Q&A: Kirsteen Harvey
“But my advice at the moment if I were to give any, and it’s something that I am telling myself a lot right now, is to remember the main reason why you are actually making and doing music in the first place...”
Kirsteen Harvey is a 24-year-old Glasgow-based singer/songwriter, drawing influence from a diverse musical upbringing to craft a unique sound blending pop, folk, and jazz. Her music has earned recognition from BBC Radio Scotland, BBC Introducing, and The Scottish Sun. With a growing online presence, she's gained over 41k TikTok followers since February 2023, catching the attention of artists like Amy MacDonald and Lewis Capaldi. With her debut EP ‘Unpredictable’ released in early December 2023, recorded at Chem19 Recording Studios, she is set to make her mark on the Scottish music scene.
Photo by Jessica Harvey
Your musical influences span a wide array of genres. How do these diverse influences contribute to shaping your unique sound as a singer/songwriter?
Being asked what kind of music I do is a question that always really stumps me when people ask it because I’ve definitely weaved my way through a good few different genres over the last two years! I think as someone who listens to a lot of musical genres and loves various aspects from each, it’s hard to stick to one specific sound of music when you’re still working out what it is you are wanting to create as an artist. My earlier releases like ‘Tongue Tied’ and ‘Dancefloor Treason’ definitely have a stronger nod to a sort of country pop than the newer ‘Unpredictable’ E.P songs do, which explore the the different vibes of pop, folk, and alternative singer songwriter. I really like that there isn’t one specific way to describe my sound, it leaves a lot of room for trying different things which is one of the things I love about making music - and it’s actually one of the reasons my new E.P is called ‘Unpredictable’ - because the four tracks are all slightly different in genre
Your online presence has seen significant growth, especially on TikTok. How do you feel about the response your music has received on social media, especially with recognition from established artists like Amy MacDonald and Marti Pellow?
The recent growth on TikTok has been pretty amazing to watch, I think there’s just about 50 thousand people over there now that are following my wee page. I cover a lot of Scottish tunes and wee songs that people might remember from their childhood, and people seem to really enjoy these! I think the first big video I had was a cover of the ‘Jeely Piece’ song!
Some covers I’ve done by artists I love have been noticed by them, which is so brilliant and very exciting! I’ve even had Lewis Capaldi and Noah Kahan actually re-share my videos to their Instagram - as well as The Kinks official pages posting my cover of Waterloo Sunset everywhere! You see a lot of their fans come across to your page to check it out, after the Lewis Capaldi one my phone was going mental for the rest of the day!
It’s been very fun watching it build - and it definitely translates into support for my own music and myself as an artist for sure! I had a good few fans from TikTok at my E.P launch, and even videos about my releases are very well received now - so it’s great to see people connecting with you as a singer/person who they might have first found from doing a classic cover, but continue to actively support your own music career. It’s something I do pretty much everyday, I might run out of songs to post soon!
What was your favourite show of 2023?
It’s got to be my headline ‘Unpredictable’ E.P launch that was just last week (15th December) at the Glad Cafe in Glasgow. This was my first headline in almost 2 years and it was sold out! For most gigs I just perform as myself, acoustic with my guitar, but for the E.P launch I wanted to have the band that recorded on these songs in the studio - so it was pretty exciting and special to finally play the tracks live and all together as they sound on the record. The room was filled with positive energy and I had the best time - I also launched my first ever physical release, the debut E.P CD’s, which were on sale at this show, and was asked to sign things for the first time!
Photo by Jessica Harvey
Working with Chem19 Recording Studios for your debut E.P. must have been exciting. Can you share a bit about your experience recording there and how it has shaped the upcoming release?
I have been recording at Chem19 with Jamie Savage since 2019. It’s an amazing space and Jamie is an absolute genius - we’ve done 11 released tracks together now. A lot (most) of the time when I go into record new music, I have no idea how it is going to sound like at the end, I go in with just myself and guitar and record as I usually play them solo. I work with some amazing session musicians when recording, who come in after, with no rehearsal, and we just all worked together on creating all the different parts. This way takes a bit longer and there’s a lot of chopping and changing to get it to a point that’s right, but I really enjoy the process and watching the songs evolve over the studio days. This was the same for the new E.P, I recorded my guitar and vocals in July last year, and we slowly started adding the different parts over the next few months. Gavin Lamont (drums), Steven Dempster (Bass), Mic Clark (guitar), Laura Wilkie (Fiddle), and Josh Elcock (trumpet) brought the entire project to life - and I can’t describe how happy I am with the final tracks.
Tell us your three desert island albums.
First Aid Kit - Ruins (One of my favourite bands recorded and to see live - their harmonies are insane and this album would be hard to tire of)
Noah and the Whale - Last Night on Earth (To keep me positive, this album has a lot of tracks that I listen to when I need to get out of a slump - I can dance around screaming out this one)
Noah Kahan - Stick Season (My current obsession like so many, I can get my more chilled pop-folk fix with this one, it’s so catchy and beautiful)
Could you walk us through your creative process when crafting a new song? Do you have any rituals or specific approaches that help you in the songwriting process
I actually go through quite long periods of not being able to write any songs at all (or at least ones I’m somewhat happy with) which I find quite frustrating - but then I have random bursts of inspiration that results in a few being written quite quickly! And there isn’t really a set process for me but usually I just play about with some chords, and sing a melody over the top with complete gibberish. I take lots of voice memos, then go back and fill the melody in with actual lyrics. I don’t really have a main/recurring topic for my lyrics either, my songs are basically about everything and anything at that time in my life - but it is usually after a conversation, situation, or interaction that with me - that I feel most inspired and want to write a song about it.
Lastly, what advice would you give to aspiring musicians who are looking to establish themselves in the Scottish music industry?
I am absolutely and 100% still learning and growing every single day as a musician and I often feel pretty unsure of things as an artist myself, which is totally okay! It’s certainly a rollercoaster journey - and I definitely feel as though I am still pretty much at the start of it. But my advice at the moment if I were to give any, and it’s something that I am telling myself a lot right now, is to remember the main reason why you are actually making and doing music in the first place - because it’s so easy now to get caught up in the stats and figures, and comparing your achievements to others and maybe feeling as though they aren’t as good - but this whole thing should be fun! You started it because you enjoy it so keep it that way regardless of all the extra stuff.
Follow Kirsteen Harvey: