Local Spotlight – Lexis
Local singer/songwriter Lexis came to our attention supporting Lotte Mullan recently at the Hare and Hounds. In advance of her forthcoming gig at the Glee Club on 9th May Brumlive’s Ian Dunn met with Lexis for a chat about her background, her career and what comes next:
Please introduce yourself to our readers
I’m Lexis and I am a female singer songwriter born and bred in Solihull. My real name is Kimya but I have been using my stage name since 2014. I have a folk/pop/cinematic sound. My current live setup is acoustic; in Birmingham I play guitar and sing alongside my guitarist and friend Karam. I am influenced by artists such as Queen, The carpenters, Dolly Parton, Ella Fitzgerald as well as classical music. I will be releasing my debut single ‘flame’ this summer.
What’s the story of Lexis? when did you form and what do you count as your biggest achievements so far?
I used to perform using my real name, but in 2014 I started gigging using my stage name Lexis alongside my guitarist. There were already established artists with similar names such as Kimya Dawson and Kimbra so I came up with the name, which is derived from the word lexicon, to reflect the importance of the lyrics in my music. My songs are very personal and many are love songs or have come from real experiences.
My biggest achievement is winning the Shure Songwriting Award judged by artist KT Tunstall which allowed me to study music and songwriting in London for a year. KT had said she was most struck by the lyrics of my song ‘cupid’s bow’ which is a song I wrote about heartbreak. During that year, I was lucky enough to perform at the London 02 and alongside artist Ed Sheeran and I met many likeminded musicians.
Who inspired you to make music?
I think I was subconsciously inspired from a very young age to make music. Growing up, I was always surrounded by music. My parents used to have a big vinyl record collection and as a young child I remember playing their Queen and Carpenters records whilst singing along. Seeing that I was interested in music my father sent me to piano lessons where I learnt classical piano. When I was around 10 I was given a guitar and I would teach myself chords and come up with melodies. I started songwriting in my teens and I found writing was an escape and a natural way to express how I was feeling. I rarely play classical piano now and I write a lot of my songs on guitar however my early musical experiences have certainly influenced me.
What is your favorite venue in Birmingham to play?
I always love playing gig’s in Birmingham as I find the audiences here are always so attentive. I played at the Hare and Hounds a few weeks ago and I was opening support to artist Lotte Mullan. It is such an intimate venue and the room was packed. For the entire set the audience was silent. It was an amazing experience to see everyone’s eyes on me and listening to every word I was singing. It felt really great as our performances are very intimate. Nothing has quite topped that gig.
What does the immediate future hold for you?
I will be releasing my debut single flame this summer. I wrote the song about a year ago. It’s a song about the feeling of being in a relationship where when you are with that person everything seems so exciting that you never want it to end but fearing it may. It’s very different from my other tracks which are acoustic. This has a cinematic /baroque pop feel. For example the main instruments are strings and drums. I have been heavily involved in its production and we are finalizing the string arrangement at the moment. I have been lucky enough to have worked with some good friends on the track. I can’t wait for the world to hear it!
Apart from yourself, what other unsigned West Midlands artists should we keep an eye out for?
There are so many great unsigned bands out there, but to pick one, Caballo Blanco are a great alternative rock band. They have a unique sound and I like that they play trumpet. I believe they have an album in the works and they will be playing at the Flapper in Birmingham on 23rd May.
If you could have any band/artist cover one of your songs, who would you want to do it and what song would suit them best?
I would love for Fleetwood Mac to cover my song wounds. At a number of my gigs people have approached me commenting that my voice reminds them of Stevie Nicks. I’ve been told it’s something about the vibrato in my voice. I sing wounds with a lot of vibrato so it would be great to see how it would sound if they played it.
Which artist would like to support and why?
There are so many current artists I would love to support but if I could, I would love to go back in time and support artists like Frank Sinatra. I would play a jazz set and have a big band behind me. That would be great!
Website and social media:
Facebook.com/thisislexis
Soundcloud.com/thisislexis
Youtube.com/thisislexis
Twitter.com/thisis_lexis
Instagram.com/thisislexis
Words and photograph: Ian Dunn