Following the release of her latest single “She is Mighty”, we got to chat with rising jazz and soul sensation Molly Green.
– Can you tell us more about your new single “She is Mighty” and the inspiration behind it?
She is Mighty is fundamentally about celebrating being a powerful, independent, strong minded woman. I’m fortunate enough to have many such women in my life, and have all too often seen them be targeted because of it. With strength comes an illusion that self-doubt and hurt are rejected, and their fortitude is called to action once again. I wrote She is Mighty when I saw this happening to my younger sister. She wasn’t loving herself nearly as much as she should have been, and I wanted to remind her of all the things that make her so totally fabulous.
– How does it feel to be releasing a song that’s a tribute to your younger sister?
She totally deserves to be shouted about from the rooftops, and this feels a bit like doing that! I feel very lucky to be in a position where I can shout about her, and I feel proud that everyone will now know how amazing my sister is. I hope that she can take it through life, and it will serve to remind her how fantastic she is in moments of doubt.
– Could you share some insights into the recording process of “She is Mighty”? What was it like working with James McMillan and Matt Greaves?
I have been incredibly lucky to work with some amazing musicians throughout the process of creating this track. I’d been wanting to write this track for some time, but hadn’t quite found a home for the idea, and then one day, in my little London flat, my good friend Danny Bathurst started playing a funky bassline, another friend Freddy Williams started playing a sassy little guitar lick and I thought “this is it. This is exactly what Flo’s song should sound like”.
When it came to recording the track, I had quite a clear idea of how I wanted it to sound and how I wanted to approach it. I’ve known Matt for nearly 10 years now, and have written some of my previous songs with him, so I knew he’d be the man for the job. He’s an insanely talented musician and is one of those rare people that you work with, that just ‘gets it’. It’s almost as if he can read my mind! I explained to Matt that I wanted to record most of the record with the band and I playing at the same time, so we needed a studio that could facilitate this. He put me in touch with James, who’s another incredible musician, originally starting out as Sade’s trumpet player (much to my mum’s excitement!). The band and I took a road trip to James’s studio in Hastings and we smashed out eight tracks in just two days. All the tracks were done in 5 takes or less. It was the most insane experience, and I am immensely grateful to both Matt and James for sharing their talent with me.
– “She is Mighty” is the first single from your highly anticipated 8-track mixtape. Can you give us a glimpse of what to expect from the rest of the mixtape?
I’m so excited for what’s to come. I hope each track takes you somewhere new while still holding you in the magical bubble of old school jazz. I really went back to my foundations for this record, back to the influences of Etta James, Ella Fitzgerald, Aretha Franklin, Norah Jones and Joss Stone, whilst also drawing in some of my love for Adele and Amy Winehouse. These are the artists that make me feel sparkly, so I have sprinkled some of that sparkle into what I’ve created, in the hopes that you feel it too.
– What are your aspirations for the future, both in terms of your music career and the impact you hope to make with your art?
I hope She is Mighty is the first step on the road to finding new people that I can share my music with. I always hope that my music allows people to be heard and understood, that people can find comfort in sharing similar experiences, and that people can get lost for a moment, in a world that I have transported them to.