Blake Baker is a singer/songwriter and acoustic and neo-soul musician hailing from Hertfordshire. Originally growing up on the Nottinghamshire/Derbyshire border, Blake moved to Hertfordshire in 2015 and fell in love with the local music scene, developing his craft and performing at many venues, festivals (including Todd in the hole festival in 2019) and local events. After performing as a professional musician for several years, Blake has since started to release his own music.Blake's debut single 'Tea for two' is available on all streaming platforms from 23rd December 2020, and highlights his ability to write beautifully crafted music with deep, meaningful lyrics.
Tea for two
Tea for two describes the early stages of a romantic relationship and the exciting journey that people take together, through wistful acoustic music and heartfelt lyricism. Based on a personal experience, the song shares the hopeful perspective of a blossoming relationship and an optimistic look into a future with someone very special.
So we have to say Achtung: where quality songwriting meets an amazing voice to sound honest and catchy, you will find Blake Baker.
Spotify
The interview
Who inspired you to make music?
Lots of people! I find a lot of inspiration for writing songs on people that I know well and some of their amazing stories, but I also take lots of inspiration from many of the talented musicians I’ve met at various venues and events.
One of the first of these was Chris Read - a jazz musician and now part of the jazz/spoken word/comedy duo Harry and Chris that have appeared on BBC radio 2 and Russell Howard’s tv show. I was in halls at university with Chris and started doing much more with my music after meeting him.
What or who inspired you to make “Tea for two"?
Tea for two is my debut single and I’m so proud of it. It’s a wistful love song about a blossoming romance. It’s about meeting someone very special and connecting in a way which happens so rarely in most of our day-to-day interactions. It’s about the small idiosyncratic things that makes someone so special and memorable, and about dreaming and fantasising of your future together.
I think it best exemplifies what my music is about - real meaning and sentiment, but hopefully also an inventive spin on acoustic and sometimes soulful music genres. In this case, it’s about my partner, but I think the song also portrays a general message about special relationships in the life of the listener.
What is your creative process like?
Quite random! I’m always noodling on guitar and working out chord progressions and riffs that could sound cool, but it’s really an organic method. I don’t sit down and think ‘I should write a song’, but rather get a lot of ideas (both musical and lyrical) down on paper over time, and then develop them, and I keep hold of the best ones!
Who would you most like to collaborate with?
I think someone that could add amazing ideas to the composition, someone like Tom Misch would be amazing in an absolute dream scenario because I am really into experimental neo-soul and lofi guitar sounds.
Having said that, I am always up for collaboration. On my YouTube (@blakebakermusic) I present different 5 local artists every month and the great music that they’ve released. I love working with and promoting other people as well as my own work as I get to hear fantastic music and be inspired by the ideas of others.
What is the most useful talent you have?
I am an experienced online guitar teacher. Performing is very fulfilling for me, and I love when others enjoy my music, but I also teach guitar lessons (again on YouTube) and I get a lot out of that.
...And the most useless talent?
I can do a passable impression of cawing like a crow... well you wanted useless...
If you could change anything in the past, what would it be?
I don’t know if this means the past of everything or my past, but I’ll answer it for me as it’s easier! I would have taken up music earlier! I’ve reached a point now where I’m doing so many exciting things with music, but that wasn’t always the case, and before I started releasing my own music and performing all over I got a degree, and even a PhD in science. While I don’t regret doing those things per se, I didn’t used to have a lot of time for music!
How do you feel the internet (and social media) has impacted the music business?
It’s massive. I think ta impacted music in lots of different ways. It’s difficult because although artists generally agree that streaming platforms like Spotify aren’t good in terms of money made from record sales etc, you also have to be on those platforms unless you are a massive superstar to get people to listen to your music.
I’m actually a fan of social media, at least for music purposes. While it’s true that it isn’t healthy to spend too much time staring at screens, social media is such a useful tool for promoting yourself and your business, and reaching out to other creative folk. Also, with sites like patreon, artists can get financial support from their fans too, even in testing times like these!
What do you know about Austria?
I know that it is beautiful! I really want to visit. I have a picture of Austria as being friendly to visitors and having an picturesque alpine landscape. I’ve never been skiing but would love to try.
During my PhD some colleagues had the chance to visit Vienna and I was very jealous, hopefully I could come and play a gig there soon!
Blake Baker is....?
I’m a singer/songwriter, guitarist, youtuber, and part-time music promoter. I love music with soulful notes and emotion-evoking lyrics and I’m always hoping to write music that has meaning for others. Outside of music, I’m a football fan (Arsenal), love to travel (when we can!), and always excited to meet new people and experience new things (like this, thanks for the interview!)
What’s next for you?
I’m getting back into gigging after a year where not a lot has happened for most people. I’m gigging in Hertfordshire and London (and hopefully beyond) in the coming months, and I’ve started busking in the capital too. I release new videos on YouTube every week to help people learn music and promote myself and the fantastic musicians around me (I’m @blakebakermusic on all social things), and I’m currently in the process of recording new music, which I can’t wait to release into the world!
