Ahead of the SOUTHWEST SHOWCASE WITH BBC INTRODUCING event that takes place at Exeter Phoenix on 1st February, we were keen to catch up with some of the acts performing on the night. A wonderful singer-songwriter called Liang Lawrence was the first to agree to a chat with us about all things musical, here’s what we found out. 

Liang Lawrence is a 22-year-old singer-songwriter who spends most of her time walking around, listening to music and sitting on trains because she can’t stay in one place for very long at all. She is a middle child to two other sisters and has been raised between countries, cultures and languages and thinks that she has now found some sort of grounding permanence in music and writing, hence her love for it.

Liang is half-Chinese and half-English, and whilst she has moved around a lot during her life to date, including stints in the Midlands and London, she counts Devon as her home (for now). 

Her love of music started at an early age, she admitted that since she figured out how to make any morsel of sound, she started to sing and began playing musical instruments when she was just seven years old. Her interest in music blossomed around the age of eleven when she started to become interested in creating and consuming music with a vengeance. 

She started having lessons for piano and violin aged just seven but admitted that she never liked being taught music. Instead of these, her first love came via the ukelele when she was eleven years old, which she started to teach herself alongside songwriting. She started to learn guitar when she turned fourteen and hasn’t stopped since. 

I probed her on the first piece of music that she purchased but she came clean and admitted that her first purchase was not so much purchased, more ‘borrowed’ via a torrent site after her older sister had showed her how to do it (naughty older sister). After a few hours, she had successfully downloaded her favourite tracks onto an MP3 music player that her Nan had bought her for Christmas when she was nine years old. Challenged to name the tracks that she opted for, Liang struggled but suggested that ‘Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da' by The Beatles and ‘Grace Kelly’ by MIKA were amongst them. 

 

I asked whether she grew up in a musical household and she said that she did, despite neither of her parents playing any instruments or pursuing anything in music, instead, they both shared their favourite songs with the kids via the hi-fi, she also recalled that they both enjoyed going to see live music and having a dance at any given opportunity. 

Her parents are massive fans of The Eagles and as a result, Liang’s first ever concert was seeing them live, which clearly made an impact on her as they remain one of her favourite bands to date. A song that she distinctly remembers entered her life when her father sat her down and played some of his Genesis albums and after hearing ‘Blood on the Rooftops’, she fell in love with it, and to this day, it is one of her favourite songs in the world. 

Once she was set on the right musical path, she started to investigate other genres such as indie and alternative rock and became fascinated and excited about the sheer volume of music that was available (not via torrent sites) which allowed her to discover acts such as Two Door Cinema Club, Phoenix, Bombay Bicycle Club, Cage the Elephant and The Kooks around the time she became a teenager, which was a magical time for her, being free to search and find music that resonated with her more than the chart-filling fodder that was being pumped through the airwaves of the national stations.

Her love for bands only grew when she started to go to gigs with friends with similar musical tastes. She bonded very quickly over music with her best friend Elly and admitted that she didn’t go to her first gig as a fan until she was eighteen years old (other than seeing The Eagles when she was younger). She and Elly saw a band called The Snuts at the Cavern in Exeter (such an iconic little venue, steeped in musical history) which helped to forge a very strong friendship and paved the way for the next step in her musical journey of loving live music and gig culture in general. 

We chatted about gigging as an artist rather than attending gigs as a punter and she said that she always knew that she wanted to gig after seeing a Beatles tribute band playing when she was very young and had never wanted to be anything else so badly in her life. It was the way that the band could make everyone in the room so happy, and so excited by just playing music left her in awe. When the opportunity came, she was offered her first gig supporting James Gillespie in Bristol in 2022, she took it but couldn’t believe that she was being asked to perform her original work for people who would have never heard it before. Asked about how her set was received, she commented that Bristol always has a way of being so lovely, the people are so appreciative and welcoming to new musicians which resulted in it being an unforgettable evening both for her and everyone in attendance. 

I asked Liang if there was one act or band that made her want to start playing and writing music and if so, who was it and how did they influence her? Liang replied that Dodie really inspired her songwriting and giving her the confidence to teach herself the ukulele and guitar when she was younger. She was able to create music in her bedroom and Liang had never seen that before. She could write about whatever she wanted to, and for the first time, Liang was under her spell, hell, if she could do it, so could Liang! 

I was keen to learn about the first song that Liang ever learned to play, she laughed and added that it was one of those songs that you learn when you’re first starting piano. She remembers having singing lessons for the first time, her music teacher Kate, made her fall in love with singing. The first song she ever performed singing solo was ‘Forget You’ by Ceelo Green and it remains one of her faves to this very day. 

I asked Liang about the first song that she ever wrote and whether it was any good, she set the scene by saying that she was just eleven years old when it happened and it was co-written with a friend, the resulting number was a complete rip-off of ‘Sixteen Going on Seventeen’ from The Sound of Music soundtrack....She redeemed herself by saying that she then started to write a bit more and things started to improve. When she was fourteen, she wrote a song called “Differently”, which was about never feeling like you were enough, body image, societal expectations of boys and girls and she added that this was the first original song that she ever performed solo to an audience. 

When you’re a kid, you want to grow up to be an astronaut, a Ballerina or maybe even a Supermodel, I asked Liang what she wanted to be when she grew up and she replied saying that part of her has always wanted to perform and create music, but never really thought it was possible. Having not grown up knowing, or even knowing anyone who knew how the industry worked, she decided to pursue another dream in biology. She attended University in Exeter to study with a plan to enjoy a career in zoology or wildlife conservation. Liang feels very lucky to have such a passion for both science and music and hopes that one day, she can somehow intertwine them and make them both a part of her life (a singing zookeeper maybe?). 

Exeter is renowned for being a university city that attracts a lot of youngsters, as a result, it’s nightlife has to be good enough to cater to people’s tastes and desires, and this is the same for the venues that host musical acts. Liang said that after spending four years in Exeter, she has fallen in love with the community of songwriters and artists in Exeter that help to make it the magical place it is. The ‘open mic’ style events that are popping up in venues across the city in cosy venues help to create a lovely atmosphere of creative types that love to discover and share music. 

Admittedly, the number of venues in Exeter has dropped over the past few years, the global pandemic did nothing for grass roots venues and it’s a surprise to see any open at all, but those that remain are quirky and fun, great spots to meet people, share ideas and enjoy touring bands as they make their way around the country. Liang has enjoyed many gigs at The Phoenix, across Gandy Street at The Cavern and also downstairs in a venue called Vaults (questionable but great fun if the commitment is there). For the type of music that she’s into, Exeter has a range of venues that has never let her down, despite some of the larger places calling it a day in recent years. A night out isn’t a night out without a few party tricks and Liang admits that she can perform a range of weird animal impressions (mostly when drunk), she admitted to being able to do a pretty good chimpanzee, and from time to time, a good howl. 

Liang is set to perform at the BBC Introducing Showcase event at The Phoenix in Exeter on February 1st, I asked her if she is familiar with the other acts on the bill. She said that she just recently met the headline band Tors and that they are all lovely guys, she supported their Christmas show in Higher Eggbeer and it was genuinely one of the loveliest venues and evenings she’s ever played. 

Having been a big fan of Tors for a while, she can’t wait to be sharing a stage with them again. She also knows Benny G from Pattern Pusher (who doesn’t know Benny G?) as he produced and recorded the live acoustic version of her song ‘(not) a love song’. I probed about how the session went and she admitted that they had a fun day, with Benny G trying to bring out a different side of the song. She’s yet to meet the remaining two members of Pattern Pusher but is excited to do so as she thinks they are as lovely as Benny G..... (I’m saying nothing). 

 

I asked if this was the first BBC Introducing event that Liang has been involved in and if it is, what level of excitement is she currently sitting at. She said that it IS the first BBC event that she’s performed at and as for excitement levels? Off the scale! She admitted that she doesn’t really know what to expect and said that she’s most excited to see the other acts on the bill, she loves supporting and being part of showcase events and the buzz for her is getting to see other amazing artists play on the same stage on the same night. She’s also excited to be bringing her band along with her, she said that she doesn’t get to play with the band very often (which she’s working on changing – so expect more full band dates in the future). 

 

I asked Liang the hardest question in the world, how would she categorise her music? She admitted that this is a tough question and she’ll always wonder if she’ll ever be able to feel like she’s answered it correctly. Her music is very grounded in indie-folk and she admits that she finds it easiest to write songs starting with just her acoustic guitar and lyrics. Sonically, she hopes to exist in a soft rock/folk rock world but is still trying to figure out exactly where she wants to sit but finds it exciting that she’s trying to create a genre that can’t quite hear yet, scary, but exciting. As a result, she feels that she’s faking things until she has ‘made it’ when, hopefully the puzzle will be complete. To summarise, she would feel comfortable existing somewhere between Joni Mitchell’s storytelling and Clairo’s live band soft rock sound with some elements of The Japanese House’s modern folktronic flare and Spacey Jane’s atmospheric sounding production. 

 

Liang released her 'Letters to Myself' EP in August 2023 and she also has another couple of singles which were released in 2023, I asked Liang about her musical plans for 2024 to which she replied that if she’s being completely honest, the whole prospect of 2024 is so scary to her, incredibly exciting but also terrifying. She has lots of plans for herself as an artist with more music that she wants to release in 2024. She admits that it’s taken a while for her to start settling into a sound that feels like ‘her’, so 2024 is the beginning of showing people what she is made of. That being said, she wants to be transparent and say that there are also so many unknowns that come with being a small independent artist. The good thing is she feels that she’s starting to build a team around her that really believe in her and her long-term musical plans, which is something she never thought she’d have. She said that new music is on its way and people should expect the best yet.... 

 

To close things down, I asked Liang to tell me where she’d like to be in five years’ time, she admitted that she’s not entirely sure but just wants to keep having fun with gigging, performing and writing music. Her passion centres around playing live so she’d love to be playing shows and being able to communicate better with her audience. Solor or band? She said that she’d definitely love to be playing with her band at larger venues where the audience is more up for a good time as well as performing solo at more intimate venues where the mood requires more of a ‘listening’ vibe. She’s unsure what her music will sound like in five years’ time but hopes that it will have grown with her and hopes it just always feels true to herself as an artist. 

To finish things off, we put Liang through the musomuso ten question challenge.... 

The best album in the world ever is.... 

This is way too hard, and to be honest I only started listening to entire albums in the last few years but here are a few that come to mind. 

1. Here Comes Everybody by Spacey Jane 

2. Cub by Wunderhorse 

3. The Loved Ones by Flyte 

4. What’s the Story (Morning Glory) by Oasis 

    

My dream festival lineup would be.....  

1. Oasis 

2. Spacey Jane 

3. The Japanese House 

 

If we were to come to yours for dinner, what would you serve us?  

1. Soup and sourdough bread combo 

2. Sushi 

3. Tiramisu 

 

 The best film in the world ever is..... 

 Ratatouille 

 

 The three things I cannot live without are.... 

1. My guitar 

2. Camera 

3. The ocean 

 

I'm happiest when I am.....  

In the sea 

 

If I weren't a musician, I would be a.....  

Zoologist 

 

The top three things on my Christmas list....  

1. Socks (obvs) 

2. Puppy/kitten (every year) 

3. Flat in London  

 

We’d like to thank Liang for chatting to us and wish her every success at the BBC introducing Showcase event which is taking place at The Phoenix in Exeter on 1st February (tickets available NOW)

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Words by Steve Muscutt