Creative Spotlight | Jordyn Richards

Published on 09 April 2021

Tell us a bit about who you are and what kind of creative work you make
I am an 18-year-old singer-songwriter and independent artist. I first started singing when I was very young... and not long after that I picked up a guitar. I started performing and gigging locally at 12 years old. Now, I spend a lot of my time either writing, creating and performing, and on the weekends I also give singing lessons. Overall, I’m just very thankful that I get to spend most of my time indulging in something I love doing.

What is a creative project that you’ve worked on that you’re really proud of? Why?
One project that am very proud of is the release of my first two songs. They were released as a part of my graduation from the Talent Development Project in a collaborative album which also included a bunch of amazing songs written by my friends. This all happened during the lockdown period from March-July 2020, so I had to work remotely to record and produce the songs and video. I’m extremely happy with how they turned out and just very proud that we managed to do it all over Zoom!

What’s your favourite part of working as an artist / creative?
My favourite part about working as an artist and writer is being able to meet and work with so many amazing people on all different types of projects. Getting to write and perform with different people is not only fun, but it also allows us to create something that we wouldn’t have been able to make on our own. When writing with people, we all have our strengths, for example someone might be really great with melodies, and the other with lyrics. We bounce off each other and let our ideas flow and evolve. Over the years I’ve met so many other amazing musicians, who I am very lucky to now call my friends, and I can’t wait to keep working with new talented people.

Do you have any rituals or routines that help you to be more creative?
There are lots of times when I sit down to write, and I have no idea where to start or what to write about. To try and help me be more creative in times like these, I like to record inspiration when it hits. The Notes app on my phone is filled with random lyrics and vague ideas that I’ve had, and I have countless voice memos of melodies and chord patterns that I come up with while I’m in the shower, or late at night when I don’t have time to actually sit down and write. A lot of the time these little notes stay untouched for a very long time. When I get stuck or need a little creative boost, I have a look through there in hopes of sparking something. If you ask any other songwriter, I’m sure they’ll do the same thing too.

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