New Release – 65 Roses (EP) by Lucy Crisp

Lucy Crisp (UK) continues to spread her infectious activism with her captivating vocals and charisma. Inspired by her inspirations Dua Lipa, Mika and Adele, Lucy started songwriting at the age of twelve years old before teaching herself the piano independently.

The Nottingham-based pop singer and songwriter uses her personal experience of living Cystic Fibrosis as part of her empowerment to create a safe space for her fans to feel comfortably vulnerable. In 2018, Lucy began pursuing her dream by attending the Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies in Nottingham.

Lucy’s highly anticipated debut EP ‘65 Roses’ releases 3rd November. A pre-save is available here. The EP delves into the life of Lucy herself, as she experiences happiness, isolation and foreseen fears, and is the opening chapter to what Lucy describes as “leaving a legacy in this world” by telling her story.

How would you describe the album?

“The EP ‘65 Roses’ delves into my life with having Cystic Fibrosis – a genetic condition that affects 10,000 people in the UK. ‘65 Roses’ has always been another way for people to remember Cystic Fibrosis. The synth pop project acts as an introduction to myself and a true reflection of the challenges I face physically and mentally. The lyrics are quite personal and each song has its own story. The EP also includes previously released songs, such as “locked down” and “one summer’s day”.”

What are your favourite memories recording the EP?

“Despite doing a lot of the production, I worked with multiple collaborators from Nottingham for this release. Nottingham is a very special place in my heart because it’s where my music career started when I was 18 and had no idea what to do with my life after A Levels. We recorded the EP last winter so there were many cold winter nights where we were in an underground studio messing about with C414 and SM7B microphones, but we also had a lot of fun in those sessions. I think my favourite recording day was when me and Robyn were in the studio to record the vocals for ‘Locked Down’. I was singing a 1975 meme throughout recording and it became a thing for the session. Sadly, its not in the final version that’s been released recently.”

Can you pick one or two songs from the EP and discuss how they came to be?

“The EP has a recurring theme of caring for oneself or another person and this is presented in various ways through the 18 minutes of music. ‘I Deserve Better’ is an exceptional indie masterpiece filled with distorted guitar rhythms and describes a complicated friendship breakup between a ex-friend and myself. We had been friends for almost a decade and met when we were 12. After lockdown, her attitude towards me changed completely. She started to not care about our friendship or about myself as a person with a disability. It was not until after a night out that I realised our friendship was toxic and that’s when I knew I had to cut her off for my sake. This was the last song I created for the EP and I struggled a lot with the production. Thus, I got Rich Collins (Snug Recordings) involved and over two days we had so many ideas bursting out of our heads. Sometimes, I think it’s good to write on your own but I also love collaborating with others on songs when I get the casual songwriting block.”

“The song ‘Call Me’ combines an 80s action film aesthetic and simultaneously highlighting the importance of talking about your mental health to someone. I struggled a lot with my mental health when I was admitted into hospital last year. I felt very lonely and you think that there’s an outpour of love but in fact I had the complete opposite. My dad reached out to me and said that he was here for me but didn’t force me to tell him straight away how I was feeling. I felt so much better once I had the courage to and if it wasn’t for him saying what he said, I don’t know where I’d be today.”

What message do you hope your music sends to listeners? What do you hope they can take away from your songs?

“I hope the songs allow those who listen to feel comfortably vulnerable and encourages them to open up about how they feel, disability or no disability. I think there’s not enough awareness about disabilities in 2023 and the barriers that come with it. Even growing up I struggled to fit into society and I aspire that my music makes people feel like they belong part of a community where they are accepted for who they are.”

Is there a sense of excitement or panic for this release?

“A bit of both, especially when you’re an independent artist with no backing. There’s been so much work that’s gone into this but no matter what the outcome, I’m proud of this EP and I can’t wait for my fans to cry a river.”