Mabel plans to carry on progressing through London chaos

After seeing her perform live in Birmingham, I interviewed the up-and-coming star Mabel about what and who inspires her, her background and her music. Placing her music in the genre of “R&B with pop/soul elements”, this young, London-based singer is carving out her own place on the UK music scene. With most focus on UK talent going towards rockers, rappers and pop singers, it is refreshing to hear such a distinct female voice on catchy, soulful songs that are easy to sing along to yet lyrically substantial.

As the daughter of Swedish singer and songwriter, Neneh Cherry, and Cameron McVey, British music producer, it seems only natural that Mabel would develop a passion for singing. She says that because her parents are musicians, “music has always been an important part” of her life. Growing up around a lot of creative people, “watching them inspired…[her]…to be creative as well”, adding she “can’t remember ever wanting to do anything else”.

I’m a very visual person so when I’m writing songs I often get an idea of what I would like the video to look like

Nevertheless, Mabel’s success has been entirely her own. She has never worked with her parents or “used their names to open doors” for herself, though humbly admitting that “it’s nice having them around for advice occasionally”. Mabel gives the impression of an independent, self-assured woman with a clear concept of her visual and musical style. Her fashion sense in particular is very 90s – midriffs, tracksuits and metallic. Asking if she knew what she wanted her music videos to look like when she recorded her songs, I was met with the answer, “I’m a very visual person so when I’m writing songs I often get an idea of what I would like the video to look like. Sometimes it’s just a colour, sometimes I get a storyline, sometimes I see a person”. She acknowledges her “really amazing team” who help her make that vision a reality. What you find in Mabel is a professional, driven artist who knows what she wants – a conclusion you can form by just listening to her music alone.

With over 70,000 Instagram followers and 6 million YouTube views on her breakout song ‘Finders Keepers’, Mabel is undoubtedly becoming A Famous Person. Asking her how she is dealing with acquiring celebrity status, she told me “I just feel so blessed to be doing what I love every day and the only reason I get to do that is because of my fans. People recognising me has definitely taken some getting used to but so far I just love it”. She says the ‘”best feeling” is “meeting the people that actually listen to my music” and realising that her work is “resonating with people”.

…the creative energy of London is like nowhere else in the world

Her appeal is potentially international. She was born in Malaga but partially raised in Stockholm during her childhood and adolescence. Though she is bilingual, she is unlikely to be releasing any songs in Swedish any time soon. English is her first language and comes most naturally to her, she explains.  I think that Mabel comes across as a true London girl. From the way she dresses to the inventive and honest sound of her music, she is full of personality in a way which is peculiar to London. I asked what she loves most about the city and she said it was “the chaos” which makes people “very driven”.  She says that all of her friends work so hard and “the creative energy of London is like nowhere else in the world”. Among her more well-known friends are Skepta, whose music video for ‘Shutdown’ Mabel appeared in, and Jorja Smith. Mabel says even though they are “great musicians” they are still just “normal people” who she can relate to as they are in a similar position to herself.

Mabel is definitely becoming a representative face of the UK music scene, having collaborated with Kojo Funds on ‘Finders Keepers’ and Not3s on ‘Fine Line’, a song soon to be released. She says she loves both UK and US music but is “very happy that the rest of the world is now respecting the grime and UK rap scene. It’s about time!”. Her favourite celebrity Instagram feed belongs to Cardi B. She loves that Cardi is just “100% herself and I just think she’s amazing in general”. In my final question to Mabel, I asked her what she sees herself achieving in 2018. She told me that she is “hoping to put out an album and…carry on progressing”.  With some hard work and continued support from her loyal fanbase, I can confidently predict that Mabel is going to blow up next year.