Abbie Ozard is a singer songwriter from Nantwich who many of you will be familiar with as she has been releasing music since 2019 when her debut EP Growing Pains was released through Modern Sky. Abbie’s music has been played on Radio 1, 6 Music and several local radio stations including The Cat in Nantwich who all certainly know great pop music when they hear it.
I am new to the wonderful music that Abbie writes, my introduction to her came through the Like Clockwork show on The Cat and instantly this was a name that I wrote in my notebook to ensure I remembered to find out more. I have spent time listening to the EP’s Growing Pains, Lets Play Pretend and Water Based Lullabies, all of which contain gorgeous pop songs that deal with the trials and tribulations of being young, figuring out who you are, trying to find your place in the world whilst dealing with the challenges and anxieties of the world today.
One of the many things that I love about Abbie through listening to her music is the time she seems to have allowed herself to grow as a song writer. It is refreshing to hear an artist who has not rushed to get an album out. Abbie has taken time through releasing three EP’s to define her sound, to write the songs she wants and not feel under pressure to get an album out, to not feel under pressure to release songs just for content. Abbie Ozard certainly comes across as a true artist who wants to do things her way and be recognized for the talented singer songwriter she is.
Abbie has recently released a new single Days Like These which contains some joyful, sweet melodies that ensure the song becomes firmly rooted inside your head. After listening to Days Like These you may find yourself waking up in the middle of the night whistling the melody and there will be nothing you can do to stop it. Lyrically Days Like These is such an important song which needs to be heard by as many people as possible. The lyrics deal with the subject of spending too much time online, how we now have a generation of people who have not known life without the internet “I’ve been scrolling all my way through lunch”. The song reflects on the harm this has done to people “Its causing all our brains to rot”. Listening to Days Like These is like holding a mirror up to society, allowing us to reflect on the damage that the internet has done to the world. Yes, the internet has done a lot of good, but there is no getting away from the fact that spending too much time scrolling, arguing in comments, believing everything has to be filmed for content. Growing up and aspiring to be what you see online and thinking that you have to hit this level of perfection is truly damaging “And all the girls feel like they can’t be loved because their faces aren’t tuned enough”. The impact all this is having on society is frightening, Abbie, thank you for writing about this in an amazing pop song, that should make people stop and think and go back to living life in the real world.
Abbie has recently recorded a live session for Applestump Records, please spend some time and watch these sessions. Here is a live recording of Days Like These, watch / listen pay attention to the lyrics, get swept off your feet by the melodies and I promise you will want to hear more from this exceptionally talented artist.
If that isn’t enough, if for some reason you are still not convinced have a listen to I Don’t Know Happiness Without You. Another perfectly crafted pop song “I can hold my head up high and squeeze your hand until we die / I don’t know happiness without you.”. This is a beautiful, honest love song written straight from the heart. Pop music is meant to move us, it is meant to stir emotions and there is so much genuine warmth and love within this song it is impossible not to be moved.
Hopefully these words I have written, and more importantly the songs that Abbie has written, will be enough to pique your interest and you will find yourself wanting to hear more from Abbie Ozard. If so, you are in luck, there are tour dates including a couple of European dates before the end of the year and there is a debut album planned for release in 2024, which will certainly be one of the hotly anticipated albums of 2024.