Womad performance a family affair
Charlotte Johansen has mastered the fine art of writing lyrics that blend a keen sense of satire with everyday emotions. Ahead of her Womad 2019 performance she talks to Stephanie Mitchell about career highlights and crafting songs.
Why is it important for the people of the world to hear different styles of music?
It encourages us to try different things, to not be afraid of what we don’t know. To realise that although we are different there are universal truths that bind us – justice and fairness for all, looking after the environment, we all want to be loved, we all want to belong. Music has a way of uniting us but not making us the same. Music helps us to accept each other and be encouraging of difference.
For people who may not have heard of your group, describe your music.
I’m a singer/songwriter who plays guitar. I would describe my sound as acoustic pop but not saccharine. I sing about things that are important to me and I get a kick out of performing live.
What can we expect from your Womad 2019 performance?
I’ve decided to play a more intimate show at Womad so it’s just myself and guitar for most of the set. I am going to invite my bass player/hubby onto the stage and also my sister who plays the violin, so it’s going to be family affair. My sister and I used to play and sing together a lot when we were growing up.
What are you most looking forward to about playing Womad?
To be honest absolutely everything! I love everything about Womad and it is a dream come true for me to be on stage performing there. There is always something amazing to see, feel, smell, eat, listen to and dance to.
How long ago did your journey with music begin?
I was about 20 when I discovered my singing voice and started writing my own songs and that was about 25 years ago. Wow now I feel old! Before that I played the flute, saxophone and drums at school. Music has always been a part of my life. But writing and singing doesn’t feel like work or practice so I think that’s why I’m still doing it. It’s my passion I feel like I’m connecting with something larger than myself.
What has been the highlight of your career thus far?
It is being asked to play at Womad 2019. This has been my dream for over 10 years now. Releasing my last album six years ago, I thought that I would find some commercial traction but it wasn’t meant to be. As an independent, self-managed artist I have struggled to get recognition for my songs and for my talent. Playing at Womad gives me a huge confidence boost and makes all the years of waiting and wanting something like this all worth it.
Where do you get your inspiration from?
I started writing songs to help me process things that were going on in my life and my observations of things around me. Sometimes those thoughts turned into phrases that I think would work as part of a song. Sometimes I hear a melody when I start singing those words out loud. I love the process of song writing and I also love the joy of singing and performing on stage.
Please share with us something about your home region that we may not know.
As a local from Taranaki, if you haven’t been to a Womad here yet then you need come. It is one of the best festivals in the country.
Do you have any hobbies outside of music?
I have children. No time for hobbies. However, I do like growing veges in the garden. We are renovating a villa –is that a hobby? Also, I am in a choir called The Ladies 80s Choir and we get together once a week and sing songs from the 1980s which fills me with joy and enriches my life.
What are three things that make you happy?
Singing 80s songs, hanging out with my husband and kids, dreaming about our finished house renovation!
Do you have any new projects you are working on at the moment?
Have I mentioned the Ladies 80s choir? We do children’s parties, bar mitzvahs, hens parties! I am also excited to share that I am also doing songwriting workshops in schools around Taranaki with my dear friend Victoria Girling-Butcher as part of Womad. I’m really looking forward to that as well as playing my own set on stage. See you all there.