We sat down with Graceé, a teenage singer-songwriter, Graceé, who has been crowned this year’s Future Makers – following in the footsteps of her musical idols, Beyoncé and RAYE, in performing on the Royal Albert Hall’s famous stage.
You’ve mentioned Beyoncé, RAYE, and Ayra Starr as inspirations. What specific qualities in their music or stage presence have shaped your own style?
For me, it’s the way that every time they perform, every detail is thought out. When RAYE puts on a live show, it’s giving that 1950s glamour with those clear black-and-white visuals, it’s giving Marilyn Monroe, and every single small part of the show will fit into that. It was the same with Beyoncé at Coachella in 2018: the amount of detail that went into every costume, every piece of choreography, in order to celebrate historically Black colleges, and do that justice. And with those artists, I also admire the fact that on record they create these bodies of work with so much heart and soul in every single part of it.
Future Makers helped you learn about stage plots, lighting, and large-scale show production. What was the most surprising or valuable lesson you learned from preparing for the Royal Albert Hall performance?
I think it was understanding the importance of communication. You are not just the artist who comes and performs on stage, you are in charge of all those other practical aspects of the show that are also integral bits of the job. So yes, it’s understanding how those work, and then how you get across what you need to the stage director and the sound crew, so you have the smoothest day possible. Doing those things at that level was certainly new to me.
You described the final as feeling surprisingly intimate despite the thousands of people in the audience. How did you mentally prepare to connect with such a large crowd?
I’m not sure that I did prepare! I think I was just determined to stay in a calm state. I knew that not everything was going to go according to my plan, and I’d forget something that was integral to my stage outfit, but I was comfortable with that, and it helped that I had my friends with me. I was just like, “Let’s just go for it. We’ve here and we’ve rehearsed for so long, so let’s just go and do it.”
The judges praised your unique blend of lyrical rap and strong vocal performance. What do you think sets your music apart, and how do you plan to develop your sound in the coming year?
I think it’s my writing that’s my unique selling point. I pride myself on being a writer, especially in terms of lyrics. I’m combining hip hop and Afrobeats and singer-songwriter soul – those are my primary influences – but what I hope will strike people even before they think about the sound, is the words. In terms of how I develop: I want to be in the room with other writers and see how that inspires me. I’m very wordy with the way that I write – there are a lot of words to a bar – and I’d like to learn about taking space, as that’s not something I’m used to doing. So that’s the main area where I’d like to progress. With my sound, it’s more a case of refining the sound that I already have, to keep pushing and see where exactly I can take it.
You aim to make gospel music more popular and profitable in the UK. What steps do you think are needed to elevate the genre’s profile, and how does your music contribute to that goal?
I think that consistency is important: a lot of my favourite artists will put something out that I love, and then we don’t hear from them again for five years. A lot of it is about building as much capital as you can: making records, doing tours, creating merch and forging brand partnerships that matter to your personal brands as artists. Gospel artists should be striving for all the main things that all mainstream artists strive for. I don’t think I’ve ever bought a gospel artist’s merch, or seen a gospel singer do a meet and greet, or seen them play Glasto. We should be open to getting into the same spaces as everyone else, and building our profiles in the same way, if we want to be respected.
Winning Future Makers is a huge milestone. What specific milestones or projects are you most excited about in the next year of support, and how do they align with your long-term career goals?
I’m very excited to drop this EP (Fresher, coming up in May 2025): I’ve been working on it for so long and I want it out there. Then I’ll try to put out another cheeky EP next year. The idea of building my fanbase and connecting with the people who enjoy what I do is really exciting. I’m also hoping to play quite a few festivals this year, and do a headline show by the end of 2025. It’s an exciting time.
Submissions to become the Royal Albert Hall’s following Future Makers Artist open on 31 March. For more information, click here.