Newcomer Lu Wright is used to putting on a brave face, however with her debut single release, British Daisy and upcoming EP, she’s letting her guard down. It might just be the soundtrack to your summer.
Lu Wright and I begin our conversation the British way: talking about the weather.
“We’ve got some clouds, and we had some sun earlier which was nice, but it’s not raining, so I can't complain,” she laughs.
Well spoken and immediately friendly and relatable on the phone (she’s just finished binge watching It’s A Sin and is about to start Call My Agent! On Netflix), Wright is here to talk about her dreamy debut, British Daisy – the first track taken from her upcoming debut EP release, Notes To Self.
An irresistible mix of Jessie Ware, Lily Allen and with a pinch of early Amy Winehouse thrown in for good measure, the song is all breezy vocals, jazzy muted trumpets and slinky electric guitars, and it might have arrived at just the right moment.
With the hopeful promise of warm spring and summer evenings spent with friends and family ahead (perhaps a G&T in hand?), what better music to ease the UK out of its lockdown slump?
“It’s funny you should say about immediately talking about the weather, because British Daisy stems from the typically British trait of putting on a brave face, instead of saying what we mean and acknowledging the fact that we are all fragile,” Wright points out.
After being in an unhealthy relationship in which she found her self-worth slowly eroding, this song talks through the fight to break out of an unhappy relationship, and the bad habits they can leave people with.
“British Daisy speaks of a time where I found myself daydreaming of a life where I was happier, but didn’t have the strength to make it happen,” she shares. “I was unsatisfied with most things that were going on and was feeling pretty insecure, and not feeling like I could talk to that person about how I felt. I was putting on a brave face, which Brits are very good at doing.
“I think once you've had a few shocker relationships, they do affect you after a while – from my experience. They can leave bad habits and bad memories, which can affect your future relationships. That’s why I sing, ‘you’re ruining my summer, you're ruining my future lovers’, because it did affect how I felt towards other people coming into my life. I don't think it's too much to ask to be content in a relationship, and I just wasn't getting that.”
So that’s the stiff upper lip covered; what about the daisies?
“We were finishing this up in the summer 2020, and my parents’ house has loads of daisies in the garden,” she answers. “I remember writing the lyrics and just looking at these daisies, and just thinking, ‘they're quite lovely’.
"Fundamentally, the song is saying, ‘we've all had these really bad times in relationships, and you don't need to put on a brave face’. We all do suffer, and you should talk about how you feel – it does get better.”