KBPS Interview: Rachelle Rhienne

With mesmerising golden locks, captivating smile and shimmering blue eyes, stunning Scottish singer/songwriter, Rachelle Rhienne, turns up the summer heat as she steps onto the global music stage with her debut single ‘When The Sun Goes Down’.  Well known in Scotland as a DJ on her former show ‘From Rachelle With Love’ on Your Radio 103 and 106 FM, Rachelle now steps into summer as one of Scotland’s most tantalising exports this year.

We spoke to Rachelle about her brilliant new single but started by asking her about her thoughts on living in Scotland.

It’s perfect really! The only thing we don’t get is the weather, most days, though it’s actually quite sunny today! It’s good for inspiration. I go up to the park a lot to write, play piano and guitar a lot. Everything is perfect apart from the weather. I’m just back from Spain too, where the weather was perfect, so to come back here to thirteen degrees is like ‘Oh no it’s so cold!’

Your new single is ‘When the Sun Goes Down’. How would you describe it?

Musically it’s mainly pop but it’s got a bit of a Spanish twang to it. It’s a very happy, feel-good tune for summer and when you’re on holiday. It was a lot of fun filming the video too, lots of fun recording it!

You’ve been to Spain and you’ve translated your songs into Spanish too. Is that Spanish influence part of your musical identity?

Yeah. From a very young age I’ve always had the idea of, once I finally get around to doing an album, is translating all the songs and doing a Spanish album, as I just love the language and the culture and the people, and I think the Spanish market is incredible, and it will expand my horizons. It’s just something I’ve always wanted to do.

Where did the inspiration for the song come from?

I wrote it about four years ago. It was specifically about Spain; it was just generally about being on holiday and travelling the world with someone you’re with, like a partner or a friend, and you realise how close you are, and how everything kicks off when the sun goes down. We wanted to film the video around the same sort of vibe to explain the lyrics that the song has. We filmed the video in Sardinia, which was absolutely perfect!

What was it like being involved in the video?

It was amazing! It was a three-day video shoot and we ended up having the opportunity to use a yacht, and so we were on the seas, filming on the yacht, and we literally had to chase the sun so we could get the scene where the sun is actually going down, as it would have been really bad if we missed that part for the song! We got it in the end, and I did lots of stunts and it was just a great experience!

You’ve won song writing competitions in the past; has that helped build your confidence in terms of song-writing?

Definitely! With the competitions the judges are usually someone really high up in the industry, so it’s just an amazing feeling and really rewarding that these people find your music really good. I started writing when I was twelve so getting feedback from the judges was just incredible, and it really helped.

You have been a radio DJ; did that help give you an insight into the music industry?

That was really fun. It was on my local radio station and all the guys there were so amazing and really friendly and helpful. It was another experience I’d never done before so I wanted to broaden my horizon. It was really fun to pick songs I could share on the radio that I liked and I knew other people would like too. They were great guys to work with.

Back to the song, how did the collaboration with Diaz Rodriguez come about?

That came about from a friend in America, [who was a] mutual friend with Diaz. I asked him for someone that I could use on the track, a rapper, and he recommended him. As soon as I heard his reggae, Jamaican accent I knew we had to have him as that’s what we were looking for, the kind of rough, manly voice with gravelly tones! He’s from London, which I didn’t know, so he did it in his studio and sent up and we got it mixed and produced up here and in London. He was a great guy to work with. He came onto the video shoot with us and we all had a great time!

Have you got future EP and album plans?

I’m going to be working on an album very soon. I’m going to be heading off to Sweden in the new year to work with some producers and writers to get the best material possible. I’ve got a single coming out in November and then one in the new year to build up a bit of hype and buzz before the album. [There’s] lots to do!

You have a live show on Saturday; how are preparations going for that?

I’m really looking forward to it; there’s so many amazing musicians I’m performing alongside, and it’s such a great cause as well. It’s my first gig after being on holiday so it gets me back into the swing of things!

How would you describe your live show?

I play piano, so most of my gigs are focussed on piano. I play some covers, and it’s acoustic, so it’s a chilled out vibe. I have a backing band that I do a lot of the bigger gigs with; that’s a more up-tempo fun-vibe. They’re all really talented guys and really nice guys to get along with, so that creates a good atmosphere!

Finally what are your ambitions for the next six months?

Just to get a bigger fan base [and] to gig around as many as places. My main goal is to go on tour in the UK and hopefully head over to America and work with a lot of producers over there and get as much material as possible for the album!

Find out more about Rachelle Rhienne at rachellerhiennemusic.com/ where you can find links to her social media accounts!