RISING UK STAR DYLAN in exclusive interview

by | Music, New Music

The London based 21-year-old has won an army of supporters over the last couple of years and has already supported Yungblud, Griff and Thomas Headon on the road.

Her latest EP ‘No Romeo’ is her biggest work to date, featuring singles ‘Nineteen’, ‘Someone Else’ and ‘You’re Not Harry Styles’. A real pop star in the making, her sound is a winning combination of candidly honest lyrics, huge pop production and a slightly rougher, rocky edge.

We caught up with Dylan earlier in the day ahead of her first-ever Berlin performance at Hole 44…

indieRepublik: You had Irlen syndrome as a kid and had trouble processing visual information / colours. How do you think that has affected your take on the world?

Dylan: Weirdly I think it’s the reason for my ambition. I struggled immensely at school because of it and was constantly behind. It really impacted my mental health, which was what lead me to writing songs, as obviously I couldn’t read music or learn others’ music. 

Dylan Photographed by Tom Oxley

indieRepublik: Why “No Romeo”? What*s that all about?

Dylan: The idea of ‘No Romeo’ honestly popped into my head on a train. The EP is all about falling in love for the first time, the pain that comes with that, the break up and the empowerment that comes with understanding your worth post relationship. 

indieRepublik: How would you describe your music – and what you want to do with your music? (yes I know, we all hate that question :))

Dylan: I’d say it’s gigantic pop/rock. Every song I write seems to be very enormous sounding, which is the way I like it. I don’t have too many intentions for it, if it helps other people the way it helps me then that’s brilliant, but really all I want to do is write at the end of the day, it’s my only form of therapy. There’s nothing cliche about it. 

indieRepublik: Some people came up in the time of MySpace; Spotfy; the ascendance of Facebook and then Instagram…how did you first find recognition? And what would you do differently now; what would you recommend to other singers starting out?

Dylan: I think probably TikTok. I’d been doing music for about two years in denial of the platform prior to a little viral moment. I actually hated the idea of social media for a really long time, but my dad made the point of questioning how much I want to do this, which is what threw me into trying everything I could to work out the algorithm. Eventually I did and here we are today. 

What’s the biggest difference between UK and European crowds?

there’s not a huge difference. they scream just as loudly as the UK lot. although I have been really surprised as to how welcoming they have been, I’m not sure what I was expecting. As the support act I didn’t really think they would sing with me or be as incredibly supportive as they have been. So it’s been incredible to meet so many people so far! 

You’re in Berlin this Sunday night, May 15th. Is this your first time in Berlin – and what do you look forward to about it the most?

It is!!!! well since the tour started all my tour manager will go on about is burgermeister, so I am hoping I will get to have one!! 

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Dylan is at Hole 44 tonight!

All photos included in article by Tom Oxley

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