August Charles On His Journey To ‘Blessed’
In conversation with BLK BRIT, alt-soul artist August Charles explores his journey into discovering: his sound, the North-South divide, support through funding and how inspiration drives quality in the creative process. With an extensive music vocabulary, the richness in his music and enchanting tone has already drawn attention from greats within the industry, and is set to rise to further heights. August’s debut EP ‘Blessed’ was released on 5th April- check it out here on Spotify.
Catch August at one of his upcoming shows; 28th May in Leeds at Hyde Park Book Club or 30th May in London at Paper Dress Vintage.
Photography by Ai Narapol
You’re born 1997; you came to the UK from Zambia when you were 6?
“Yeah I was 6 years old and we moved to Cardiff.”
What was your experience like going from Zambia to the UK?
“It was odd, when I recollect any of those moments. It was a time where there was a lot of change in my life. That was when my mum and dad divorced and she moved in with my now step-dad at the time. My young mind couldn’t understand what was going on but we had to adapt. Also my English wasn’t that great, so it was also the adaptation of making sure my English was good. In Cardiff you also had to learn Welsh and that was another thing!”
So very multilingual.
“Well, I still don’t speak Welsh now. (laughs) But It was a challenge at the beginning.”
That’s a lot of change for such a young person. Do you feel like having a background where you had to adapt to change is why you gravitated towards music having the influence from different backgrounds? Or what was it that drew you to music and when?
“I feel like I’ve always had a passion for it. But to be fair though, when I was young I wanted to be a footballer before anything else. I was already the black sheep of the family because my step-dad’s a doctor, my mum’s a nurse, my sister did biochemistry and me wanting to be anything outside of that realm was a challenge in itself. They kind of shut down the football dream quite early on (laughs) so had to live with it. But I’d say when I first moved to Doncaster my parents let me do music GCSE because I wasn’t really happy about constantly being moved around. So they let me do something more creative for once and through that we had to play an instrument or sing. I sang and they were like, ‘Oh, this is good,’ this was like the first appreciation of my voice and that was the starting steps I would say.”
Ah, so you kind of got to bribe your way into something creative? (both laugh)
“I feel so, yeah, I had to get my own! The situation was when we moved to Doncaster - I moved from one school and because my mum is Catholic she made me stay at one school for 2 months and then move me to another school within the same city so I was very much frustrated, so the plus was to allow me to do what i wanted to do.”
Well thank goodness for that because it allowed you to make some beautiful music to share with the world. Creative people always have an interesting background story and it develops into hearing this within the music. Growing up what kind of music did you enjoy growing up and being exposed to? You said you came from a religious background so how was it with music?
“I’d say it was interesting where my source of influence was from as it was so sporadic, I don’t think that I can pinpoint. Besides that fact, it was stupid, as a kid I used to despise my step-dad because he wasn’t my dad but then obviously I grow up and then I respect him highly and appreciate everything he did, but this is one of the reasons I didn’t respect it at the time but he loved Neo-Soul, he would put on Erykah Badu, The Roots, D’Angelo and Jazz, as a kid I’d be like, ‘Ahh, can you turn it off,’ and I’d be listening to N-Dubz or whatever’s on 1xtra trying to avoid whatever he’s playing. And then I grew up and was like hold on a minute, I know this music, why do I really like it? And I realised it was just him. We had a conservatory in the back where he would chill not to be disturbed on Sunday’s blasting this great music, and you’d just hear it. He's been playing this great music for time and it was just under-appreciated in my young mind. But I would say he has had a huge influence on the music I love today; like John Legend, Chris Brown.”
Photography by Ai Narapol
Speaking of those genres, you have opened for Bilal at Jazz Cafe and performed alongside the likes of Nile Rodgers, Emeli Sandé, brilliant artists within the field early on in your career. How is it having these experiences with people you would have listened to and admired growing up and now working with them?
“Someone told me recently that I need to start reflecting more. I am very much like when something happens I am onto the next thing but I don’t realise how big of a moment it is until it has passed and I'm like wow, how did I even get there?! These are all things that my 12 year-old self when I first started doing anything music related would think I’d ever be doing. It’s such an honour to be wanted and accepted by them in the form of they believe in what I’m doing or enjoy to the point they are happy for me to open for them. Whenever I see any of these artists live, I just aspire to be somewhat influenced by how they are as performers and how respectfully they treat people off the stage.They have a lineage and a history that expands for such a long time and been in the industry for so long; they make people happy, emotional and the way their music impacts people is something that drives me to get to the stage. Regardless of how old I am, they just want to see me live, you know?”
Yes, your live performance I definitely enjoyed, you get to see a raw version of the artist seeing them live. When people describe your style do you feel a pressure of being compared to people? Or do you find it necessary for people to be able to categorise what you do?
“I’d say there is somewhat of a pressure, sometimes people find it easier to comprehend music based on suggestion and influence and so forth but like I said earlier in terms of influence it’s wide so [it] really is difficult. In interviews, there’s a massive pressure so I just say an artist that I feel is relevant at the time but in reality it can come from so many different sources. One of my favourite genres in the world is Zam Rock which happened in the 70’s, that was only for a short amount of time, but then I really like Indie music, I was a big fan of Arctic Monkeys growing up. But as I mentioned, all the Neo-Soul artists, I’d just be listing names which are a concoction of influences. I think that’s just evolved into a question that just gets asked in interviews and you’ll see on people’s socials ‘for fans of…’ and the reason that’s there is like a marketing ploy to try and get audiences who are fans of that artist. Don’t get me wrong, my manager will tell me I need to do that. I do like to emphasise that music is an artform so when you are making something you don’t necessarily compare what you're creating.”
Yes, it is important to understand that creatives rarely have one source of inspiration and it is getting increasingly hard to categorise artists as the boundaries are opening. Good music draws from a lot of places. Going into support, you have had some from the PRS Foundation. Please go into the importance of these things in supporting up-and-coming artists and your experience with that.
“I have been very blessed, I think if I didn’t have any funding I don’t know if I’d have been able to pursue my career in the way that I have, because it is a very expensive industry, it’s not easy. I don’t think people realise how much money goes into a song or releasing music. It’s not sustainable to do it whilst working. What tends to end up happening is you make a standard for yourself in terms of how much you are willing to put into it, you try and work with producers that are more established, or work with mix engineers that have a sound that is clean and last the test of time, mastering engineers and then the marketing aspect of it; the photography, the videography, all of these things accumulate so much money. And we all know music doesn’t make that much money in return so in order to keep it going you have to have support from the government or organisations that genuinely care about grassroots level. PRS Foundation are examples that actually care and I’ve had a great experience working with them, even having a mentor. Michelle Escoffery who is PRS members resident funder is an incredible woman who has given me so much advice that spurred me on to continue doing what I’m doing, and also advice that you just wouldn’t get elsewhere from someone that has a wealth of experience. Even networking events that PRS have done before where I’ve been able to connect with other musicians that are like-minded and in parts of the UK I may not have met otherwise- you’re only as big as your network. So, when you find these people you more understand how their landscapes work, like people in Glasgow can tell you about venues, promoters and what it’s like in that scene so you can navigate that via them and vice versa, or collaborate making music. Funding in itself is a God-send and so grateful.”
It’s great these organisations exist. But I do feel like there needs to be more in the creative industries. For example, there are pockets of areas that don’t see as much activity. You’ve moved around a fair amount; do you feel there are still locations that get better levels of access to support?
“Yeah, I think so. One thing I’ve always noticed being in the North is infrastructure. You find that with London because it is the Mecca, that's where all the labels, distribution managers, lawyers are and these are the people who will progress your career. Even with grass-roots funding locally, it is so minimal that if you were to get it, it’s a smaller pot to share from and more competition. At the same time, I’d caveat that with the fact there are some funds that make sure they are supporting people outside of London and means you are more likely to get support. Like Power Up by PRS for Music Foundation which only came about the last few years but definitely a step in the right direction. With the infrastructure part, it is the question of if there are people who are of the calibre that can create a space for people to create. I remember being in school when I was in Birmingham in fact, it was an afterschool social club with no extra charge. It was funded and you could be creative there and that’s not really a thing anymore.”
Photography by Ai Narapol
With your Debut EP ‘Blessed’, it releases on April 5th and the tour kicks off then. It is nice to see the in person interaction with the vinyls and pop-ups as part of the marketing especially from the younger generation. What made you approach the release in that way?
“The in store tour is one where I want to allow for my audience or fan base to be in an intimate setting. I am just an everyday person and I want to interact, I want to be able to hear their voices. I’ve played in a record shop before with my old band and was one of my favourite gigs, because it is such a small space you tend to find the people that are there are genuinely the ones that are big fans of you and want to be in your space. There are also certain places I’ve never played in before like Bury and Edinburgh and wanted to make sure I’ve been told and stats show the people are there but just haven’t had the opportunity to go there. Following that will be my headline shows in London and in Leeds which are somewhat of my main territories in the UK. So yeah, just connecting with my audience and answer any questions that may come my way.”
Nice! What was your creative process going into this project and making this body of work?
“Any music I make, whichever project I’m doing, it tends to stem from like a voice note just because I find it easier to come up with an idea and if I really like it and I keep singing it or humming it, then it’s going to come to fruition. ‘Blessed’ was in my voice note for months, I just kept humming that melody, and then I had to take it to a producer and then reached out to Gabriel Gifford based out in Berlin. Years ago when [the track] ‘Blessed’ was [originally] made it was during Covid, so it was on Zoom and had to send stuff back and forth, but for this project I had to go and see him in person, it will make it more efficient and able to connect and make sure the music is intertwined and feels like it has a narrative that fits together. One of the first tracks we started making was my latest single ‘I Can See’- it’s funny because when I have had a song for a while I try not to listen to it for too long so I don’t get sick of it (laughs). But I took some time away from it and focused on the other tracks and now it’s out, it is one of my favourite tracks on the EP. Once the building blocks are set we [Gabe] start adding instrumentation and end up working with different musicians like violinist Jed Bevintgton who is one of my favourite people now, the way he adds strings is so magical to me. Then one of my best friends is a rapper called Yung Yusuf who whenever I’m stuck with what I’m trying to explain, he’s so poetic with his words and thought about who I could reach out to, and within say two days we had finished the EP. I’m very selective with who I write or work with. I don’t write lyrics until the very end, I’ll hum some stuff or mumble some words, some people find it hard to understand. Like pitching demos to labels and they couldn’t see beyond that, which is funny to me because I feel that music should make you feel something even before the lyrics go on, the production of it, the melody, the bassline, the drums. I need to figure out what the song makes me feel like first, so that’s the process.”
That’s why your music has the depth to it, the chemistry and the layers have the right attention to detail to make a great output. It makes it relatable to fans when they hear the quality behind the music.
“I do frustrate my producers with that as I will spend hours making sure each little part is right. I want to make sure my head is bopping, maybe I am really strong minded because I can't just settle on something. At the end of the day, I have to reiterate that yes I’m paying for it and also I have to sing this music for the rest of my life and have to make sure I really enjoy it, otherwise there’s no point in me doing this. And I want to share my emotion when I'm on stage.”
Are there any producers or artists that you would love to work with in the future for collaboration?
“There’s a band in Leeds that for the longest have been trying to find the right time, Gotts Street Park, they’ve worked with the likes of Celeste, Pip Millet and they are such a talented band. One of the producers is Tom Henry who has worked with artists like Charlotte Dos Santos; it’s just finding the right time and moment to make it work; it’s not always about trying to do things as fast as possible, when the moment arises it will happen. Someone else that funnily enough recently gave me some praise was Timbaland who listened to my music and liked my tone and compared me to James Blake, who is another person I’d love to work with. So these are all people I’ve been a fan of and would be amazing to work with them, but it’s not the end of the world if I don’t because there are so many talented people in this world, as long as there's synergy then good music will be made.”
Now that you’re into the music, are you glad that you chose it instead of football? (both laugh)
“I think my football dreams are still alive somewhere. I do love being a musician; it’s funny because it took me a while to actually enjoy the fact, because the reality of being a musician is that it is quite exposing, not in a bad way. But whenever you make something and share it to the world it is a piece of me to you and opening it up for criticism, you can hear what people say and think. Most of the time it is very positive but it is a daunting thing to allow something that means a lot to you being open to opinion, it’s a good thing though, it’s important people make their interpretation of my art. I really do believe that the music can mean different things to different people at the same time.”
Last question, as you’re interviewing with BLK BRIT, how do you form your identity being Black in Britain?
“I’d say I’m very much a Black Brit. When I first came to this country from Zambia not knowing much about it, I feel like I have been so ingrained into British culture that when I go back I get called a Westerner (laughs) - I don’t really get accepted the same way I used to. Which stems from the fact I can’t really speak my own language Bemba like I used to which is so sad, but it is genuinely from when I was younger and no one would speak to me in our language because they really wanted to make sure I could speak English well. So then in Zambia now, I struggle to understand and because of that now I'm classed as a foreigner, like okay. But I am proud to be a Black Brit in the sense that I look at my peers and people I look up to that are doing well, even actors like Daniel Kaluuya in the States and Idris Elba. They are representing Black Brits from the UK. I want to be in that position also, when young kids coming up see me doing things all over the world, I want them to know [what’s possible].
At the same time, I am also a proud Zambian man, I really do love my country and I still have a lot of family there and I love every aspect of it. I have to appreciate both sides because that’s where life began. I’m from a tribe called Tonga and whenever I go back, I can recollect some Tonga phrases as my grandma does not speak English so I have to figure out the words so we can communicate. It is something I am trying to engrain in my music more often like the song River in the bridge section; so I’m trying to embrace it even more. One day I would hope to make a Zam Rock inspired album, I’m going to put it out there, and work with Emeli Sandé and Sampa the Great. There are a multitude of talented Zambian musicians and would love to put myself back in that world.
Thank you, it has been great to interview you and share your stories.