From her debut EP to supporting The Snuts, it’ll be hard to stop this rising London star.

Combining vulnerable lyrics with indie rock guitars, Siobhán Winifred’s music finds that sweet spot where you’re not sure if you should dance or cry. From the quiet intensity of Lungs to the gut-wrenching whirlwind of emotion in Stay For Good, her debut EP Don’t Do Well Alone has a feverish live energy to it, all the while skilfully exploring themes of friendship, human connection, personal growth and healing through unflinchingly honest song-writing.

Having already supported Rachel Chinouriri, Nieve Ella and The Academic, not to mention recently ticking a debut headline tour off the list, Siobhán is now gearing up for her next stint on the road – this time with The Snuts. So, we sat down with her to chat about the value of vulnerability in music and the important role women are currently playing in the industry.

First of all, congrats on the release of your debut EP, it’s an absolute smash – what’s it been like seeing people’s reactions to it?

So, so nice. Especially because a couple of the songs are a little bit older, so it was nice to give them like a new lease of life when it came out. And seeing people relate to stuff that felt very personal, it’s really, really lovely to get a good reception. 

Do you have a favourite track on the EP? Or one you were most excited for people to hear?

It changes all the time, but I think I was really excited for people to hear Keep Sweet. No one knew what the track sounded like because when we did it live, we did like a really stripped-back version. So that was like ‘no one knows what this is going to sound like’ and knows what to expect with it so that was fun. 

Keep Sweet feels quite different to a lot of your other tracks, how did that come to be so sonically different?

I feel like I have a very eclectic music taste. I’m inspired by a lot of different people. I’ve never wanted to make one type of music; I love trying new things and exploring new things, and I think it just suited that song as well. I wanted it to feel like a big release at the end. We kind of just threw everything at it, you know: there’s cello on it and shredding electric guitar, and it’s stuff that maybe you wouldn’t think would work but I think it sounds really cool. I was really proud of that one. So, yeah, I guess it does sound different, but maybe it’s more kind of the way things are going with new music. Just a bit more bold and taking more risks. 

You also seem to lean towards a big indie rock chorus, particularly in songs like Lungs, is that a deliberate move when you’re writing, or does it just come naturally?

I think it’s always there in the back of my brain because it’s the music that I love to listen to. I think in my head I’m writing somewhat with the idea of ‘would I enjoy playing this live? Would I have fun playing this live?’ I love the gig part of this job; actually performing the music, so I try and make that as fun for myself as possible. I just love that euphoric indie rock chorus or ending to a song.

To me, your EP brings to mind the likes of Sam Fender and Holly Humberstone, what artists would you say inspired your musical style?

Yeah, definitely Sam Fender. I love Holly’s music as well. I think Phoebe Bridgers and Sam Fender are my two biggest current influences. I think Phoebe’s lyricism is just insane. And Alex Turner’s lyrics as well. I love Arctic Monkeys but his solo stuff I listen to a lot. Bombay Bicycle Club I love – that’s definitely a big influence on the stuff I’ve been writing at the moment. But I think Sam Fender and Phoebe Bridgers are my two biggest influences.

How do you find the song-writing process? I know some people find it a bit painful but others just love to get their thoughts out.

I’ve never thought of it as painful. Confronting something you’ve been avoiding can be quite scary and emotional, I guess. I find it therapeutic for the most part. I think there are things that I probably don’t talk about in as much detail in real life that I would be able to write freely about. It’s all the tiny little details that you’re not going to tell someone in a conversation but, for a song, I think it’s really lovely to include such specific details, because then when someone relates to it, when you’ve been so specific, it’s just… 

Is that why you’re able to be so vulnerable in your songs?

I think I feel a responsibility to myself and the people that listen to the music to be honest and vulnerable. I just think if something that I write can make someone feel less alone in what they’re feeling, I feel honoured that I get to do that. I want to be as honest as possible. It can be scary putting it out in the world, I think it’s a really lovely thing that I’m able to do and it helps me. 

On your EP, you revamped Killers with Stevie Bill, how did that collaboration come about?

I think it was that we both supported Stevie Nicks and I was like ‘why don’t you come on stage and just sing some of Killers with me because why not?’ Then we were like ‘should we record it?’ Should we just rerelease the song with her featuring on it?’. And, yeah, she was super excited about it. We’ve shared loads of milestones, career-wise. Like her first-ever gig in the UK, I was on the bill, we both supported Nieve Ella, we both did our headline tours at the same time, we both supported Stevie Nicks. All these things just aligned and she’s incredible so it felt really, really special.

And with yourself, Stevie Bill and Nieve Ella, there’s a much-needed wave of women emerging in indie music at the moment, how does it feel being a part of that?

People keep telling me that I’m part of it and I’m like ‘oh my gosh, I’m not’. It’s the imposter syndrome… But it’s really important, I hope that it makes young girls and boys feel like anyone can make any kind of music. I mean, I was like a big Avril Lavigne fan so I kind of always had someone to look up to, like you can have a guitar, be onstage and do anything, but I think particularly it’s really cool at the moment that women are dominating the space, not necessarily exclusively but being in spaces that they weren’t before. I love it. And there are so many people to be inspired by, I mean everyone’s doing such amazing stuff. 

A couple of girls have come up to me at gigs and have been like ‘oh I started learning guitar because of you’ and I’m like ‘oh my god’. It’s so cool! I mean, I taught myself guitar on YouTube and stuff so it’s really cool to be one of the many, many people that might inspire them. 

As a woman in the music industry, does it feel like it’s moving in more of a positive direction for women?

Yeah, I think there’s obviously going to be a long way to go. I’ve had on the whole a very pleasant experience and haven’t really felt held back by my gender at all, so I’m very lucky in that sense. But, yeah, I think it’s baby steps and the more women that are in these spaces, the more people are going to be inspired and have the courage as well. But I’ve been very lucky. 

And not long ago you finished your UK headline tour, how was that experience for you?

It was amazing. I’d never done a headline gig before so to go from nothing to a tour, it was scary ‘cause I was throwing myself in the deep end. But I met everyone after every gig, which was just amazing, and I felt very undeserving. There were people who had come to the whole tour, like they’d bought tickets and travelled. I was like ‘what are you doing spending all your money on me?’. But it’s incredible — and being able to play my own songs for an hour has been my dream forever so that was really cool. It’s a very bizarre experience but it’s incredible and I’m so grateful that I get to do it, and I hope everyone had as much fun as I did.

You’re also supporting The Snuts this November and December, where you’ll be playing some pretty iconic stages, how are you feeling about that?

I feel like because the headline tour was an hour, half an hour feels like ‘I can do this’. I think the scary thing is playing to a room of people that you have to win over. Like I was ill for the first two dates of tour, and it was great because I didn’t have to sing that much — everyone was singing really loudly. But now I’m like ‘I’m going to have to properly prove myself’, but I’m just so excited to play insane venues and just be back on tour because the post-tour blues have been very real.

Is touring your main focus at the moment or are you working on some new stuff as well?

Up to Christmas is a lot of gigging, which is very, very fun. And yeah, just over the past couple of months, just trying to get new stuff recorded. On tour, I didn’t have a chance to write at all, so it was nice to come off and write some stuff and do sessions. I’m going to try to write while I’m on tour this time and see if I can come up with anything but it’s always so hectic. But, yeah, try and get new stuff recorded for definite.

See Siobhán Winifred live: