On the Rise
Gia Ford

Picking up the call for her first ever interview while away on holiday, 22-year-old Gia Ford, is an undeniable star. Coming across equal parts impressively confident and charmingly nervous, we dive straight into the topic of debut single "Turbo Dreams" and her debut tape Poster Boy from which it was taken.

Ford, who recently signed to The 1975's label Dirty Hit as a solo artist, made a strong impact with the dreamy single, prompting a lot of anticipation for what was to follow. But putting the seven-track tape was no easy or short-lived task. She explains. "It’s been a long process to make this tape. It’s a product of a few years of finding my sound. I had to settle on a few of the million ideas I have. The album is a reflection of all the influences I’ve grown up with. It’s a snapshot of the 22 years of my life – my childhood, teen years and now.”

Working with Spector’s Fred Macpherson, who Ford credits as the person central to bringing out the story-telling aspect of her music, Poster Boy is a brilliant showcase of not only the young Londoner’s powerful voice but also of her experimental creative side.

This artsy aspect of her music-making process is made clear when she reveals her personal favourite track from the tape: “I gravitate towards ‘High Class Tragedy’. It’s about the meta pretentious parties you attend. The attitude of, 'why are you here?' I wrote it off a visual of a penthouse party in which people seemed to be very self-involved.”

It’s not just this track that draws from images to create a musical story. As Ford explains, "My girlfriend is a very visual person. It’s her who does a lot of my visual work and brought that aspect into my life as well, so I write from images now as well. The tape draws a lot of inspiration from visual stories.”

Ford's girlfriend – and her penchant for visual mediums - makes several more appearances throughout our conversation. Crediting her as a major professional (and personal) influence, the rising talent believes that while the best music is based on personal experiences, sometimes putting yourself in someone else’s shoes work just as well. Delving into her own approach to song writing, she tells me, "Naturally it tends to come from personal experience but I’m only 22 and I have a lot left to experience so I also draw from other sources.”

So who are these sources? Professionally, she asserts that it’s definitely too many people to name. Even so she still makes special mention of Billy Holiday and Dusty Springfield, citing them as major inspirations. “Personally, the sounds I was exposed to by my father introduced me. I’m influenced by films as well. Particularly this film called Kalifornia. I was super obsessed with dark stuff and the dark corner of the world as a child, and now I’m older and I’ve come back to it.”

Despite all of these influences, Ford is still finding herself and her sound. "It's evolved in almost a crazy way," she tells me, "because it’s come from so many different places. Initially, I really wanted to do a Lewis Taylor-inspired psychedelic album and Fred brought in the story-telling element.”

With her debut out of the way, the holiday she interrupts to do the interview might be her only break, considering the work she’s putting into her second EP, due for release later this year. Not revealing too much about her sophomore release, she says, “ I’m prouder of this second EP I’m writing than I am of the first. One reason is that it’s more conceptual. Secondly, it’s one where I’ve put together everything I’ve learned about song writing.”

Ford is only at the beginning of career and has a lot she wants to achieve on her bucket list. “I’ve always been picky and do my own thing from start to finish, so that’s first...I want to know what would come out of my own influence. I’d also want to expand my live element. I’d like for people to sing my songs back to me because I’ve never had that happen before.”

She hopes to write with Mark Ronson and Lady Gaga someday and she already has a feature from a big name just on her debut: “Writing with Dev Hynes of Blood Orange was really memorable. I was massively into their records as a teenager and now I’m about to put out music that I’ve worked on with him. That’s just unbelievable to me”

With her first collection of songs taking listeners on her journey from a music-loving youngster to a 22-year-old singer, what Ford seems to want more than anything else is a full career. And with her talent, drive and personality, that seems definite.

So at the end of the first interview of her career I ask her what advice she’d like to give her future self: the one standing at the top of the world, successful and with 100 interviews under their belt? "If everything has gone well for me, I’d say chill out, don’t stress too much. Look back on yourself and ask yourself if you’ve got everything want.”

And I think that future filled with everything she’s ever wanted is definitely waiting for Gia Ford as she makes her way there - one mesmerising song at a time.