Lily Moore

L: I need to hand it to the people surrounding me. I feel like the reason mine and so many other people's mental health struggled so much in lockdown was not having others around. Not everyone needs therapy or counselling, although those are amazing things. But I think everyone does need human connection in some form. And to me, my therapy before COVID was just going down to the pub with my mates and talking. We will always have such beautiful friendships where we can be really fucking honest with each other. I feel fortunate to have that. And then not having that was really, really, really tough. But I really have to hand it to other people, my friends, and other musicians around me, for making me believe in myself again and putting the time in with me. M: Are there any techniques or other activities you've tried to help improve your mental health? L: I mean, it's so fucking annoying because everything really fun in life is pretty bad for your mental health or just bad for you. In general. This is a problem of getting older that I've realised I really wish that having a bottle of wine and eating loads of chips was the best thing for my mental health. I genuinely think there is nothing wrong with that. But it's a difficult one because also there was a time when I got so obsessed with trying to do all the things that were supposedly really good for my wellness, and I was so desperate not to feel anxious I went completely ham on it. I can remember this point in my life where I was doing yoga for an hour, meditating twice a day for 20 minutes, reading a book on, like, The Chimp Paradox, like how your brain's a monkey, and listening to The Panic Pod. You know, reading The Body Holds The Score. I remember thinking this is too much. This is not fun. If you're on holiday, sure, but the best thing I've learned is to do whatever I would do anyway. And if that's going to the gym because I want to go to the gym, I'll go to the gym. M: How do you overcome those fears of being different and defying everyone's expectations when making your songs and EPs? L: Knowing when to listen to others and when not to is something I've learned over the years. I've always loved writing lyrics. But I need to learn about music theory, and I'm not that great on guitar. So finding people that can be part of your team, and all having different strengths is important. Everyone that I work with is that part of my band. They're part of the Lily Moore thing. And I could not do it without any of them. If I was to do an EP entirely on my own without any other writers or producers, it would be a very, very, very different-sounding thing. The expectation I always hold for myself is knowing that it's something that I care about and that I believe in it and not letting other people tell me what to do as much as I used to. It's okay if all your songs are different because I'm different. I'm only 20-something. So, it's going to change with my mood every day. Why would my style of music stay the same every day? But as long as they're all things I believe in. That's important. M: It must be so different in the industry than what it was back in the day with early Amy Winehouse and Britney and so on. What's your experience been like starting out in music? L: There's been a lot of changes. I last released a song three years ago. And then even coming back to the music industry. It was such a different climate like the last time I dropped the song before January; TikTok didn't exist. And that blows my brain because now that is such an important thing. It didn't exist back in the day, years ago, even like, you just have to work your ass off, write the songs, know what you're saying, and then cross your fingers and hope for the best that they did. Now it's like before the songs even out. You're expected that it gets to a certain level, which is just impossible. Yeah, it's pretty tough. So it has changed. M: Is there any artists that you'd love to collaborate with? L: Buddy Ross, he's Frank Ocean's producer. He has an incredible song called "Bored Again!" that my friend showed me, and I have to play it all day. I just love it. I would love to somehow collaborate with him. If I just shout that enough, he might notice me one day. M: Is there anything you enjoy besides making music and doing gigs? L: I love food. Yeah, I love cooking and baking. When I cook, it's an event for me to do really quick things, but if I'm cooking, it will be every single pan used. But love like baking. I love going out for food with my friends. And I know that's not a particularly healthy hobby but I just love it. I also love being able to travel again. M: Outside of music, you also have a podcast, The Moore The Merrier. What's it been like to start that? L: It's been so great. I don't feel comfortable taking selfies and doing that. But being shit and talking about food, I could do that forever. And I love getting to know people. I'm a nosy person. So, naturally, [A podcast] felt like a really cool thing to do. And it's been amazing, and I'm so grateful for how open everyone is with me when I do it. When I started, I thought people might not want to talk about things, but everyone so willing to. It's amazing. M: You've lived in London now for a while. Is there anything that you miss from Brighton? L: Most of my friends have left now but just to see the seaside. We all left in the same year. Even though I didn't go to University, they all went straight to University. And I was just in London doing my EP, which was really weird because I remember they were all at Freshers week the same week I was like dropping my EP. I suddenly felt really grown up, and all my mates were just drunk every day, and I was really jealous, but it happens. I miss the sea so much. Growing up by the beach makes you feel landlocked because you can't see the horizon anywhere.