Multi-award winning songwriter Ruth Anne is back with highly anticipated music for 2019, her forthcoming uplifting single ‘Love Again’ sparks a new chapter for the Irish artist. Her music has received accolades from influential media including The Times, Billboard and CLASH. Ruth Anne recently won ‘Woman Of The Year’ at the Irish Tatler Awards and was VEVO’s ‘Artist Of The Month’ in October 2018.
Tells us what your work entails?
My work entails songwriting for other artists in the music industry across all genres & I’m also an artist myself finishing up my first album for release this year and I am the executive producer. I travel around the world performing my own music and also giving songwriting masterclasses, make music videos and all the other fun stuff that comes with being part of the music industry. I’ve also started managing some new upcoming songwriters.
Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Dublin, Donaghmede and I went to school in Clontarf
What’s the biggest challenge you face being a young woman in the music business?
I think the biggest challenge being a young woman in the music industry is getting the same opportunities as our male counterparts and the same respect in a writing session. Another challenge is being pressured to use female sexuality to get work. A music executive once told me ‘you need to be more sexual in meetings, use your sexuality as a woman and make the AnR executives from record labels feel like they could sleep with you if they wanted, or sleep with them.’ I was 21yrs old when I was advised to do that and told that certain other females writers/artists were doing better than me because they have sex with the gatekeepers. I refused to ever handle my business that way or ever use my sexuality to get any writing opportunity or song placed. I also feel there is even more pressure on female artists today to add shock value to their videos or have amazing unrealistic bodies & keep up a certain image that has nothing to do with music just to be relevant with social media and culture trends. I’m trying to bring back the female identity to artistry in mainstream pop culture.
How have you learnt to overcome this challenge?
I have always overcome these challenges keeping everything about the music and creating the best song I can. Knowing my worth and not letting anyone under value me. You have nothing if you don’t have great songs in this industry that’s what makes long careers, legacy artists.
What keeps you creative?
Living my life, taking the time to live and not work too much so I have real stories to write about. Being immersed in every real conversation, every drama and every sound can inspire a song so I feel like I’m always taking in every moment and the songs come to me. I read poetry, I watch a lot of music documentaries about how great music was made which is always really inspiring.
As a music artist, what’s the main source of revenue stream to sustain your business? How do you think this will grow/change in the future?
As an indie artist like myself the best revenue streams are film/tv sync opportunities, playing my own shows/corporate performances, brand deals and digital platforms like Spotify/Apple etc as owning a good chunk of your own masters is where streaming really is profitable. Major labels tend to own a lot of that revenue but when you’re indie you own a lot of it so it’s a great time to be an indie artist. As a songwriter the best revenue is still radio. If you have a song on top 40 radio it will be very profitable. I think digital platforms are here to stay and now it’s just about making the rates fair and equal among everyone because songwriters are getting the worst deal right now with only receiving a few hundred euro per million streams which is not enough at all.
Tell us about the biggest highlight of your career so far?
This industry is so hard so most achievements feel like a massive highlight. I think one that stands out was my first cut as a songwriter being a massive hit globally breaking records on billboard USA chart with Jojo ‘too little too late’ which led to me signing my first deal and got my foot in the door to now getting to do what I love everyday. A more recent highlight was being awarded ‘Woman of the Year 2018’ in music at the Irish Tatler awards and lastly singing my song I wrote with Niall Horan ‘seeing blind’ on stage at 3Arena to my home crowd in Dublin was also a big one for me.
How do you feel women can make a mark in the music industry?
I think women can make their mark in this industry by just getting involved in music. Mastering their craft and showing our male counterparts that we are just as talented. We need more females in music, more engineers, more producers, more writers, more executives not being afraid to take the lead and shine and take on the bigger roles.
What advice would you give to other aspiring artists?
My advice to aspiring artists is to master your craft, write and sing every day, become the best you can at what you do. Trust the process, understand you have to really love music for sustainability because you can’t be in it for money as it takes a lot of hard work and graft to really become successful. First and foremost make good art and believe in yourself and go for it.
How would you define success?
Success to me is being able to do what I Iove every day. Connecting with people, making someone feel something. Success to me is raising a great family and being good parents. Success to me is getting to share any achievements and memories with someone you love and who loves you unconditionally. Success to me is always being your true authentic self and being unapologetic for it.
What drives you?
Writing a great song drives me and making my family and friends proud. Singing and seeing people smile or cry or feel something from my performance. Proving to those that I am successful when they didn’t believe in me.
What are you passionate about in terms of women’s rights?
Equality for women is important to me. Being given the same opportunities as men. Being paid the same salaries. All the emotional and physical abuse some women have suffered being spoken about by strong surviving women so that we can feel empowered to change culture in society. Women being supported and raised up by men and awarded the same accolades as their male counterparts
What does the future bring?
The future brings a lot of exciting things. I am about to release my next single ‘Love Again’ March 15th. I wrote and feature on a disco track out March 8th with DJ Swales called ‘Higher (call my name)’ Along with being on this amazing ‘Turn Her Up’ compilation album with my cover of ‘Survivor’ destiny’s child. I am also about to go on tour opening for amazing Irish bands Wild Youth and KeyWest Dublin April 27th and Cypress Avenue, Cork, April 28th. Then performing in several summer festivals. I am also finishing my debut album being released this September.
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