Meet: Angela Rose

Storyteller Angela Rose follows on from 2021’s singles Summer Love and Utopia with her latest alt-indie country inspired tune Small Town, an optimistic ode to love with reflective undertones of a mournful longingness. 

Drawing from timeless female icons of music such as Stevie Nicks, Joni Mitchell & Dolly Parton, Angela crafts a modern spin on an alt-country sound. With a brush drum beat that moves the track along, accompanied by acoustic guitar strums, clean electric guitar accents and the delicate pitter patter of keys, the track's backing allows plenty of space for the singer-songwriter's infectious hooks and intimate lyricism to effortlessly soar through the narrative of Small Town.

Out now, enjoy the warm sounds and heart-felt story that Small Town has to offer, as you get to know Angela Rose a little better below. 

Tell us about yourself? (age, location, hobbies, favourite food, what you do outside of music etc?)

Hey, I’m Angela Rose! I’m 24, born and raised in Maitland/Newcastle :) Its impossible to choose a favourite food, but if could only eat one food for the rest of my life, it would be chips and gravy - simple gal haha. When it comes to hobbies, music is my only cool one. I usually just love spending time with my loved ones and my cats haha very introverted. I don’t mind a good book, or sometimes I like to paint but it’s certainly not a hobby that I’m great at haha. Outside of music I keep pretty busy with my day job as a disability support worker - best job in the world! I have met and work with some of the most amazing humans! And I’m currently in my final year of my Social Work degree at uni! 

When and why did you start playing and writing music? 

I’ve always been musical, ever since I was little. I have always sung - that came pretty naturally to me which I am so grateful for. Music has always been so healing for me, and such a big part of my life - but I only started writing songs about 3 years ago. I remember just randomly waking up one day and deciding to give songwriting a go - the end result was terrible and no one will ever hear it haha but i knew it was something I wanted to work at! So I began writing and playing around with melody daily and I could only really play a few chords on piano at the time, so I decided to buy a guitar and teach myself with some YouTube videos. I was always encouraged throughout my life to try new things and not to be afraid of failure, so I guess that really helped me to begin my music journey! 

Tell us about your creative process? 

My creative process is usually spontaneous and if I get an idea I have to sit down with my guitar or record the vocal melody straight into my phone, otherwise it’s lost forever. It can be melody first that I hear in my head and the words flow from there, but 9/10 times I will write the entire lyrics of the song and have to create a melody later. But If I was to put it into a structure of what my planned creative process looks like, it would be: 1. Get inspired by something - could be a word, conversation, experience, movie, literally anything. 2. Write the word/phrase/idea in my phone notes. 3. Let the idea ‘marinate’ haha and over time I will add more lyrics, ideas, themes to the note. 3. Once marinating is finished or the lyrics are written, I usually will have a melody that I’m humming. I’ll pick up the guitar or sit at the piano and put the chords down. Usually melodies or riffs I will hum, and then translate onto instrument. 4. Then I just work at it until I feel it’s good to go. Sometimes it feels like I’m doing maths homework or trying to decipher a riddle, and other times a song could literally write itself in 10 minutes. But I’ve learned I have to be ready at all times because you never know when a song wants to arrive, so sometimes you’ll catch me in Woolworths singing into my phone haha.

Tell us about your new single? (perhaps something not covered in press release)

For me, writing this song was really therapeutic and helped with the release of regret. It was written about 2.5 years ago, and I remember the feeling after I finished it - Small Town was the first song I’d written where I felt like it was worthy of being recorded and released into the world. It is the song that made me realise I wanted to seriously pursue being a songwriter and gave me a huge confidence boost in my songwriting skills and storytelling.

How can fans best support your music? 

The usual stream, like, and playlist add is always helpful, but I reckon the best way to support my music would be to share it with a friend or loved one if you enjoy it or you think they would like it :) Word of mouth can go a long way! I'm also playing a single launch show at the Stag & Hunter in Newcastle on Friday 22/4 which will be a lot of fun!

What’s coming up for the rest of the year? 

I’m planning on releasing my debut EP later in the year which is super exciting!!! And a few live gigs here and there are something I’m really looking forward too! 

Who have you been listening to lately? 

Holly Humberstone has been on repeat for me lately. Her lyricism is so clever and thematically is usually a bit darker. But in contrast her songs are super fresh and catchy, and production is also very fun to listen to. Sooo good.

Angela Rose’s new single Small Town is out now.

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