INTERVIEW: Janet Devlin
Janet Devlin
The Photo Ladies Interview
25-year old Northern Irish songstress Janet Devlin has persevered through a tumultuous period of her life, facing her inner demons and addictions, to re-emerge a more mature and confident artist. Inspired early in life by bands such as Foo Fighters and Red Hot Chili Peppers, she taught herself to play instruments by ear and started writing her own songs. She joined YouTube in 2006, at the age of 12, to get her music out into the world, quickly gaining a devoted fanbase. Devlin was only 16 years old when she auditioned for UK X Factor, quickly becoming a fan favorite and making it to 6th place before her exit. Having been bullied as a child, she had already been fighting an ongoing battle with depression, weight issues and body dysmorphia, alcoholism, cutting and drug addiction also emerging as inner struggles. Releasing her debut album Running With Scissors in 2014, Devlin will be releasing her new album Confessional on June 5th, along with her autobiography entitled 'My Confessional' that will dive into to the meaning behind the lyrics of each song. Five years in the making, the album and book lay bare Devlin's demons and fight to overcome them. Since 2019, Devlin has released 3 singles, ""Honest Men", "Saint Of The Sinners" and "Confessional", each of which became fan favorites and gave her the confidence to tell her story to the world. In telling her story, she has also told the story of countless others who can relate to the struggles she has endured and survived, with countless fans sharing their own stories with her and offering her their love and support.
“Writing the songs for Confessional at the same time as my autobiography has been one of the most challenging things I’ve ever done,” Devlin reveals. “There have been many times when I felt I would never be able to finish either of them. So, now that they’re both finished and no longer just ideas that reside in my broken mind, I stare back in wonder. Even I can’t believe what I’ve endured. Whatever compelled me to write the story of the last ten years of my life was also the same power that gave me the confidence to start believing I deserved this second chance. Through everything, I can genuinely say I owe my life to music. And now it’s time to set it free.”
Produced by Jonathan Quarmby and written in collaboration with Lauren Aquilina, Fiona Bevan and Paul Statham, all hand-picked by Devlin, Confessional was recorded over two years at RAK Studios in London and Westland Studios in Dublin as a way to involve her friends and bandmates and to ensure the Irish roots that are central to her identity were present on the album. With plans to take the album and book on tour as soon as possible, Devlin, who is a staunch advocate for mental health, is eager to hopefully empower her fans who are also be struggling with her story of hope and survival. "That’s what this whole idea of ‘confession’ has been about," says Devlin. "To show people that no matter how dark your life can get, there is always a light to aim for.” You can follow Janet Devlin and stay up-to-date on all upcoming music and artist news, as well as stream and purchase her music, via the following links. You can pre-order the new album HERE. You can watch her discuss the book and album HERE.
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You've been writing songs and poems since you were 7. What drew you to songwriting and poetry at such a young age and were there certain poets and songwriters that were especially inspiring for you?
I got lucky I think. I went to a school that promoted creativity from a young age. I don't know. I just remember school projects, where they'd make you sit down and write a poem. It always felt like it was kind-of part of the curriculum and I just really loved it and had a really good, fun time with it from a really young age. I don't really remember reading much poetry until I reached my teenage years and then I just couldn't get enough of it. I didn't care who wrote it. I would even go on Tumblr and just sit and read other people's poems and little thought spiels. I've always been amazed at how language can evoke feelings. I think I must have been around 16 when I discovered spoken word poetry, and the beauty of no rules and no laws and the aim of the game being to just speak your feelings in a way that just evokes feelings in other people. That got me so excited. I always just knew that poetry would be lyrics at the end of the day. I'd be like "That's good to have". I have...well I don't have them with me now because I rush moved...but I have loads of these leather bound journals that I keep my poems and things in. If I ever get stuck in a session, they are so handy if I'm like "Oh, what do I want to write about?". Or if something that somebody is playing reminds me of a certain memory, I'm like "I know which book that's in!" and I'll go find it. So yeah, it's always just been a part of my life. Maybe it's an Irish thing, where you're just encouraged to just always write.
I know storytelling is a big part of Irish culture!
Absolutely! I remember being in a pub as a kid and having an old man reciting a poem once and was like "WOW"! But the fact was that everybody in the pub stopped and listened and I thought "Oh, this is cool".
You have said that Chris Stapleton is a big influence for you with regards to his attitude towards life, music and the balance in between. How have you gone about trying to find that balance for yourself between your music and personal life?
I still have a very blurry line! I won't lie. I feel like I look up to him because it's like that man can be successful, on top of his game and an incredible artist and have millions of fans, but he doesn't really give anything away about himself. I always just like to look up to him in the hope that...I don't know. I feel like we are on very different paths. I personally don't feel like I...I don't mind oversharing! It's kind-of just me as a person. People in my personal life know that I overshare. I remember at the start of dating a guy, him just being like "You really don't mind about telling everybody about everything do you?" and I was like "No! I really don't!" (laughs)! It's always like, especially if I'm dating someone, "I'm just giving you all of the disclaimers up front about what goes on up here in my head so that you can't in six months say I'm a crazy woman and why didn't I tell you? I told you from the start!" (laughs)! I honestly don't mind. I believe in emotional honesty and all that kind of stuff. The most fun conversations, and even in writing sessions and things, are ones I have with people when they let their guard down and actually talk about what's really going on and what really happened in their life and all of that kind of stuff. That always really inspires me to write, because my life is my inspiration and things like that, so I like to keep a good emotional dialogue. But when it comes to Chris Stapleton, I love how we're very different. Like, I love the lyrical simplicity and the way that he writes and the way he carries himself, because we are so different. It reminds me that you can be your own person in this industry and still do well!
You were on The X Factor at 16 and have said that the only downside to your appearance on the show was that you were so young and that in later years people looked at you and asked "What happened to Janet?". Have you found it difficult to grow and change as a person and an artist in the industry over the years and evolving past how people saw you on the show?
I literally just went on a massive rant the other day on Instagram. I'd hit my final straw with dudes. It's always a dude! It's always a dude, middle aged or above who is very annoyed that I'm not 16 years old anymore, which I find questionable. I'm not going to lie. So I just had a massive rant the other day about it, because I have invested 1) a lot of money and 2) a lot of time into learning how to love me and be wholeheartedly myself and be comfortable and confident. And I couldn't be happier for it. But for some reason, that scares people but that's not my problem. That's not my cross to bear. That's some internal reflection that that person has to do and that's none of my business. But they don't know that it's noe of my business and they tell me constantly "You're not 16" and I'm just done with it. I don't even engage in any of it anymore. The nice thing about investing all of this time and money into learning how to love myself is that it allows me then to be more confident in my job, in my work, and allows me to take more risks. Like, I don't know how baby Janet would have felt about a Celtic infused pop album. She would have been like "Oh, but what if nobody likes it?", and now I'm like "I don't care if anybody likes it!" (laughs)! I wanted to make it so I did. So the two things go very hand in hand. I'm so happy, in the sense that all of the changes I have made seem to be well welcomed by the people I want to be engaged in this project. I don't want close-minded people who want women to remain girls. I'm loving this new wave of followers I've been getting lately of young girls who are like...I've gotten so many message lately from young girls who are like "Thank you so much for sharing your growth of you as a person because it's really inspiring". I've been getting loads of messages from young girls who are like what I was like and that warms my heart. That's what I want! I want that, not people who are upset that I've changed. It's like "Of course I have! I paid money to, thank you! Appreciate it! Thanks for noticing" (laughs)!
It's probably nice to know that so many people look up to you and that you can help them with their struggles because a lot of people can identify with the things you've gone through, like "Oh, I can relate to this person"!
Which is so bizarre! When I was going through half of the things I went through, I was feeling so isolated and so alone and petrified of admitting even half of the things I had going on. To see so many young girls and young women owning what's going on with them and just stepping up into it and being willing to change and evolve and not be so mean to themselves, it inspires me more than I think it inspires them to be honest.
Your new album Confessional will be released on June 5th and combines the Celtic sounds of your roots with more alt-pop sounds. You have said that you feel you really found your sound with this album, so what has that process been like for you, to grow and evolve your sound as an artist?
When I started this album, it was like 5-6 years ago. My first album was folk-pop and I loved it and it was everything I needed it to be at the time. I released other stuff at that time, and everything was that timeless sound where all the instruments were real instruments and that kind of thing. When it came to this album, I was writing a book with it and realized with the book that a lot of it took place back home in Ireland when I was a kid. I remember working with Jonathan Quarmby one day and the first session didn't work out but I got good vibes, so we tried to work again together the next time and we smashed it. One of the songs we wrote is like one of my favorite songs on the record. I feel for me that he was a big key in unlocking my sound, because whenever he spoke to me, it was very clear that my home and my story plays a massive part in this record and in the stories behind it. He just kind of went away and sneakily Irished it up and I heard the demo and LOST MY STUFF! I freaked out! I was like "This is a bop! Oh my god! I've been sleeping on my roots all my life! This is insane!". I sat down and thought about it and don't think I've ever met anybody who doesn't like Irish music, because it's fun. Some of those sounds, they are weird, but they evoke a lot of joy in me and seem to evoke a lot of joy in others. It all just came together beautifully in my head and then we got to do a week in a studio in Ireland called Westland Studios and it was amazing having so many local players playing on the record. I think for the first time in my career, I really felt like I really knew what I was doing. I used to be in a ceilidh band as a kid, so Irish music is the language of music I grew up with. Some people speak classical music, some people speak jazz, and I just came into the room and was like "No, no, no you gotta do it like that, yeah that's it, cool!", whereas whenever it's with contemporary music or regular pop music I'm like "Hmmmm...no comprende! Sorry! I don't get it!" (laughs)! It was so nice and so empowering to be able to stand in the room and think "This is it. I know what I'm doing".
While your new album does have some contemporary sounds, you have said that as an independent artist, you don't have the luxury of making contemporary pop music. I thought that was an interesting perspective! Could you elaborate on that?
Yeah! The fact is, this album took almost six years to make, so if I was to make an album of the sounds of six years ago, it wouldn't be very cool right now-at all (laughs)! So the fact that I can't make contemporary pop is a blessing and a curse. It means that you have to work harder to find this identity that's not of the time. Don't get me wrong-I love contemporary pop music. I still bop around my room to it! It's just that thing where I don't have the budget to put things out as quickly as like Ariana Grande or Selena Gomez. They're able to just kind of go into the studio, write a few songs and take a month to record and put a record out a few months later, and that's sick! But that's not my story. It takes me a long time. That's why I was kind-of happy with record, because it did mean I had to dig a wee bit deeper to find that balance of like what's still like pop but like timeless pop where I could bring in these old Irish instruments and kind of tie everything together.
I know a large aspect of the new album was the photography you did to accompany the songs. What can you tell me about the idea behind the imagery in the photographs and what your goal was with the photography?
I basically realized that the whole thing is a big concept record anyway, with the concept of the album and the book. I just got to the point where I was like "Well, it is going to take forever and ever to release this album so I may as well do another thing too!" (laughs)! I loved working with the photographer on the front cover. I loved it so much! I can't remember where the idea just came from, but it just kind of happened and I just knew that I wanted a photo to go along with every single song. Every song is a concept and the book unlocks it, but I loved the idea of having a middle ground between those two worlds where I could play again on metaphors and symbolism and it was really fun. It was hard at times to be like "This is the thing that it's actually about, but I want to create an image to represent that" or to give somebody something to work out. I loved this whole idea of people unlocking this jigsaw puzzle of an album. It was just amazing! Emma-Jane Lewis took the photos, and very importantly Lou, Lovehairbylou, did my hair, which sounds ridiculous because those two people are my dream team! We know my hair is important! It's like my brand! If I don't have my big ginger hair it like "Who is this?". We just had so much fun and it was the most...I watched the behind-the-scenes video for the front cover of the album and that was over two years ago. I watched it because I was putting it out live and couldn't get over how insecure I was. The front cover is me like semi-naked but absolutely covered by my hair, showing off exactly what you'd see in a bikini...actually more covered than in a bikini...but getting that shot obviously meant that I had to, for the first time ever, strip down to having hair only covering my top half. I was petrified and incredibly insecure, but through the process of working those two women, those incredibly lovely humans that I miss a lot, they really built me up into somebody who is now so confident in front of a camera. I don't mind any situation, any circumstance, any pose or anything like that now. That was just such a fun thing to do and I'm just so glad that I did it!
Along with you album, you will also be releasing your autobiography 'My Confessional', which goes in depth with the meanings behind the lyrics for each song. You have mentioned that even you can't believe what you have endured, so what do you feel that you have learned about yourself in the process of writing the book? Do you feel that you emerged with a new perspective on things and on yourself?
It was the biggest task of soul-searching ever! I think I sent my editor over 150,000 words of just sheer inward thinking. There were a lot of moments where I just sat at my computer and was like "Am I actually typing this?", because the minute it's on that page, it is real! That is a real thing that really happened the minute I type it out. There were a few times where I was like "Is this too far?" and then I'd get an email from my editor being like "Are you sure you want to put that in the book?" (laughs)! But that's how I know it was honest, when someone is asking if I'm sure I want to include it. I learned a lot. I think there are a few summary sentences that would sum it up, but it's kind of more like "Everything works out in the end" is a big one (laughs). I think another thing I realized was that a lot of the times I'm the only thing standing in the way of me. Not all of the time. There's a few stories involving other people in the book, but most of the time it's me. I'm my own worst enemy. But ultimately, it all works out in the end, and I had to reiterate that in the first chapter because even now, reading it back in this series where I sit down and read snippets from the book, I'm like "Oh my god! This was my life". It's so funny because obviously loads of things got cut and it's even worse than what's in the book (laughs)! It's crazy! But I feel so much better for it. But I won't feel wholeheartedly content until the book is out of my hands and the first person finishes it. That's when I'm free from all of the things that used to weigh me down.
I'm guessing it wasn't that glamorous!
No (laughs)! It was not! I didn't mean to make it sound so fiery, because there were days when I was crying in the studio, over the fact that I was talking about things that I hadn't really fully dealt with yet. There's a song called "Speak" on the album that I hadn't at all really dealt with and that was maybe a month or two after I had stopped taking my medication and was balling my eyes out. So, it wasn't glamorous at all. It was hard work and took a lot of self-babysitting to not do stupid stuff, because I like to self-destruct basically. A lot. It took all of the power in me to stay in the AA fellowship and talking to people with similar issues to mine and making sure that I was looking after myself and not falling back into silly old bad habits. But I was willing...and this is the difference...I was willing to put the work in to staying well. I don't think I would have come off the medication if I was like "Ok, well I'll just jump straight back into suicidal thoughts". Because that's why I had to go on the medication. I was tired. I was so tired of thinking about killing myself and planning it out. I was like "We don't have the mental energy for this so let's protect ourself in a nice little weird cocoon bubble emotionally for a little bit". And it did work. I absolutely DO NOT recommend taking yourself off of Prozac without your doctor's recommendation. I made it harder on myself by just going cold turkey. Never do that kids! Don't do it!
I read that you moved home last year for a month to decompress and did a variety of self-care techniques and therapy. You have talked about being much better at self-care these days, so what does self care look like for you?
So it's kind of hard now because the world is shut down, but I actually went back to Ireland for 6 months. The other time, yeah...I took a month off. During the last 6 months in Ireland, my self-care was trying to fulfill this list of things that I never got to do because I did TV at 16 and moved to England. It was silly but it was everything I wanted so I saved up a lot and got a car and started doing driving lessons. I really wanted that freedom to learn how to drive. Unfortunately, I never passed my test because my test was scheduled three days after the shutdown, so I'll come back to that! But I still have my car. I got a doggie as well and I love him to pieces. That was a big self care thing, although my mom has stolen him now and I'm never getting his back so you win some, you lose some (laughs)! I know that I have an incredibly addictive brain, which is very apparent in the book. I jumped headfirst into taking up Crossfit, of all things!
I have a lot of friends who do Crossfit and love it!
Yeah. It's mental! It's for crazy people, absolutely! I got so much out of it. I didn't intentionally join Crossfit, but when I went home I wanted to join a gym but all of the gyms I was looking at were like "How to lose body fat" and "How to be skinny" and things like that. I was like "I used to have anorexia and I can't do that", because I'm really good at it. I didn't want to get involved in that. I've got the badge for losing body fat. I ended up seeing that there was a Crossfit gym and I went on their website and wasn't sure if it was for me. It seemed very Type A and I'm lazy. But I went there and their ethos was so different. All they want to do do is just make you run faster and lift heavier and ll of those kinds of things. That's what I wanted and Crossfit was a big thing for me because for a lot of years I was like "I want me a big strong man to look after me and protect me" and then I went to Crossfit and was like "Hold on a sec! I can be the big strong man I've always wanted" and I found it very empowering, especially in shutting down those particular men who want me to be 16 forever. When people see me gaining muscle, the amount of DMs I got from guys being like "Ewwww...your traps are so big that they're gross" or "Women shouldn't have abs". I was like "Go away. My thighs are bigger than your dreams dude!" (laughs)! I loved it! I'm sad now because I've lost basically most of my progress, but that's not what it is for me, the aesthetic of it. It's the fact that I was meeting personal goals and it makes you feel like a kid again when you do something and people are like "You did it!". It was a really lovely community element, and as someone who is very socially inept, it really brought me out of my shell, as well. Also, I'd never been a good sister or a good auntie or a good daughter because I moved out so young. I never really got the chance to just be with my family before for an extended period of time. I moved out at 15 to live with my grandmother to take my studies more seriously and also to starve myself...2 reasons. But I loved just being with my family and seeing them and it was amazing and everything that I needed and can highly recommend to other artists. Especially the ones who get in this weird job very young, because you do lose that whether you are aware of it or not. There's something so nice about having Sunday dinner with your family.
May is Mental Health Awareness Month and I know you are a mental health advocate. Do you have any specific things you are doing this month to help advocate for mental health?
Yes! So this is why I have started reading bits from the book. I know there a few chapters in this book that when I read a snippet of it, I can't just ignore that I dropped a massive bombshell on people. I anticipate getting a lot of questions on certain chapter readings, so I'm going to have to sit down and probably film a few more videos like the "I'm an alcoholic" video, because a lot of these things need explaining. It's going to be a hard month for me, because people already think I'm mentally screwed and I'm just dropping more ammo into their hatred gun. But the joke's on them because I'm better now. So that for me is what I'm doing . I'm really going to be putting myself out there on the frontline and talking about things that are hard to talk about, but if I've learned anything from my video about my alcoholism, it's that there are so many people going through it. So, so many people going through it. It makes me feel better to do it because I've put it out and then I see people who are like "Me too" or "I did this thing" and we realize that we are not alone . It's crazy! I'm so glad for the leaps and bounds we've made over the years, because when I think back to what I was going through a few years ago, or even longer, from the age of 12, which comes up in the book, the dialogue we have now over issues warms my heart. It genuinely does, because I didn't have that dialogue to talk about it when I was a kid going through some of the stuff I was going through. I feel like we are more open now. We're not as open as we could be, but better than we were. We are getting there. I see some young kids complaining about the state of the mental health things and all and I'm like "It will get better. I swear to god"! If we just keep pushing forward and being honest and loving each other then we'll get there.
What does it feel like to re-emerge onto the musical landscape as a changed and more confident artist and how do you feel the industry has changed for you over the years from what it was when you started out? It's definitely a quick changing industry!
It definitely is and I'm a slow moving gal! I've just kind of had to make my own rules. When I started, nobody was doing crowdfunding, so I had to break that boundry. That was a fun one because it worked! Since then, doing online shows. I've been doing online shows for 6 years, which is now cool because people want to see online shows because they are stuck at home. For me, it's always changing. It's always evolving. But I don't know. I welcome it. I definitely do. For me, my journey is never...I don't wanna say never, but I very much doubt that a major record label is going to come over here tomorrow and be like "Hey! Wanna be signed?". For me, I just have to just stay on my own path. Because of the internet and the digital age we're living in, that's a possibility. My kind of career wouldn't have been possible like 20 years ago. I feel like I'm living in a new era of the music industry. But by no means am I putting down the old ways or the ways of what were and in some cases still is. Some people get discovered and get signed and are given loads of money and became an overnight success, and congratulations. That's insane because that's like the smallest minority of people. I'm still fascinated and I love those stories, but that's not my story. My initial story of trying to make people think I was cool enough and not just someone off of TV and then trying to stay relevant for 10 years. It's almost 10 years of me doing this now and I'm just baffled everyday that I'm able to do it. But that's honestly just truly the beauty of people on the internet.
What has it been like to plan an album release during quarantine? Most artists would normally be planning to tour and all of the other things that go along with an album release!
Ummm...worst timing, because this is only my second album (laughs)! My first album was delayed and things went wrong, but then it came out and was fine. I was like "This time I've got it guys! Yes!" and the world was like "Uh, no!". But it's been cool in the sense that you just kind of make things work. I'm trying to film a music video very soon, with trying to practice social distancing and not really having a crew and filming things on a very small level. I think the hardest part is plugging, because it's like "Hey guys! I know the world's burning and everything's kind of horrible right now, but would you like to buy my book and my album?". It just feels very...you feel like a salesman who's turned up to a funeral and you're trying to sell people something on the way out, you know? It feels very inappropriate. But luckily most people understand. Some people don't see my line of work, my job or whatever, they don't see it as a real job so they don't respect it. They think "Why are you trying to sell something in the middle of a crisis?" and I'm like "Because this is my job. If I don't get paid, I don't eat!". Sometimes I am flattered by people thinking I am more successful then I am, but then they're like "Why do you even have to plug your book?" and it's like "Because I'm one gal, my guy.". There's not like a 1,000 person team here plugging this for me. I actually have to do it. But yeah, that's the hardest part, just trying to keep the tone right. Luckily the internet has been so supportive. I've gotten more followers on my Patreon because of it, and that's insane, right? That's counterintuitive to what you think would happen, and I can't thank them enough because these are really scary times to be in.
I think a lot of people are being really supportive of the arts right now, because in times like these you realize how important it is. Everyone turns to music or painting or photography or whatever, so it's important to support those things so that they are still around when all of this is over.
That's honestly true and it's amazing that people see that. It's such a small percentage of people that get cross at you for plugging. Everyone else is like "Yeah!". It's like "Thank you so much! I really appreciate the fact that you are still cheering me on in the midst of all this". Otherwise, if people were really being like "Stop", it would be so hard. It's 6 years of my life that I've put into something. It would suck a lot if people weren't allowing me to scream about it.
What's next for you?
For me, let me see....I definitely want to start working on my next album. I'm looking to do something maybe bluegrassy or country, just because I know that for me is the easiest genre to write in. I grew up on country music. I just feel like booking a studio for like a month with a bunch of dudes that I love working with and sitting down and just channeling that Chris Stapleton. Keeping it simple and just writing some stuff that just makes my soul happy and just playing around with the sound I've always wanted to use. Also get in shape again! That would be sick (laughs)!