ANNE-MARIE
The British pop sensation gets real.
It’s early March when Anne-Marie rocks up for her first GAY TIMES Magazine cover shoot, walking through the door of the studio in East London all smiles and looking relaxed in an oversized sweater. The shoot was originally planned for a later date, but was pulled up due to Anne-Marie having to fly to Australia the following week to promote her single Birthday. However, by the time the shoot day comes around, the world has started to fully grasp the seriousness of the pandemic and her entire promotional tour has been cancelled. It was suddenly dawning on everyone that we were mere days away from a completely new way of life.
But Anne-Marie hasn’t used her time in lockdown since to take a break from the spotlight. She has been one of the more visible faces in music lending her support to countless good causes to raise money for the most vulnerable communities during the fight against COVID-19. Whether it’s performing a set from her living room for the Global Citizen virtual concert Together at Home, or snaing another UK No.1 as part of Radio 1’s Live Lounge Allstars single Times Like These, she has continued to use her platform to help others in need.
“I wouldn’t be making music and being on stage if I didn’t want to have a message and raise awareness of important issues,” Anne-Marie told us back on the set of her shoot. “There’s no point otherwise.” She’s certainly one who stays true to her word.
By her own admission, Anne-Marie is someone who knows what they want and isn’t afraid to speak up for it. “I’m the type of person who gets frustrated by anyone who tries to stop me doing anything,” she laughs back in early March. “Even from before being in this industry, I’ve always been so outspoken and mentally strong when it comes to what I want. When I got into this industry it was no different. I’m still very opinionated and I’m sure it’s pissed a few people off and they’re like, ‘I wish she’d just do what we’ve told her to do.’ But I’m like, ‘No, I know what I want. This is my life.’”
It’s an approach to her career that has worked out incredibly successfully for her. As of 2020, Anne-Marie’s songs have been streamed more than 10 billion times, she has four UK Top 10s in the bag as a leading artist and a further three in a featuring capacity, and she’s sold more than 2 million copies of her debut album Speak Your Mind. She’s also played a part in co-writing hits for some of our favourite queer artists too, including MNEK’s Colour and Demi Lovato’s new single I Love Me.
These pop victories have been hard-won. Anne-Marie came through at the cusp of a drastic shift in music, when artists couldn’t be broken overnight and had to put in the hours and determination to get that first hit. For two years she toured with Rudimental, cutting her teeth on the festival circuit and working on her own EP in the background. It was in 2016 when she featured on Clean Bandit’s mega-hit Rockabye that things started to shift up a gear, and within a
year she’d established herself as a lead artist in her own right, achieving chart dominance with earworm anthems like Ciao Adios, 2002 and Friends with Marshmello.
But as the music began to take on a life of its own, Anne-Marie found herself starting to strule with the pressure and expectation of fame. The Essex-born star has been very open about her mental health issues with anxiety and depression on social media, hoping to throw a light on the dark side of success. “Sometimes I just sit here and think, ‘Wow, I really did choose the right career didn’t I...?’” she laughs when I ask her what her coping mechanism is. “I really don’t like being looked at and I literally have to stand on stage in front of people. It’s the weirdest thing in my head that I’m having to fight.”
She recalls wanting to sing so much for people when she was an aspiring pop star as a teen, and how she uses that feeling to keep her on track. “It just overrides everything,” she says. “When I’m in the moment, the adrenaline is pumping and you’re kind of just coping with being in a dreamworld, and it isn’t until I leave the stage where I’m like, ‘Fuck.’ It’s weird because everyone goes, ‘We know you for your laugh’ or ‘You’re so confident’ and I’m like, ‘You want to see me when I’m in my room on my own because it’s like a completely different person.’ It’s not that I don’t want to show that side of me, because I really try to on social media. I want people to see that it’s not all bows and cakes and happiness. It’s hard.”
Anne-Marie describes the spiral as a “weird journey” because at the start of her career the warning signs weren’t necessarily there. “But then my anxiety
Assortment of jewellery worn throughout, ANNE-MARIE’S OWN. Sequinned lace top; matching trousers, both Ermanno Scervino. Shoes, ANNE-MARIE’S OWN.
Greek sculpture-print overshirt; matching trousers, both VERSACE at MATCHESFASHION.
got really bad and it became the worst thing ever,” she explains. “Someone asked me yesterday, ‘How could you be going through such bad anxiety but still be showing everyone the happy-go-lucky Anne-Marie?’ It never started like that. I never had anxiety and depression at the start and I was faking this happiness. In the beginning I just wanted people to see me happy and smiling and being positive. To me it’s been a strule to get back up to that place.” She admits that there have been four occasions where she’s considered quitting completely. “I’ve had to have chats with my team and my family, but I always come back round to doing it. It goes back to that thought of me in my room when I was younger and that takes over everything.” She pauses for a second. “I’m so lucky, obviously, to be able to do this. I fucking hate myself sometimes because there are so many people who crave to do what I’m doing and be who I am. I feel bad because I’m not enjoying it sometimes. I’m like, ‘Why the fuck am I taking this opportunity away from somebody else who could be loving life?’ So it’s a battle with myself more than fame. I’ve been to therapy and I’ve had hypnotherapy and attended loads of different support groups, so I’m just trying to learn about myself every single day and see how I can help myself and others in the process.” It’s no secret that the music industry has a reputation of being a bit of a boys club with the top jobs largely being occupied by men. Male artists dominate the charts, while females have to put in double the effort to even be taken seriously by the gatekeepers in the business. One thing that is immediately noticeable about Anne-Marie’s team is it is completely made up of women. “I’ve always tried to put myself around women in whatever I do. So writing sessions are normally with other women, and my manager is female,” she says. I ask how she’s navigated the male-dominated world of music as a female artist. “When it comes to people treating me differently because I’m a woman, I don’t think that ever came across to me because I’m so like, ‘Fuck you if you even dare!’”
Conversation quickly turns to gender inequality on festival line-ups, with many of the top billing slots having gone to men in recent years. It’s something Anne-Marie has noticed herself and is committed to tackling. She recalls seeing a festival line-up poster and realising that only four female acts were booked in total. “I just thought, ‘Fuck this, I’m going to fight for this and help other female artists.’”
However, she’s aware that as a female artist she can only do so much to help instigate that change. “Then it’s up to the festivals, the radio stations, television shows to promote diversity and different people and all types of music,” she adds. “They are the ones that can help us reach new audiences. If it wasn’t for Christina Aguilera, I would never have seen a boy kiss another boy until I was older. That music video was such a big thing for me because I was like, ‘What just happened?’ When I knew about it I went away and learned about it.”
Diverse representation in mainstream media is something Anne-Marie speaks very passionately about. “We just need so much more of it,” she says, adding how she “always notices how white adverts are.” The power of recognising yourself in mainstream culture is paramount to creating positive self-worth. Without placing too heavy a value on it, it genuinely saves lives.
For Anne-Marie, it was P!nk who helped her understand that gender expression through fashion didn’t have to be what was expected of you. “She really put herself in her own box,” she says of her idol. “I was a tomboy, and I was like, ‘Holy shit, I am actually normal.’ I always wanted to wear boys clothes, so I thought everyone looked at me differently. But then as soon as I saw P!nk, I knew I was OK. That goes to show that you can’t and shouldn’t stick within the lines of what’s expected of you. Going into this industry, I just couldn’t say ‘Oh yeah I will wear a dress for you’ or ‘Yeah, I’ll have long hair’. Maybe some people want that, but for me I didn’t want to do it. I’m going to wear male clothing, wear trainers with a dress, and I’m going to have short hair.”
Back on set at the photoshoot, as Anne-Marie was looking through the fashion options on the rail I noticed how she clearly likes to mix feminine and masculine styles. She explains that she’s always tried to incorporate bits of both when having to dress up for the spotlight. “I don’t feel comfortable being really feminine,” she admits. “I’ve never felt right just wearing a dress and high heels and looking really pretty. So whenever I do have to wear that, I have to bring out the real me with it. If it was up to me I’d just wear male clothing all the time.”
Back in 2018 during an interview with Line of Best Fit, Anne-Marie spoke
“WHEN IT COMES TO PEOPLE TREATING ME DIFFERENTLY BECAUSE I’M A WOMAN, I DON’T THINK THAT EVER CAME ACROSS TO ME BECAUSE I’M SO LIKE, ‘FUCK YOU IF YOU EVEN DARE!’ ”
Assortment of jewellery worn throughout, ANNE-MARIE’S OWN. Sequinned lace top; matching trousers, both Ermanno Scervino.
Shoes, ANNE-MARIE’S OWN.
Scoop-neck striped cotton vest, PRADA at MATCHESFASHION. Lace bra, LA PERLA. Earring, CHANEL.
Cropped denim jacket, BIANCA SAUNDERS. Lace bra, LA PERLA.
Asymmetrical layered denim trousers, FENG CHEN WANG.
about her sexuality for the first time. “I’ve never ever just been attracted to men. I’ve never just been attracted to women,” she said. “I’ve never felt the need to tell anyone that I’m bisexual.” She added that she doesn’t necessarily feel bisexual and doesn’t currently identify that way. The conversation came about following a lyric she wrote in her song Perfect. “And I’ll love who I want to love, ’cause this love is gender-free,” she sings on the fan-favourite track. I ask if fans were surprised to hear her singing those words. “I don’t know if people weren’t expecting it,” she smiles. “What I’ve noticed on tour is that when I sing that song, that’s the line everyone shouts out the most. I’m always like, ‘Fuck yes!’ Even when I went to countries where I wasn’t sure how they felt about that kind of thing, when I heard people scream it out I was like, ‘I’m going to really look at people and say that line. I don’t know how this country feels about it, but I’m going to show them how I feel about it.’ I wasn’t going to be scared of the reaction I might get. That’s the lyric that has most resonated with people and I love that.”
I propose that we are starting to see a generation come through who has a more fluid perspective on sexuality. “That sounds pretty cool to me,” she responds. “I always make the observation that you don’t have to sit your parents down and go, ‘D’you know what mum and dad? I’m straight.’ For me, if people can actually grow in a society where everything is OK, that makes me so happy.”
However, although she recognises the freedom of fluidity as a “beautiful” thing, she doesn’t agree that labels should be disregarded entirely. “People have been fighting so fucking hard to have this community,” she says. “Obviously in an ideal world people would have been accepting right from the start. But it’s been tough for people. For my mum and dad’s generation, it must have been fucking horrific to suffer the consequences of living openly. For our generation it was a little bit easier, so for the next one hopefully it gets better.”
Despite the ongoing lockdown measures and social-distancing restrictions that make performing and promoting new music live a challenge, Anne-Marie’s anticipated second studio album is on the way. Figuring it out, however, hasn’t been a straightforward process. “I basically did a whole album that was very different to anything I’ve ever done before,” she tells me. “I felt really confident in who I was in that moment and I felt really strong. I went into the studio and wrote songs that showed that side of it, but it almost came across as a bit angry at the world for having been through it over the past few years.” After a month of writing and recording she handed it into her label, but didn’t get the response she was hoping for. “They were like, ‘Ooh, we’re not sure if this is right. Maybe you should keep writing.’ I was left so confused. It wasn’t until I had a show and a dad came up to me with his daughter and he said, ‘I just want to say that I’m really happy that my daughter listens to you and I feel like you’re a great role model for her.’ In my head I was like, ‘Oh, this album is not going to go down well with the dads!’ So that changed my whole direction.”
So in November last year she flew back to Los Angeles to work with a handful of top producers she had never written with before. “My songs are always going to be stories that people can read into,” she says of what fans can expect. “Obviously I’ve experienced different things and I’m growing. I don’t know how I’d be as a person if I didn’t have the opportunity to write my experiences into music and let it out of my body. It’s like I’m going to see a therapist. The people I do sessions with are like, ‘Oh fucking hell! Again?’”
She assures me that there will be plenty of the big pop melodies she’s become known for, but as a songwriter with plenty to say, expect this new Anne-Marie to be unapologetic.
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