This feature spotlights artists who have submitted their tracks/videos to She Makes Music. If you would like to be featured here then please send an e-mail to helen@shemakesmusic.co.uk. We look forward to hearing from you!
Alexa Kate
New York City pop artist Alexa Kate creates music rooted in emotional honesty, vulnerability and human connection. Her songwriting centres on the experiences that can leave people feeling isolated, with the hope of reminding listeners that somebody else understands what they’re going through. That same desire for connection extends beyond her music into the community she builds around it.
Her latest single, ‘good for long’, explores the unsettling feeling of waiting for something to go wrong, even when everything appears to be going right. It’s an exploration of the difficulty of fully enjoying happiness when part of you remains convinced it won’t last.
Alexia
Bergen-based independent artist Alexia combines dark electropop, alternative pop and club-driven electronic music, bringing together atmospheric production, pop melodies and darker electronic influences. Writing her own lyrics and taking an active role in her creative direction, she has developed a sound that draws from both contemporary pop and underground electronic music.
Taken from her EP Control, ‘God Complex’ explores the complicated relationship between confidence, insecurity and the pursuit of fame. Its energetic electronic production and club influences provide the backdrop for a song that examines the fine line between believing in yourself and becoming consumed by the desire for recognition.
Liv Dawn
Loch Lomond singer-songwriter Liv Dawn explores vulnerability, healing and the courage required to let somebody see every part of you on her latest single, ‘If We Make It’. Using the image of reaching a mountain summit together, the song reflects on everything two people might endure along the way and the hope of emerging stronger through their shared experiences.
Beginning as an intimate acoustic ballad with soft piano, delicate electric guitar and emotive vocals, the track takes an unexpected turn during its bridge. Drawing inspiration from ’70s rock, Liv introduces full-band instrumentation, driving drums and a guitar solo, transforming the song into an uplifting rock moment that also signals a developing musical direction.
Hunzz
North Wales queer-fronted five-piece Hunzz bring together funk, jazz and pop, combining smooth basslines, rhythmic guitar, keyboards and dynamic drums with saxophone, flute and layered vocal harmonies. Their music draws on classic influences while embracing the energy of contemporary pop.
Latest single ‘Slay’ was inspired by vocalist Rosie Hamilton’s experience of attending Tonnau music festival with her friends. Capturing the simple pleasure of dancing alongside people you love, the track celebrates stepping away from everyday responsibilities to enjoy music together. It’s a reminder of the connections that form on dancefloors and the importance of making time for those shared moments.
Zora Kirin
Berlin-based musician Zora Kirin returned to music with a particularly personal milestone: releasing her debut EP, The Bones Are Beautiful, on her 40th birthday. Having studied classical violin from childhood, she subsequently pursued writing, entrepreneurship and anthropology before finding her way back to music.
Describing her folk-inspired approach as “hopecore”, Zora explores the possibility of finding beauty without ignoring life’s difficulties. Focus track ‘Mulberry Tree’ approaches that philosophy from an unusual perspective: it’s a love song from beyond the grave. Rather than dwelling entirely on loss, the song encourages those left behind to continue seeking happiness. It reflects the central idea behind the EP: acknowledging life’s inevitable hardships while recognising that joy can still exist alongside them.
KEEP YA NOSE OUT
London alternative/electronic duo KEEP YA NOSE OUT combine punk attitude with an increasingly experimental approach to electronic music. Following their story-driven debut EP, the pair are moving towards a new chapter in which individual singles provide opportunities to explore different sounds and influences.
Their latest release, ‘YA DELETED’, takes aim at the patriarchy through a chaotic collision of jungle drums, distorted synth bass, punk guitars and furious shouted vocals, contrasted with R&B harmonies. Described by the duo as a diss track, the song channels its confrontational message into an energetic combination of genres, marking the beginning of a more experimental direction for the project.
Matilda Noe
Zurich songwriter Matilda Noe began writing music at nine, gradually accumulating hundreds of songs before deciding to release her first single, ‘Circle Line’. Recorded partly at home, with vocals captured inside a cupboard in her father’s music room, the track brings together atmospheric dream pop and intimate indie songwriting.
Built around just three chords, ‘Circle Line’ explores the frustrating experience of repeatedly missing what you actually wanted to say or do. Whether it’s hurting somebody when you meant to explain yourself or running away when you wanted to stay, the song captures the melancholy of feeling perpetually out of step with your own intentions and wondering why everybody else seems to get things right.
Cindy L. Chatwin
Utah-based songwriter and author Cindy L. Chatwin explores womanhood through vulnerability, identity, grief and generational strength on her album Beautifully Crazy. Combining soft rock, indie influences and poetic storytelling, the record examines the different emotional experiences women navigate throughout their lives.
Focus track ‘You Are a Warrior’ is dedicated to women carrying responsibilities, struggles and emotional burdens that often remain invisible to others. Rather than presenting resilience as an absence of difficulty, Cindy’s songwriting acknowledges exhaustion while recognising the strength required to continue through challenging circumstances. It’s a reminder that feeling worn down doesn’t diminish everything somebody has already overcome.
Psycho Jenny
North Kent’s Psycho Jenny are a women-powered alternative grunge band with a DIY approach to their music and visual identity. Having spent their early months developing their sound through live performances, the four-piece have chosen one of their earliest compositions to introduce themselves officially.
Debut single ‘Burn’ combines dirty basslines, grungy guitar riffs and raw, angst-filled vocals to explore rebellion against expectations and imposed standards. Written more than a year before its release, the track was selected because the band felt it captured the energy, sound and anger at the heart of Psycho Jenny. It’s an introduction built around the qualities they’ve been developing together onstage.
Cassidy Taylor
Independent artist Cassidy Taylor explores the disconnect between appearing sociable and feeling like you genuinely belong on her self-produced single, ‘Life of the Party’. Despite its upbeat, danceable sound, the song draws from a period when Cassidy felt she hadn’t yet found the people she truly connected with.
Written and recorded in Montreal, the track contrasts that loneliness with the happiness of eventually finding her community. In a particularly fitting detail, two of those friends – fellow artists Kirstin Corbett and Kyle Jensen – contribute backing vocals to the recording. Their involvement gives the song’s message an additional layer of meaning, turning a reflection on not belonging into something created alongside the very people who helped change that feeling.
Check out more of our recent submissions via the playlist below!
