In her short career to date, Newry singer-songwriter Lauren Ann has gone from strength to strength. Indeed, she signed to Faction Records on the same day she graduated from school, an impressive triumph for someone who only started writing songs a year prior.

Now, with the keenly awaited Devour EP on the way, she’s trailed its release with the single ‘When The Party Ends’, out today.

Lauren Ann. Photo Credit: Jane Donnelly

“The entire EP is about an alter ego and her experiences with different people and situations,” Lauren offers. “‘When The Party Ends’ revolves this party and the people at it. The character in the song feels like maybe she shouldn’t be there; the people are intimidating and it’s very awkward for her. I took a little bit from my personal life and starting out in the music industry.

“Since I was so young, I had a bit of imposter syndrome and wondered why I was even there. Creating it was probably different to any other song - it was probably the quickest one I wrote and less fleshed-out than the others. All the instruments were recorded in one day, with the vocals added on the second day. We also added a synth we originally weren’t going to put in, but I just fell in love with it. It was a very productive session.”

“We recorded the EP with Rocky O’Reilly in Belfast. He’s fantastic and I love everything he does. He lets the band do whatever they like, but sometimes asks, ‘What if we tried this?’, and he’s always right.”

It’s often vital for an artist to have chemistry with their producer, especially if they're new to the scene. Did Lauren view this as important when recording Devour?

“I’m such a perfectionist, I will spend hours obsessing over one little detail,” she notes. “I think it’s definitely important to get feedback in the moment. I kind of need somebody there to be like, ‘That’s okay, we can work on that. But let’s do other things and come back to it.’ It’s important for the producer and the artist to feel comfortable enough to talk about things like that.”

Lauren Ann. Photo Credit: Jane Donnelly

Lauren Ann has been around the Belfast scene for a few years now. That period has also scene other Northern artists rise to prominence, including Kneecap, Jordan Adetunji, Dea Matrona, CHERYM and many others.

“There's definitely so much talent in Belfast,” Lauren enthuses. “I've had the opportunity to meet so many lovely people, and work with so many different musicians, and the competition is fierce. It's crazy how talented these people are and they deserve all the success in the world. But I feel like Belfast goes under the radar, and we need to push it a wee bit by showcasing more events and getting more visibility for these artists.

“I come from just outside Newry and there’s not much of a scene there or many venues. I do think we’re missing a trick because, again, there’s so much talent. People like me come from Newry and want to make music, but they’ve nowhere to go if they can’t get to Belfast. So talent kind of goes missing.

“I ended up going to Belfast and all the artists there are so welcoming. I felt like I fit in, even though I was only 17 when I started. They just took me in and took care of me. I’m so comfortable here.”

The art of the debut EP is to define the artist’s voice and finesse their sound, though Lauren Ann’s mission is to never stick to one thing, follow one convention or tow one path. As such, Devour is about treading the line of self-discovery, to push ambitions, with preconceived notions be damned.

“When I was first starting off, I didn’t want to commit to one genre,” says Lauren. “My parents both love music, and I grew up with so many different songs and albums playing in my house. My mum loved Madonna and my dad loved classic rock like AC/DC and Guns N’ Roses. So I grew up listening to so many different types of music, to the point that I didn’t want my music to be one thing. That’s not what I am. So each song has its own influence and I don’t really keep it consistent. I don’t want to pigeonhole myself in that way.”

'When The Party Ends' is out now