by abby crabill
photo by lydia the bard
Lydia the Bard is a London based singer-songwriter, who broke into the industry by sharing her music on social media. While she enjoys sharing music covers, Lydia also stays busy writing her own music. Though her music is personal, she keeps it relatable with themes of anxiety and inner peace. Lydia recently released her debut EP, with her main track, “Afraid of Quiet.”
When was the first moment you knew that you wanted to pursue a music career?
Lydia: “I knew I wanted to pursue a music career from a very young age, around eight years old. Growing up, artists like Taylor Swift and Lea Salonga were significant inspirations and listening to them definitely spurred me to take up singing.”
Who or what inspired you to start sharing your music and covers on social media?
Lydia: “During the pandemic, I had more time on my hands, which allowed me to play about with recording covers and writing my own music more. I started sharing my music on social media, mostly just covers of songs I enjoyed, then I began reimagining songs and then I began writing my own music! It all kinda snowballed.”
How would you describe your sound to new listeners?
Lydia: “It’s a big old melting pot of sounds! I really make whatever I want and I enjoy so many different styles of music that mean this can look very different from week to week. If I had to drill it down I would say my sound sits mostly in a theatrical indie folk space.”
What does your name, Lydia the Bard, represent?
Lydia: “My name, ‘Lydia the Bard,’ is inspired by my love for D&D, where a bard is a character known for storytelling and music. I began playing D&D with my friends a few years ago and fell in love with it! Just going by Lydia felt a little boring, so Lydia the Bard it is!”
Can you tell me a bit about your debut EP?
Lydia: “I began writing my EP at the end of 2023 and probably wrote about 30 different songs before settling on the three that made it into the EP. This is the first time I’ve released songs that were this personal and meant so much to me so it was really important to me that I got it right. Along with my writing partner Ben, we selected the three songs that would make their way onto the EP and spent the next few months fleshing them out and moulding them into what you hear today! My EP takes heavy influence from folk/indie pop artists and documents my experience with anxiety and the patriarchy.”
What does your process look like for choosing which songs to cover and post?
Lydia: “I choose songs primarily on what I enjoy singing and what I think would be fun to create or sing to! A lot of the time these might be songs from films or TV shows or musicals that I enjoy!”
What is your favorite part of the songwriting process? Why?
Lydia: “My favorite part of the songwriting process is the lyric writing. When I think of really good lyrics it makes me feel smart and I like feeling smart.”
Besides music, what are some of your favorite hobbies?
Lydia: “Besides music, I love my plants, I started collecting them during the pandemic and am very proud of my collection. I'm also a big reader and love finding a new book series to devour!”
So far, what has been your favorite song to cover? Why?
Lydia: “Oooh, that’s a very hard question! I enjoyed all the songs I’ve covered for different reasons! At the moment I think my favorite thing to do is record my own original songs though, recording my EP and the original song I wrote for Tinkerbell was a really enjoyable process because I wasn’t just covering a song I was performing my song!”
What do you consider your biggest accomplishment so far?
Lydia: “I consider my EP my biggest accomplishment so far. As someone who began as a cover artist it was something I truly didn’t think I’d ever be able to do, so it’s definitely my proudest achievement and the most rewarding thing I’ve done.”
What projects can we look forward to seeing from you in the future?
Lydia: “Lots and lots of original songs in various genres and telling various stories! Definitely more songs in the style of my EP and more MT originals too!”