A Chat with Winn Rose (15.08.24)
Inspired by life in its totality, singer-songwriter Winn Rose captures the core of love, loss, beauty, tragedy, brightness and dark in her moving melodies. We speak with the talented musician about her album so far, her favourite food, what music means to her and future plans.
OSR: Cliché but why did you choose to become a musical career? What drew you to music?
Winn Rose: I originally started in performing arts as an actor when I was 13 but by the time I was 14/15 I wanted to build more confidence and presence in my performance, so I started singing lessons a few months before I got additional training in singing and modelling at this acting school I was a part of for a few years. I found that singing and music was more fun and expressive, so I stuck with it! Even before that, I was putting my hand up to do a few different singing activities, even though my voice wasn’t at all developed yet.
OSR: What does music mean to you?
Winn Rose: For me, music is a therapeutic tool I use to process emotions, both in writing my own music and using other artists’ to figure out how I feel. I think it’s also a great way to relate to others and know that whatever you’re feeling, you aren’t the absolute first to feel it, so you’re never really alone.
OSR: You are about to release your debut album so far. You mention that the album is essentially your life story put to music, so it’s rather vulnerable. How do you hope people respond to and take from this intimate album?
Winn Rose: While it is a “deep dive” (haha) into my own life story, I strongly believe that everyone experiences essentially the same or similar situations throughout the course of our life, but it’s how we react that makes us unique. I hope that listeners can hear what I’ve experienced and begin healing from their own experiences with a similar situation.
OSR: So, why did you decide to create a “life story album”, so to say? What made you choose to share such vulnerabilities and use music to capture different periods of your life?
Winn Rose: Initially, the project was conceptualised as part of my final project at university, and I wanted ‘deep dive’, my first release of 2023, to be a big part of it. I kinda built the album around that track and ‘in love anyway’, then figured out what other stories I wanted to tell.
Given that a lot of my writing is based on real events, I leant into that style of writing for the overall theme of the album and looked for situations that I found significant in the last few years. For example, ‘ANGELS’ tells the story of realising my neurodivergence after having grown up thinking something was wrong with me, and essentially “mourning” the child I could’ve been if I had support in place to succeed.
OSR: You are mostly self-produced, but some tracks on so far are collaborations with other producers. What was this collaborative project like as compared to working solo? What are the pros and cons, and what have you learned from the experience?
Winn Rose: I’m really lucky that I was able to work with my mentors and friends from university to produce the tracks! Working with others to bring my visions to life is a lot of fun and I found it was easier to figure out what I wanted quicker than if I was working alone. I learned a lot about sound engineering and co-writing through the process as well!
OSR: I know so far captures all aspects of your personality and experiences, but which tracks are most special to you?
Winn Rose: I think ‘Rough’ is most special me to right now, for reasons I’m finding hard to explain clearly. I was under a bit of stress having been away from home for almost 2 weeks at that time, recently losing my job, and my partner was travelling at the same time, and I just wanted comfort from him. A bit difficult when we’re across continents.
OSR: If you had to recommend one song from so far to a new listener, which would it be and why?
Winn Rose: That’s so hard because it depends on what you’re in the mood for! If you’re a ballad person, listen to ‘Barely Breathing’ or ‘deep dive’. If you want something chill, listen to one of the interludes or ‘remind me’. I think my favourite to recommend would be ‘Rough’ though because it is so upbeat and a bit happy/sad!
OSR: What is the worst piece of advice you ever received from someone?
Winn Rose: Most of the advice I’ve received is pretty good, but I think something most neurodivergent people can agree on is “be yourself” because the self we are is usually not the self that neurotypical people want to see – we’re expected to be like them.
OSR: If you could eat only one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be? Personally, I’d go for my Mum’s macaroni and cheese, what about you?
Winn Rose: That’s really difficult because I LOVE eating good food (and a lot of it), but probably going to go with red wine-braised lamb shanks with garlic mash, because it’s one of the best meals I’ve had recently!
OSR: What can we expect from Winn Rose in the future?
Winn Rose: A short break to recover for now, but be on the lookout for more music and shows in the future!
OSR: Do you have a message for our readers?
Winn Rose: Endeavour to be present in everyday life and find something to be grateful for each day. Don’t dwell too much on the past like I do! Thank you so much for listening and I hope you enjoy the album.
Many thanks to Winn Rose for speaking with us. Find out more about Winn Rose on her official website, Facebook, Instagram and Spotify.
This artist was discovered via Musosoup #sustainablecurator
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