It’s VV Brown! We love VV Brown. She’s done all sorts. She’s been in Vogue loads, for example. Actual Vogue. Imagine if you were in Vogue. You’d never shut up about it. You’d carry a copy in your Topman satchel to get out and show at Grindr meets.
VV’s biggest track was ‘Shark In The Water’ (BABY THERE’S A SHARK IN THE WAAAAATER). Great for storming along Camden High Street after a particularly bad breakup. You could even lean over the lock on the bridge and smoke introspective cigarettes when it gets to the chorus, completing the look with a threadbare blazer and a trilby. Not that we ever did that.
Anyway Dylan Jones had a lovely chat with her about fash-un, her musical leanings, being adored by gays, and hanging out with Lady Gaga. Which all goes hand-in-hand really doesn’t it.
So you’ve got lots of new stuff going on…you’ve had a bit of an image change recently.
Yeah, definitely. I think Samson & Delilah [last album] was the catalyst. Image, direction, sound. It was a real passion project, and a scary step away from what I was doing before. I think with this new record I really wanted to step it up. And bring the fashion back! With Samson & Delilah I wasn’t very present in the videos…or the artwork, I wasn’t on the album cover or anything like that, just because I wanted people to hear the music. With this record I was like ‘you know what, I really love fashion, and I really want to bring that back with this new album.’
I’m happy about that! My favourite of your songs is ‘Game Over’ and you were certainly very present in the video for that. It was really fun.
Yeah! I think I was a bit nervous with fashion for a bit. I kind of went through a massive change, a massive realisation, and so I really wanted people to hear the music. I really wanted them to transition. So I was really scared of doing any kind of imagery. Especially as with Travelling Like The Light, the fashion thing had almost taken over the music. But I feel now with this record there’s a real balance between image, fashion and music. I think I’ve found my feet. I’ve found my groove.
Yeah because you were really involved with fashion. Didn’t you work with Rankin?
Yeah I did a few Vogue shoots with Rankin. And this is not exactly HIGH fashion [laughs] but I was the face of M&S so there were lots of photoshoots there.
Are you living in London at the moment then?
Yeah, I live in East Dulwich.
Do you go out on the scene much in London?
If I’m honest I don’t really go out! I’m a real homebody. I tend to just go out for dinner and stuff, or stay at home! Haha
“The spectrum I’ve seen of celebrity culture and the music industry has been very weird and eclectic.”
Do you get a lot of gay fans?
Yes! My fanbase is 95% gay men. And it’s fabulous, and it’s the best audience ever. They’re the best fans you could ask for. They’re honest too! I just love when they send me messages ranging from ‘this is fabulous’ to ‘this is shit.’
Oh! Do you get shade from people?
I think everyone gets shade when you put yourself out there. It’s part of the process. My best friend is a gay man. I don’t like to say why gay men like me, because I couldn’t really without being scared of stereotyping. But gay men love me and I wouldn’t have it any other way. The best show I’ve ever done was at the Berghain in Berlin…and it was incredible. It just made me realise, if I had to choose anything, this is it. This is the best for me.
What’s coming up for you in the future?
I’ve got a gig on the 16th of September at The London Brewery. It’s a really small, intimate gig. And then I’ve got my new single coming out with a new music video which I’m actually really excited about. It’s a fantastic video directed by some great creative directors called DDAANN Studios. And then we’ll be touring towards the end of the year. I’ve just finished writing a book, which I’ve been working on for the last eight years. I’m hoping to release it next year.
Wow! Is it autobiographical?
It’s sort of a sarcastic take on the music industry. I’ve been in the business for fifteen years. I had my first record deal when I was fifteen years old, and now I’m thirty-one. I know nothing else but music. I’ve gone through a career of being on a major label, and hanging out with Lady Gaga and Stevie Wonder, to being in Peckham and being an independent artist writing emails in my pyjamas. So the spectrum I’ve seen of celebrity culture and the music industry has been very weird and eclectic. I needed to write it all down. So many stories to tell.
