Clients and students sometimes ask what kind of artist I am.
Over time, I’ve found the most useful way to explain it is through archetypes — the underlying forces that shape how someone writes, performs, and expresses themselves.
Archetypes aren’t boxes you force yourself into.
They’re patterns you recognise when you look honestly at your work — the themes, images, and instincts that keep returning.
When I step back and look at my own writing, three clear archetypes stand out:
Creator, Lover, and Rebel
The Creator
The Creator is the foundation of my work.
My writing is driven by language, imagery, and atmosphere. I’m not interested in straightforward storytelling — I’m interested in creating something that feels layered, visual, and alive.
The Creator shows up through:
- non-linear, poetic writing
- strong, often surreal imagery
- a focus on atmosphere over explanation
- a need to shape emotion into something intentional
This is the part of me that builds the world of the song.
The Lover
If the Creator builds the world, the Lover brings it into the body.
This isn’t soft or idealised. It’s physical, intimate, and exposed. It’s about desire, closeness, and emotional honesty — sometimes uncomfortable, sometimes confrontational.
The Lover shows up through:
- sensual and tactile imagery
- themes of desire, vulnerability, and connection
- language that brings the listener close to the experience
- a focus on feeling rather than distance
This is what makes the work felt, not just understood.
The Rebel
Alongside this is a strong Rebel current.
This isn’t rebellion for effect. It’s a refusal to dilute what feels true.
The Rebel shows up through:
- directness and emotional intensity
- confronting themes — sex, power, shame, control
- resisting polish or over-refinement
- a willingness to let things feel raw, unresolved, or uncomfortable
This is what keeps the work honest.
The Archetype Mix
Rather than trying to be everything, I think in terms of a clear core:
Creator + Lover + Rebel
Each plays a different role:
- Creator → builds the world, shapes the work
- Lover → brings intimacy, embodiment, feeling
- Rebel → brings truth, tension, and edge
Together, they create work that sits between:
- control and instinct
- poetry and physicality
- intimacy and confrontation
A Thread of Something Else
There’s also a quieter thread running through the work — something more instinctive, intuitive, and at times spiritual.
Moments of expansion.
Of energy.
Of something beyond the literal.
It’s not the core, but it’s there.
Artists With Similar Energies
This combination appears in artists whose work blends authorship, emotional depth, and independence.
For example:
- Patti Smith
- PJ Harvey
- Tori Amos
- Sinéad O’Connor
Different styles, but a shared core: strong authorship, emotional truth, and a refusal to conform.
A Simple Way to Describe My Work
If I had to describe it simply:
My work is built through language, expressed through the body, and driven by instinct.
For me, music is where thought, feeling, and impulse meet — where something can be both shaped and raw at the same time.
What about you?
This is also the space I tend to work in with artists — helping you connect your craft, your emotional world, and your instinct, so your work feels uniquely yours.
