KAY GREYSON

Image by Victoria Wai

TYNESIDE RAPPER KAY GREYSON REFLECTS ON A YEAR OF AWARDS AND NEW PARTNERSHIPS

2020 was a year in which it seemed everything that could go wrong, did. I’ve always been a positive person who looks for the good in everything (as hard as it might have been!) and at the beginning of the year, back in January, I was lucky enough to win the Alan Hull Award for Song Writing.

The Alan Hull Award was established in memory of Alan Hull, the Newcastle born songwriter and founder member of North East group Lindisfarne, who died in 1995. I was very honoured to be selected, especially as it is an award that pertains to writing. Being a great songwriter has been a dream of mine since I began listening to Bob Dylan, Paul Simon and Joni Mitchell, among others, as a child. To be recognised in that way really made me feel like I was taking the first steps in achieving my goals. The award came with a £1,000 bursary that I used to buy a laptop. Most days, being a musician involves lots of admin and emails. I had been doing all of that from my phone, which was less than efficient, so having a good laptop has really changed the way I work!

Also, this year I was signed to a management company called Soul Kitchen. This was another massive milestone for me which led to releasing my debut EP Paris with them in July. Paris was like a reintroduction to the world for me, after not releasing music for nearly three years. It was strange to do this at such a weird time in human history, but the warm reception and the opportunities that have come to me because of it, and in spite of everything going on, have been amazing! In 2021, I hope the world heads into its new normal and live music thrives once again, and that I can start to release some of the bangers I have hidden away for people to enjoy.

www.soundcloud.com/kaygreyson