“I'm validating myself, I don't need others to validate me”: Marged on newest release ‘Bounce Back’
Six years on from her past releases, we spoke to Cardiff-born artist Marged as she prepares to usher in a freshly empowered musical era with new single ‘Bounce Back’.
Photo by Carys Huws
“I think that through this new relationship I've built with myself, I have taken a lot of pressure off,” Welsh singer-songwriter Marged told us as we sat down with her ahead of her latest release, a refreshing manifestation of her recently consolidated sense of self. “That’s the only way I could describe it. I'm now in a space where I'm validating myself, I don't need others to validate me, so the work that I'm doing is a lot more authentic.”
With experiences performing with unabashedly powerful pop artist Self Esteem as well as guiding survivors of gender-based violence through vocal empowerment, Marged is no stranger to the healing power of music. Her latest release, aptly entitled Bounce Back, is imbued with an invigoratingly confident quality that showcases pop music at its most inspiring. Released after a six-year hiatus, Bounce Back reflects the Cardiff artist’s journey of growth. Following her older releases, which document the singer’s journey navigating self-worth and confidence, Marged’s new single comes as she steps into a new chapter– bouncing back without seeking permission.
So your new single Bounce Back comes out tomorrow. How are we feeling?
“I'm feeling excited. I'm feeling nervous. But I think the main feeling is that I feel really proud of what I've created and taken my time on, because I haven't released for six years. I'm feeling like it's the right time, like everything has happened in the right way. And the time that I've taken out has realigned me quite a lot, and has let me go in this new direction, where I think I'm just being a bit more direct, which is quite weird, because the last stuff I did was quite direct anyway. But this, I feel, is really direct. It's really on the surface, but I feel good about it. I feel so good.”
It’s so worth the six year wait! As you say, it's been such a long time since you last released, I mean, so much of the world has changed, so much within yourself must have changed over those six years. How do you think your personal growth and your experiences over the past six years have manifested themselves in this new release?
“I think that's such a good question. I think that through this new relationship I've built with myself, I have taken a lot of pressure off. That’s the only way I could describe it. I'm now in a space where I'm validating myself, I don't need others to validate me, so the work that I'm doing is a lot more authentic.”
“When I’m in the studio, it's driven by what I want to say, and sounds that I want to explore rather than thinking about what box I need to fit into. I think when I was releasing before, I was quite concerned with who everybody else would want me to be. I didn't know who I was, I think. I'm really proud of that work, but this feels like it's come from a different place. It's come from a creative expression space, rather than from thinking about what other people are gonna like.”
“I’m a grown woman now, so I can navigate those things with more confidence.”
“I think it's definitely my favourite thing that I've written. For sure. And I think that just taking that time and just being like, ‘Okay, what do I want to say?’ and not being scared of that is what this time has given me and sort of that personal growth as well. And also just not caring about the music industry anymore. The music industry is so inherently flawed, and I think that's all coming to the surface now. I've just had to really make my peace with the fact that I love music, but I don't like the business. And so trying to navigate that as well, I think it's something that's going to come up for me again, but I’m in a space where I'm grown. I'm a grown woman now, so I can navigate those things with more confidence.”
That’s beautiful. And I know you've been amazingly powerful in opening up about how music has helped you navigate trauma. And the title of this release being Bounce Back feels really fitting. Do you feel that getting back into music again has helped you navigate things? Has it been quite healing?
“For sure. I think people who have been following me for a little while know what the song is about. I think music has always helped me figure out things and it's always been a way for me to just understand how to move through the world. When I was releasing before, I was in that traumatic situation so I was writing and figuring things out at the same time, whereas now this feels like I'm reflecting. So I think that that's why it comes from a much more empowered place.”
“That's something that’s really important to me. I don't want to write from this place of figuring out. I mean, it's important for me to do that still, to actually work through my emotions, but I'm quite careful now not to sort of write in crisis. Or if I do, then I sort of have to go back to it and think about, okay, what is this actually saying. When I was in that situation, the music I was listening to was from artists who made me feel inspired and gave me strength. And sonically, as well, in terms of the sounds they would use, or the tempo, or the attitude and all of that stuff. Yeah, it feels like a bit of closure, which is nice, like a new chapter. It's definitely helped me.”
Photo by Carys Huws
There's something so powerful about the track: you can really see how it's written from that place of recovery. You can feel that strength through the music when you listen to it. Off the back of that you’ve done lots of work surrounding vocal liberation and helping others to feel power through their voices. And in your past work, and this new song, the power we can feel through the music is just so healing. Is that something you’re aware of? There’s obviously the elements of reflection and self empowerment. But when you’re writing, do you think, ‘Okay, this is going to be something that is going to help people who've been through similar things to me’. Are you aware of how helpful it is to others?
“You know what, no, I'm not, I don't think I am aware. I mean, I did a documentary maybe two years ago now. I think at the core of who I am, I'm a storyteller. I love chatting, I love sharing, and I think that makes its way into my work. But it's never really a part of why I do it.”
“I wrote this song in twenty minutes and recorded it into those wired Apple headphones. And I remember I had just gotten into a recovery space and I think I was just sniffling through it. And so that came from a place that was just for me. I wrote so much at that time: I had this emotion and just had to get it out. It was really natural and instinctive. And then I took it to Sakima, my long-standing producer, and we thought about how to actually convey it all.”
“I try to always follow a feeling and think, what does a feeling sound like? Because that's what music is to me.”
“I don't think it's like a conscious thing of thinking about what other people might need, but I definitely try to make my feelings tangible. I try to always follow a feeling and think, what does a feeling sound like? Because that's what music is to me. Now that I’m in this place, I do hope that it helps people and that it brings people an outlet– especially since as women, we're not allowed to show any sort of anger or disappointment or anything like that without there being a consequence. So that was really important to me. Just sort of portraying that in a safe way for myself and just doing it all on my terms.”
You’re definitely a great storyteller, the confidence comes across. I just listen to your music and I feel like a bad bitch! One of my favourite lyrics from the song is ‘Do it for me not because they say I should.’ That's just so powerful. And you touched upon it a little bit earlier, about how the music industry is becoming all about people churning out as many songs as possible to please other people rather than staying true to themselves. And obviously, you took this time to wait until it was the right time to release this track and to make sure it was saying the right things. You seem to have found such a good sense of self within the industry. What was that journey like? How did you find yourself?
“It has honestly been so hard. It’s made me depressed, it's made me anxious. So it's been something that I've really had to grapple with. Around two years ago, I got into like, a really dark place with it. And I realised that it was because I didn't know who I was. So through all of this time that I've taken, it’s taken probably about four years for me to really be able to let go of really old wounds, like perfectionism, and individualism, and this idea that I had to prove that I was worthy.”
“And through the voice work that I do, through working with groups and working with other people who have survived things like gender-based violence, I found that my voice is my voice, and that my voice only matters in the collective. I think, for me, that feels so natural. When you're working in the capitalistic machine of the music industry, which doesn't value the collective, in a way, I think I just have to go through that process for myself of being like, you know, I'm a people amongst people. And that's what makes me feel good. Like, I don't have to compete with this system that is just encrypted in our whole life. I get to do things on my own terms.”
“If it doesn't come from me, then I don't want to do it.”
“It's a lot to do, as well, with this male gaze thing. Again, the music industry is designed to make money off of women's bodies. And I’ve always been quite explicit in the physical side of my artist project. I've done topless pictures I've done like, my hand down my pants, which has been taken down by Instagram. But it’s like the lyric “not because they say I should.” It has to be from me. If it doesn't come from me, then I don't want to do it. It makes me feel physically uncomfortable.”
“I think it's quite a common thing when you've experienced gender-based violence. For me anyway, through my art I became confident to be like ‘I'll show my body in this way.’ Like, I’m doing it. I've already set the precedent. And then anything that anybody does, I've done it first with my body.”
“So it's been a wild, wild ride with the music industry, but also I've learned so much. Being a part of Self Esteem’s live show and seeing how Rebecca manages things, and how other artists I know have all navigated the industry as women, has taught me a lot. I think it’s about becoming teachable and learning to work against something in quite a clever way.”
Yeah, definitely. I feel like surrounding yourself with women in the industry is the best way forward. So many people say that it's always about finding community, especially amongst women in the indie scene. It's so male dominated. If you had one piece of advice you could give to other women in the music industry who might be trying to deal with all those things you mentioned, what would it be?
“I'm so lucky that some of my closest friends are women in the industry, and women who champion women and non-binary people. And that's not to say that I'm exclusively hanging out with women and non-binary people. But it's important for you to connect with people who are experiencing the same things as you, especially within this tough industry. So that would be my advice.”
“And also, just be kind. Be a good person. Because I think that there's a lot of fake shit in the industry. And I notice it's not with artists, it's with the people around them– the people who maybe aren't the creative people but benefit off of the creative artist. So I'm quite good at being in tune with people's energy. Keep your eyes and ears open. And just don't get lost in it all, because people will drop you as quickly as they pick you up. Make sure that you've got people that you can trust. I know that people always say that, but it is something that I really think is important.”
Photo by Carys Huws
Definitely. Also that rebrand on Instagram! How good did it feel to just delete everything and come back with this exciting news, a completely new vibe, and like this ‘toughest chick era’?
“Yeah, I loved it! I am one of these people. I love archiving and putting things back in the box. And it felt good, you know. I was actually also going to change my name. But then I just felt like I needed to be proud of my name. Not everybody will pronounce it correctly straight away and maybe it looks a bit different. But that's another thing I need to accept. I need to accept that part of myself. When I moved to London from Cardiff, I was like “Oh, my name is Maggie.” And I would just go by Maggie. I think I anglicised myself until I just felt like no, I need to stick by this. For all the Margeds around the world!”
Yeah. You gotta keep it like that. It's like Beyonce. Like it's just iconic– one word.
“Oh my god, don’t! You'll get me too excited if you bring her up with me!”
Following this release, will any of your future work nod to your Welsh culture? Are you thinking of doing any music completely in Welsh?
“Yeah, I am thinking about it, but I'm not sure what it's gonna look like. The Welsh music scene is an amazing scene, and it's changing quite a lot. And I think that obviously, as a Welsh speaker, I grew up around that, first and foremost. But when I was growing up, it was literally just white boys in bands. So I didn't necessarily connect with it. But now it's changing– people are being championed now who don't maybe fit that image of like, fucking rock guitars and all of that stuff.”
“So I do want to, but I'm trying to figure out how to do it. I think it would be amazing. Bands like Adwaith, they've had amazing success with using the Welsh language in songs. The music industry now is so universal and you can access music anywhere, and I think language is becoming a lot more accessible. So I'm really thinking about how to use the language to make some really cool shit, because there is something I love about the Welsh language. I’m trying to build a relationship with the language- I speak Welsh at home, and it's my first language, and I'm really proud of that.”
It would be so cool! So with this whole new era, have you got any other projects in the works, like live shows, any new releases, which you want to plug?
“I'm not sure if I'm going to do any shows. Only because I want to see how it plays out a little bit. But I might do one in September. Maybe. And then I'm going to drop a bit of a B-side– not a single– and it's probably going to be like a mini film. Maybe in July.”
Love it. So exciting! Is there anything else you want to share with people who might be reading this who don't know your music yet?
“I guess just if you come across the song and this feature, I just want to send you love and light. And yeah, I hope you enjoy it! And free Palestine.”