FEATURE: Spotlight: Iona Luke — Music Musings & Such

FEATURE:

Spotlight

Iona Luke

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THIS artist is someone…

that you really need to hear. I have not featured Iona Luke yet, though she is a tremendous talent. Having recently played Brighton’s The Great Escape, Iona Luke is primed for great things. Her recent single, Existential, is extraordinary. I want to come to a few interviews with one of our brightest talents. I am going to come to a few interviews with her. In terms of her background, she studied English at Magdalene College. However, her path into music started way before now. Iona Luke started songwriting at thirteen as a member of the prestigious Capital Children’s Choir. This incredible musicianship is going to be a big name soon enough. Apologies if I bring in any interviews that repeat what comes before. I am starting out with Varsity and their chat with the incredible Iona Luke:

“Like many, COVID-19 and its subsequent lockdowns were transformative for Iona. Via an online cover posted with the Capital Children’s Choir, she was noticed by Lana Del Rey in her first ever TikTok. She honed her craft of songwriting during the pandemic, deciding to take a gap year and gig in London, before being met with either the choice of the Royal Northern College of Music or Cambridge University.

After listening to her two singles, ‘Seventeen’ and ‘Violence’, it seems that this praise is entirely warranted. With powerhouse vocals and unmatched musicality, Iona is unafraid to redefine herself and be led by her artistic impulses. “Genre in itself is a made-up thing,” she told me, expressing that the only effect it has is, if an artist releases music of two different genres, it can be algorithmically detrimental to pulling in new listeners. Asking Iona if I could interview her, I never knew I would be talking algorithms in the Arc Café, but this evidences her dedication to her craft.

In her songwriting, Iona manages to capture a memory or feeling which is perhaps unique to her but, such is her skill, makes it applicable to all listeners. “The best songwriting is simultaneously specific and universal,” she said, highlighting that the more times you listen to a song, the more interpretations can be made, even within the same words. Iona agreed that the best kind of songwriters are the ones that can condense a large and complex concept into a single line, stating that “a picture says a thousand words.”

This can especially be seen in her song ‘Violence,’ which I interpreted as a song about a toxic love. In fact, Iona did not write it as such, making it intentionally applicable to many situations. “Most of my songs are not love songs,” she said, which I appreciated, as there are far more stories to be told than simply those of romance. Instead, Iona focuses on evoking a specific feeling and letting the listener do the rest.

Admittedly I, in probably constituting most of her streams, have well and truly been doing the rest. Nevertheless, Iona is no stranger to impostor syndrome, comparing herself to those who are younger and doing what she does now. On a positive note, she highlighted that artists like Charli XCX, Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan (among others) are changing the approach labels are taking towards emerging artists.

“Social media has been teaching me good lessons in not caring, especially in a bubble like Cambridge”

She remarks that, for a period of time, TikTok changed the game where if a creator had a viral moment, they would be signed, meaning they did not think about the long game. These artists, however, have been working on their craft for years, redefining both what it means to be successful and the timeline for this success. Iona’s perspective on these artists, and others that she is inspired by, has clearly influenced her approach for the better.

“Social media has been teaching me good lessons in not caring, especially in a bubble like Cambridge,” she said, commenting on how her confidence has improved with practice both in performance and songwriting. This has also been helpful in finding her place in the industry, where writing so many songs has, in itself, streamlined her sound. Slow and steady wins the race, with Iona joking: “I’m not in a rush to be successful.” Still, I’m manifesting that critical acclaim and masses of popularity come quickly so that I can scream “this is not what I wanted / this is not what I need” (from ‘Violence’s’ killer outro) at a live event”.

I do hope that a lot more mainstream or bigger publications spotlight Iona Luke. Even if these are relatively new days for her in terms of releasing music, you know that she has the talent to go very far. I will jump to RTÉ and their interesting conversation. I am especially looking forward to a debut album. It will be fascinating seeing what comes next for Iona Luke:

“23-year-old Iona studied English literature at Cambridge University, while simultaneously building her career as a songwriter, signing a publishing deal with the B Unique record label and performing across the UK.

"In a madly oversaturated music space, figuring out where you stand and what you have to say is scary stuff," she says.

"When I had to decide whether I'd be 'Iona' or 'Iona Luke,' I repeated my name in my head too many times and had the mini existential collapse we all get when a word suddenly looks a bit funny.

Tell us three things about yourself . . .

A pretty defining moment for me so far was when Lana Del Rey created a TikTok account during Covid and her first video was of her singing along with my cover of Bel Air. For the first time I felt like I might be able to be a musician successfully, in a capacity that was more than a pipe dream. I cried for an embarrassingly long time after seeing it, and didn't actually have TikTok at the time, so I guess the social media side of my music journey started there.

I’m not sure if anyone other than me (and a few hardcore Patti Smith fans) would find this interesting, but I wrote my university dissertation on Smith’s work. To give a whistle-stop tour of it, the essay challenged the outdated (often gendered) tendency to read her songwriting and poetry as autobiography, rather than allowing it to be art and treating it with the same critical attention afforded to the contemporary male artists such as Bob Dylan, Lou Reed or Jack Kerouac.

Who are your musical inspirations?

My musical inspiration comes from a massive number of different people. I’ve always loved my ladies; Stevie Nicks, Beth Gibbons, PJ Harvey, Lana Del Rey and Patti Smith, but there are also some 90s bands like Massive Attack and singers with slightly quieter energy, like Elliot Smith and Jeff Buckley, that I really admire. I’m also inspired by poets that feel inseparable from music to me, such as Christina Rossetti, Emily Dickinson and W.B. Yeats. There’s some art that inspires me a lot too, I love Dante Rossetti and Salvador Dalí.

What was the first gig you ever went to?

The first gig I went to was The White Stripes at the Hammersmith Apollo in London, my parents took me and it was amazing. Jack White smashed his guitar and I thought I saw God. To this day Icky Thump is the song I listen to when I’m walking somewhere and I’m nervous, it’s a perfect strut song.

What was the first record you ever bought?

The first vinyl I bought was Norman F***ing Rockwell! by Lana Del Rey. It’s an unbelievable album, controversially I think it’s her best, though that involves me in a big Lana debate I’m not sure I’m ready for”.

I am finishing up with Mystic Sons. Getting to know Iona Luke and her background is really interesting. In terms of artists she admires, I do hope she gets to share the stage with Patti Smith and Stevie Nicks one day! It does sound like music was an early part of her life. Rather than copy her idols and those she heard young, Iona Luke has carved out her own identity:

“What was the first instrument you fell in love with?

Piano. Specifically the dark, atmospheric piano in Romantic music. My favourite thing to do is sit on the tube with a book and listen to the Romantics. It’s a bit basic but Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata is one of the greatest things to ever grace my ears; proof of the fact that some things are popular because they’re just damn good.

What kind of music did you love when you were younger?

When I was really young (10 and under) I loved any music that featured huge female vocals. I was obsessed with Beyonce, Adele, Rihanna, Gaga. All of those singers were why I started singing, if you could call it that… probably more like screaming. But on the other hand, we’d listen to loads of 90s band music in the car, so when I got a bit older I got more into Smashing Pumpkins, Green Day, Red Hot Chili Peppers and so on.

What was the first album you remember owning?

I think it was Rumours. To this day it’s one of my favourite albums of all time; another popular because it’s good situation.

What do you find is the most rewarding part about being a musician?

So far the most rewarding part is when people come up to me and say that one of my songs really meant something to them. A close friend of mine said that ‘Voices On The TV’ helped her through a bad time, and there’s nothing better than when something you’ve written helped them articulate a feeling that would have otherwise gotten a bit stuck. It’s like musical CPR.

And what is the most frustrating part?

Social media. It doesn’t come naturally to me at all, but you’ve got to suck it up and do it. I’ve been posting consistently for a while now and it’s so easy to get disenfranchised and numb to it, but I also understand that it’s how you connect to people in the modern world, so it is what it is. One day I’ll crack it, I’m sure, but for now people are going to have to watch me trying not to look grumpy and weird”.

Go and follow the magnificent Iona Luke. An artist that I have recently discovered, you can tell that she has many years ahead. Ensure that she is on your radar. I do feel we will be hearing a lot more about in years to come. This is an artist you cannot afford to overlook. Iona Luke is a…