In the Green Room: Ella Ion
Ella Ion is known for her hard-hitting songs that touch on life and its growing pains. Here, the singer/songwriter talks about her debut LP, Waiting, and her forthcoming launch gig
Image by @roisingleeson, @ paigespages__
Congratulations on the release of your record, Waiting! Tell us about your launch gig at Jive.
It’s my first full band show and headline since 2018, so it feels like a big deal! There’ll be moments of peace and moments to move around to. It’s exciting to be in a live setting and give these songs another life. It’ll be fun, and I think it’ll be pretty intense, emotionally.
Nuclear Family and Blush are joining you at the show. Why did you ask these artists to join?
Because I don’t know them very well! I wanted to play with people I don’t usually play with. I think we naturally fall into a pattern of just playing with our friends, and everyone ends up at the same gigs. So, I thought it’d be cool to meet some new people and expose other people to them, too.
I was in LA for three months in 2019. It was intense. There’s so much music, art and culture there. I felt overwhelmed by that, rather than inspired. But being overwhelmed inspired me to write about feeling socially anxious and [realising] how small I was in the world. I only finished [the songs] a year and a half ago and relied on close people in my life to lend their time and energy.
How do you think audiences will receive your debut LP in a live setting?
The lyrical content can help keep people interested because there’s a story there if you listen. Having the full band behind me will amplify that even more and make the songs more dynamic — people can tell when they should be feeling emotional in a positive way or if [the songs] are really heavy. I think [the band] will help put those feelings on a platform.
April 14 | Jive | Supported by Blush and Nuclear Family
