Rising star:
Florence Rawlings
The girl from London with a voice from Tennessee
It’s been one heck of a summer for Florence Rawlings. She’s already rocked the festival circuit from Isle of Wight to The Big Chill and her debut single, Hard to Get, is released this month closely followed by the album, A Fool in Love.
At only 20, she’s already an old hand in the music business: she went to the renowned London stage school Sylvia Young (other famous alumni include Emma Bunton and Amy Winehouse) from the age of six and started gigging at 12. But she’s no stage school brat: “I only went to theatre school on Saturdays and in the school holidays,” she explains, when we meet at her record company’s Notting Hill office.
She’s self possessed, but there’s no hint of diva-ish characteristics that her enormous voice might suggest. Fresh from The Isle of Wight festival, she’s in ebullient form: “The atmosphere was great – I felt really comfortable on stage.”
She was only 13 when her teacher recommended she audition for influential producer Mike Batt, chairman of the Dramatico record label and the man behind Katie Melua. “I sang him Summertime and Ain’t No Sunshine – I loved Nina Simone back then – but I didn’t think too much about it and we just stayed in touch.” Batt waited until Florence finished school with three A-levels before setting her up with a full-time musical career.
Then, when she turned 18, they worked on some demo tracks, which formed the basis of the new album. They are a blend of Batt-penned tracks – including the stand-out The Only Woman in the World – and covers of greats like Chuck Berry. All of these she makes her own, imbuing them with a gritty sweetness way beyond her years. Melodic and predominantly uptempo, it’s a bluesy, soulful romp with rousing injections of gospel and big band brass.
“I love singing uplifting songs,” she says, “because they make everyone else happy too. That’s kind of the aim isn’t it?”
A Fool in Love is released this month
