live shows, which I was really excited about. And then obviously everything closed down. So, I just sort of hyped myself up for it. And I was like, oh, I can’t do it,” she said.

Having developed her following online as opposed to in front of a live audience resulted in personal challenges for the artist. “I’m very open with the fact that I’ve suffered from performance anxiety and impostor syndrome by growing up online. I feel like you can develop that quite easily,” said Sophie. “That was the reason I joined Twitch, especially because I wanted to interact live, but still kind of have that behindthe-screen thing as well. That really helped grow my confidence with everything.”

The British guitarist recently released the first single from her upcoming album. A fiery number titled ‘Do or Die’. “We’re sort of releasing it single by single in a waterfall way. And every song on the album has a music video and stuff to go with it. So, it’s sort of a whole big thing of releases. So, we’re going to be very busy. But I’m excited for everything.” Said Sophie.

The aforementioned track featured guest vocalist Nathan James from Inglorious. “We’re both from the same town, which is Reading. So, we kind of knew each other through mutual friends,” said Sophie. “I’ve always been a big fan of Inglorious because I just think their music is amazing,” said Sophie. “I knew I wanted to do this big kind of hard rock, Maiden-esque song, with a modern twist, like an 80s rock song. I couldn’t think of a better singer to kind of fit it.” Sophie adds: “I feel like Nathan has that power rock voice. So, it just felt like the perfect fit. We sent him over the idea and he really vibed with it, and sent us back the track,” she says. “It was all kind of done online, obviously, because of the pandemic. It was a fun way to work, but for the next album, I’d definitely like to be in a studio with a vocalist. I think that’d be a really nice way to work.”

Although the official plans for the album are to be confirmed, the guitarist has an idea of how she would like to proceed. “So, we’re hoping to release the whole thing around September time, that will be kind of our ideal release date. We would like to release probably about six or seven of the songs before it’s out, and then maybe the rest of them after it’s out. So, each one would still kind of have its moment.”

Sophie’s original release plans for her solo album were pushed back when she received an offer she could not refuse. “It was meant to be out last year. And then the Machine Gun Kelly tour came up and it got pushed back. So, it feels like it’s been going on forever. But we’re really pushing towards that,” she says.

But how did the British guitarist get the opportunity to tour the world with Machine Gun Kelly? “He just randomly messaged me on Instagram one day. Literally, it was just that. He just sort of said, are you in LA? And I was like, I can be? And that was kind of it. We spoke on FaceTime. I sent him some videos of me playing live. And that was kind of it. I was over there rehearsing within three weeks. So, it was all very quick, and the guys were so nice,” explains Sophie. “It was quite daunting for me going over there, pretty much on my own to a new country with people I’d never met. So, it was quite daunting, but they were so nice. We were immediately just like this big family. Everyone has each other’s backs.”

Very quickly Sophie found herself playing at arenas like Madison Square Garden. “I’ve never really played big shows. I was playing down my local pub with a few bands before this. And then suddenly, that first night when I went out on stage, I had this realisation where I was like, f*ck I’m actually playing really well. So that was where my imposter syndrome, I feel like kind of fell. And I was like, wow, I can do this. It felt like this is where I was meant to be,” said Sophie. “I was looking at everyone in the crowd and just seeing them so happy and excited. I was that kid crying in the front row - that was me. It’s so cool to just be on the other side and be looking at everyone having these cool moments. It’s a feeling unlike any other, and I feel so fortunate that I got to experience it on such a big scale as my first tour as well. It’s wild, and I’m excited for more adventures like that this year.”

Touring with Machine Gun Kelly aside – does Sophie Lloyd plan to take her solo project on the road? “Early next year probably is when we’re aiming for. So, we’ve got a little bit of time to put it together. Obviously, it’s a bit trickier because it’s a collab album, and every song has a different artist. But we’ve got an idea that we think is going to be really cool that still incorporates each artist, maybe doing some video performances and then always having a guest vocalist as well.” Sophie concludes. “It’s really exciting. We just can’t wait; it feels like this has been in the mix for so long. It’s nice to finally be releasing music.”.

SUNDAY 2 JULY

LONDON O 2 SHEPHERD’S BUSH EMPIRE

MONDAY 3 JULY

BIRMINGHAM O 2 INSTITUTE

TUESDAY 11 JULY

BOURNEMOUTH O 2 ACADEMY