On Friday, 17th October, Griff announced she will be doing a live-streamed performance at the Tate Modern’s Tanks Gallery. The performance will take place on the 28th October at 6pm GMT. On her Instagram Griff said that she was was very excited to be putting on a show in her ‘dream venue’, especially in a year when ‘everyone’s live shows have gone down the drain’.
Griff’s first EP ‘The Mirror Talk EP‘ was released with Warner Records back in November 2019. Since then she has taken the UK music scene by storm, having been described as the UK’s ‘Brightest New Pop Star‘. Griff is only 19 years old, but her song writing skills have matured a lot over her short time in the industry. Her debut EP was certainly impressive, but her 2020 creations such as singles ‘Good Stuff‘ and ‘Forgive Myself‘ feel more emotionally mature and also more distinctively her own style.
In the last few months, Griff has branched out into collaborations with exciting names such as HONNE and TSHA, lending her smooth vocals to their complex beat arrangements. 1,000,000 X Better, collab with HONNE, saw Griff singing about the support a loving relationship can give: ‘…I know sometimes I’m heard to love… When I got clouds hanging over my head// Yeah I get irrational, crazy, upset// But you// Pick me back up and// You tell me it’s okay’.
The beat and electronic arrangements gave the track a dreaminess reminiscent of Owl City’s music. Her collaboration with TSHA, released in August this year, was a more upbeat affair. However the lyrics of that song, too, explored serious themes. Griff stated that Say It Again was written when ‘a lot of her friends were going through mental health issues, and [she] felt so helpless. This song is basically [her] helpless self trying to reassure a friend whose going through a really difficult time’.
Griff’s ability to make serious and vulnerable music that can also get you dancing is quite unique. Perhaps this is one reason why she is a nominee for the first ever Ivor Novello Rising Star Award. This year must have been difficult for her as an artist, as she has been unable to perform live shows due to the Covid-19 pandemic; It is good news that she can at least fulfil her dream of performing at the Tate!
