I read a Tweet! And it really sparked something off in me. It read something like 

"I know so many musician’s who will only ever play other people’s music."

Now, don’t get me wrong, I love playing other people’s music but when you also have a desire to create and perform your own, this is something you can’t ignore. I’d constantly find myself in sound check ‘performing’ my own songs and even turned up hours early so I could compose on stage - it felt inspiring. So, last year, after doing a world tour with Tinie Tempah (Australia, Malaysia, Europe, UK & Ireland) I decided it was time to finish this solo piano album I’d been wanting to record for so long.

The composing & recording

When it came down to it, I let the composing be as natural as possible. I’d literally sit down and record and let the music out. It was a beautiful sense of freedom as I didn’t have to compose to any brief, and I didn’t have to record to a metronome! I could phrase everything as I wanted which after playing mainly pop music consistently for 8 years was very liberating.

The whole album was created at my home studio and was a HUGE learning experience. For future albums I’m sure I’ll call on some more help and creative collaboration but for this debut experience, I decided to take on the challenge myself. So all songs are composed, arranged, recorded and mixed by me. This makes it very precious to me! So it’s a fantastic feeling to know that people like it and appreciate it, and that it makes them feel some sort of emotion or connection with a memory or past experience.

What’s next?

Next is performing pieces from the album live. Touring anywhere and everywhere from small intimate venues, to events, to concert halls. If you want me to come to your city ~ get in touch and let’s make that happen! Okiem.