Rising folk storyteller Lydia the Bard kicks off 2025 with ‘Are You Listening’, a gripping anthem of frustration and defiance in the face of dismissal. Blending dark, theatrical storytelling with progressive folk production, the track cements her status as a fearless voice in contemporary music.
Following the success of her debut EP—Lydia returns with her most powerful statement yet. ‘Are You Listening?’ unpacks the exhaustion of being ignored, building from hushed intensity to a cathartic crescendo. With dynamic instrumentation, shifting tempos, and haunting lyricism, she crafts an emotional gut punch that lingers long after the last note fades.
We had the opportunity to sit down with Lydia to learn all about the new single, what inspires her and what’s next, in this exclusive interview with LOCK.
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Hey Lydia, welcome to LOCK! How are you doing?
I’m doing very well thank you! It’s a rainy gloomy day outside but otherwise never better!
Congratulations on your new single ‘Are You Listening?’, it’s stunning! If you could sum it up in three words for our readers, what would it be?
Oooooh, Rageful, Evocative, aaaand Cellos
What was the recording and writing process like for it?
This song I think came quite naturally to us, I write with my friend Ben and we had a clear vision of what we were setting out to write from the get go. I sent him a vocal idea and a concept and we started building and developing the song from there quite naturally.
The subject matter and lyrics for the song were clear to me from the beginning so they weren’t hard to find and Ben matched the energy for the song perfectly with those creepy screaming cellos.
How does todays song reflect your personal experiences, or is it more about capturing the collective voice of women today?
I’d say both! I think in todays political climate it’s so hard to genuinely get people to listen when they are so committed to being ignorant. Not just to the voices of Women but to the LGBTQ+ community and other minority groups.
In the early days of developing the song it was inspired by my personal experience but then developed into a song that I hoped would be representative of the experience of being a women/person in a patriarchal society trying to have their voices heard.
The narrative-driven style of your songwriting sets you apart in the folk genre. How do you approach crafting a song’s story, and what draws you to using music to tell such vivid, emotional tales?
I’ve always loved a good story and often find myself creating little characters in my head as I write. It also allows me to detach myself a little from the song, even if it’s in relation to my own personal experience and develop it with my characters vulnerability as opposed to my own. Even though the song will be squarely rooted in my own experiences. For example, in My EP I have two songs that describe the experience of two characters, Eve and the Devil, but both are based on my experiences.
I like to imagine each song as a journey, where the listener discovers a little more about the characters or the story as they listen, oftentimes myself and Ben will look at a song and ask whether or not the story we are telling is clear, or whether an extra chorus here actually develops the song, or is it just a trap that feels like what a song should do.
I’m drawn to using music to tell these stories as it allows you to create deep and complex experiences. With the use of a well thought through melody, lyrics and instrumentation you can evoke an experience and feeling in a listener that cant be created in any other way!
How did those early YouTube covers influence your musical evolution, and how do you see them contributing to your growth as an artist?
If I hadn’t started making those covers all those years ago then I for sure wouldn’t be where I am now! I grew up thinking I wanted to work in Musical theatre and spent so much time singing songs from Les mis and Wicked. I think those early influences taught be a lot about how to create a musical journey as a vocalist and tell a story that conveys a clear emotion.
Those early covers were a springboard that allowed me to grow and become a singer/songwriter full time, that freedom then allowed me to explore my own songwriting more fully and created the space for me to develop into the artist I am now. Without my Youtube channel and those early covers I’d likely still be working my old 9-5 and would never have even attempted to write my own music.
Who are some of your musical influences that helped shape the sound of ‘Are You Listening?’ and how do you incorporate these influences into your own unique style?
I take a lot of influence from artists like Hozier / Florence and the Machine lyrically. When it comes to my own music that looks a lot like pouring over lyrics for hours on end and meticulously picking over what the write adjective is here or there to communicate the concept I’m creating. And lots of metaphors, many many metaphors. They also have a heavy influence musically when creating that heavy indie/rock/folk sound.
And finally, What’s next for you in 2025? Can you share any hints about new projects or live shows we can look forward to in the coming months?
Lots more singles coming out this year! And a big announcement coming up in April, though I cant tell you what yet!
Stream ‘Are You Listening?’ now: