18 year old Ellie James admits she isn’t a typical teenager. Having taught herself guitar and beaten off competition to win the accolade of best emerging songwriter at Cardiff Music Festival this October, others might be inclined to agree.
Ellie, however, takes it all in her stride. Appearing pleasantly pleased by her successes, she seems unaffected by her increasing local celebrity. Despite her musical achievements at such a young age, she remains humble, and insisting that she isn’t especially proud of any of her musical and lyrical talents only highlights her approachable nature.
Ellie, who performs under the stage name Ellie Makes Music, reflects on her musical career with humour. Taking her music but not herself seriously, she recalls the worst moment on stage with laughter; “I was on stage once and I forgot the first line of the song. I kept playing the intro over and over. Luckily my mum was in the audience and she knew the line, so she shouted it at me! Then I remembered the rest.”
Music is a passion that her parents fully support, and her mum is particularly encouraging. Admitting to being a major procrastinator, Ellie says it is her mum who steps in if she leaves things until the last minute. “My mum knows I’m lazy so she pushes me. She says, “I’m your manager so you have to do what I tell you!’”
"I get nervous before I do a gig and think, 'I don't want to do this. But I love it; once I get on stage it's ok."
Although Ellie says her biggest weakness is a tendency towards indolence, her love of her instruments is tangible. As the baby of her family, she happily concedes that she gets spoiled with guitars. And if she won the lottery? “I’d buy loads of guitars.”
It is this innate fervour for music that leads Ellie towards an ambition to make music her career. “I love performing,” she says. “I couldn’t do an office job. It would drive me insane, it’s too repetitive.” It’s clear that Ellie is already on her way to making this dream a reality. Currently on a gap year following her A levels, she is taking a break from education to concentrate on making music.
The commendation that was awarded to Ellie at Cardiff Music Festival has afforded her the opportunity to record and release her first EP. When speaking of the work she is doing with this project, Ellie becomes particularly animated. Discussing the singles that are to go on the EP, she stresses the importance of some of her songs. “‘Shaky hands’ was written about a friend of mine, so it’s quite special to me.”
Ellie’s inspiration comes from her interaction with friends, and observations during daily life. Ellie concedes, however, that the best musicians have to have something special to fully realise their talent. “I think all musicians are a little bit insane… but I think so is everyone.”
No matter where Ellie finds her inspiration, it is clearly working for her. With a growing fan base in Cardiff, and the release of her EP on iTunes on the horizon, she is sure to make her mark.