London-based singer-songwriter Áine Deane first started gaining traction on TikTok in 2021 during the COVID lockdown, uploading covers and originals straight from her university bedroom out of boredom, which eventually resulted in almost 300k followers and being recognised by mainstream artists, such as Sam Smith, Little Mix and Ed Sheeran. She has since graduated, amassed over 6 million streams on Spotify, performed at multiple festivals, and supported some of her favourite artists live. In anticipation of her most recent EP release ‘TALES OF A TWENTY SOMETHING’ and her headline tour next month, we sat down to chat with Deane about her musical beginnings, social media, and how growing up as a One Direction fangirl might’ve subconsciously inspired her to become a musician herself.
“My parents are not musical at all,”, Deane laughs when asked if she comes from a musical family, “I think that’s why they pushed us [her and her brothers] to be. I learned how to play the piano at the age of four and the flute right after. What four-year-old sits down and wants to learn how to play the piano?”. However, she is grateful her parents wanted her to be creative and take on hobbies and activities outside of school, which included theatre and gymnastics. “They have always been very supportive. If I wanted to play football they would’ve also supported that, I just never wanted to.” Though one thing Deane regrets is not taking languages seriously enough at school and not having continued to learn them after, as she confesses: “I wish I could speak another language, I have a lot of respect for people who are fluent in more than one language. I took Spanish in school and now I’m trying to learn it on Duolingo. It’s not going very well.” A big part of Deane’s early teenage years also consisted of being a fan of boyband sensation One Direction, which we start giggling about after pointing out her captivating cover of the band’s song ‘Night Changes’. “I saw them live once when I was twelve, I remember it so well. I queued at the venue with my friends, we all made signs,”, Deane reminisces. “I saw them on TV when they were at X-Factor, I was there from the beginning!” Her favourite member was Louis Tomlinson, she gushes and points out a One Direction blanket across the room from where she is sitting, “It’s not the best decor, but it has to be done!”. As there are a lot of young women working in the music industry now, whether as artists themselves or behind the scenes, who have in the past stated that being a fangirl of a certain artist/band had inspired and helped them to attain the positions they are in now, we are curious to find out if that is the case for Deane as well. “I think in some ways. I think their albums and the ability to create a body of work that is so cohesive just made me fall in love with music in general,”, the young singer explains how she has always been a fan of Ed Sheeran as well and that her favourite One Direction songs were written by or with him. “I do think his lyricism and his use of metaphors inspired my songwriting. For example, I love ‘Little Things’!”
While at university, Deane studied English Literature and Drama and enjoyed every second of it, as she recalls: “I chose to study the two subjects that were my favourites at school, and I met all of my best friends there!”. Unaware of all the possibilities that lay within the music industry, she never intentionally planned on getting into it. “When I first uploaded covers, it was just for fun and something I would spend my time working on during my lunch breaks. It would literally be like, ‘Oh cool, I have a few views! Well, time to go to class!’, and then I just randomly got this spike, which I am so thankful for!” Deane’s advice for music lovers who turn to social media to showcase their talent and gain a following is to “always be yourself and be natural, don’t force anything. Do what feels right to you!”. And while TikTok might make it easier to reach a lot of people internationally, she explains that it’s her following on other platforms that counts the most: “The people that move from TikTok to other platforms like Instagram are so important. I’m not just randomly coming up on their ‘For You’ page, they make the decision to follow me and keep up with me and my announcements!”
Deane’s brand new EP ‘TALES OF A TWENTY SOMETHING’ is referred to as her “anti-my life is a movie soundtrack” – what exactly does that mean? “I love music and songs that are very imaginative and cinematic, that sound like they can be in a movie. This EP is not that!”, she laughs and elaborates further, “‘TALES OF A TWENTY SOMETHING’ is very raw and honest, and what real life is like. I wrote it in a year with a lot of ups and downs, and most of the songs are about the downs.” All of Deane’s songs stem from a notes app full of ideas and lyrics, but in regards to her songwriting process, she explains that for her, “usually lyrics and melody go hand in hand.” “Sometimes I sing a melody and then I explore it for an hour just to come back to the original, that could’ve spared everybody’s time.” She admits that she can be “a pain when it comes to production”. “I keep sending people notes after notes, or I’m like, ‘Oh, I breathed weirdly here, can you take that out?’ I honestly don’t know why my producers still work with me,”, she shakes her head and covers her face with her hands.
One of her biggest idols when it comes to songwriting and successful storytelling is no other than pop-giant Taylor Swift. Was there a specific era that Deane drew inspiration from for ‘TALES OF A TWENTY SOMETHING’? “I think I would say the general vibe is very debut. I listened to a lot of her debut album when I wrote this EP, I love country music! I would’ve loved to say ‘folklore’ or ‘evermore’ because they are lyrically the best pieces of work, but they are not comparable to my own music. I did listen to both of them a lot in that time too though!” Her favourite song of her own currently is the EP’s title track: “I think it’s very timeless, and a good opener for the record!”
As we are firm believers that platonic love is just as important as romantic love, if not more, we question if there was a specific situation that prompted Deane to write her song ‘THE SISTERHOOD’ or if it simply stands as a general love letter to her female friends. “I remember I went into the studio and said, ‘No boy has broken my heart in some time, so I don’t have anything to write about’, but I had this text in my notes app called ‘The Sisterhood’, where I wrote down stuff about my friends. I sent it to my co-writer Sarah [Close] and said “Can we do something with this?” And it worked out!”
Deane has played three sold-out shows in London already, embarked on a sold-out intimate acoustic bookstore tour, supported Sam Smith, Henry Moodie and more live, and performed at multiple festivals – so what has been her “I made it” moment so far? “I don’t think I’ve had such a moment yet and I don’t know if I’ll ever have one but I had a few ‘I wanna do this’ moments. I know as a support act you are meant to hype up the crowd and engage them, but usually, no one really cares about the support. But I remember when I sang ‘The One That Got Away’ when I was opening for Sam Smith at the Royal Albert Hall, one person’s flashlight came on. I continued playing and after a while, I looked back up and saw everyone had their flashlights on. That was a very special moment for me. And when I played my first headline show I realised people had not just bought a ticket but also a glass of overpriced wine and made their way down to spend their evening with me. I was so excited, I ran out on stage – there was no space to run but I did it anyway!”
While Deane’s bubbly, honest and humble persona makes it so easy for others to connect with her as an artist and as an interviewee, we do think she needs to give herself and her artistry more credit, as her talent and creativity in songwriting and performing is undeniable and we are excited to witness more of her tales of a twenty-something and where they will take her.
Áine Deane’s new EP ‘TALES OF A TWENTY SOMETHING’ is out now – catch her live on tour in October at a venue near you.
Written by Vicky Madzak // photography by Em Marcovecchio
GEM Magazine 