10 Questions with “Say Something” Singer Karen Harding

THE TAKE 5 SERIES

KAREN HARDING

Karen Harding is an English singer and songwriter best known for “Say Something” (2015). The success of the single is especially impressive when considering that it was her very first release. The song entered the Top 10 of the UK Singles Chart, peaking at #7.

Before releasing her own music, Harding took her vocal talent to the national stage and on the screen: in 2010, she competed in Eurovision: Your Country Needs You, a televised contest to determine who would represent the United Kingdom in that year’s Eurovision Song Contest. A few years later, she competed in The X Factor.

These two competitions were certainly not the last time Harding featured on national television: in 2016, Harding was selected to perform the English national anthem at the 2016 FA Cup Final.

Her latest release is “Morning,” a single released earlier this year with Ultra Records. It is a collaboration with English DJ Shift K3Y. Within a few weeks the single garnered over a million streams. Currently, she is working on an EP to release later this year.

To learn more about Karen Harding, including her advice to newcomers in EDM, read our interview with her below

Q: Before we dig in, what’s next for you?

I’ve been working towards an EP. Super excited to be putting out a body of work later on in the year! It’s been fun working with a few friends and collaborators on it and there’s going to be some music on there that shows a slightly different side to me that I’m excited to share.

Q: What advice do you have for someone looking into getting into electronic music?

I would say to listen to all kinds of electronic music, house music, EDM, slap house, garage and so much more. There’s such an abundance out there and there’s a lot of inspiration for different moods/days. Don’t be shy to reach out to other artists, musicians, and producers who share the same love, or someone whose music you’re really into. It may sometimes feel like a long shot but if you’ve got the belief, confidence, and ability, someone will always be willing to work with you and you can hone your skills with collaborators. It’s important to get confident in your own ability so that means to practice, get things wrong first to know what’s good and what you like

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our TAKE 5 interview series

Q: What is the last song you listened to?

The last song I listened to was my own, I was making a mix and the last song in the set is the DJ S.K.T remix of ‘Morning’ with Shift K3Y! I love it!

Q: What/when has your favorite performance been?

Live performances are definitely one of my favorite things about being an artist. I’ve got so many stand-out moments but it would definitely have to be when my parents came to Manchester to see me on the main stage at Parklife 2015. I managed to take them onto the stage before anyone else had arrived and they were able to see the view that I could see (without the crowd yet!), it was pretty special.

Q: What type of musician would you prefer to collaborate with?

I always love to work with musicians who can come up with chords and can build a structure so I guess I’d say a Pianist or Guitarist, I find it’s the easiest way for me to get inspired. When I’m on my own I usually like to jam out on the piano or use splice samples, they are good to get an idea going.

Q: If you could bring one artist back to life, who would it be?

Without a doubt, it would have to be Whitney Houston, purely for selfish reasons, but I’d love to see her perform live. Would be a dream come true!

Q: What will finally break the internet?

I feel like nothing can surprise the world now!

Q: Which fictional character is the most interesting to you?

ooo. I guess I don’t have a character in mind but I’m a huge fan of Game Of Thrones and Vikings, love a good mythical, fantasy drama!

Q: What ridiculous thing has someone tricked you into doing or believing?

I worked as a waitress when I was younger and one of the chefs asked me, deadly serious “Can you fetch me the skirting board ladder, desperately need it?”. I looked around for ages, too scared to ask anyone for help than when I did the realization hit! Young and naive little Karen!

Q: What’s the first trip your going to take once the world reopens?

Hoping to get to some writing camps in Europe, love to work in Stockholm and Amsterdam. I usually do a yearly trip to LA as well so I’m hoping to get back there as well.