Wallis – Bites Back Hard
While some artists write about love, Wallis prefers to write about the aftermath. We caught up with her in the studio where she’s recording her next single, talking bad exes, worse DMs, and all the chaos that makes great music.
Photography Phil Barro Thomas Styling Airy Something
Dress – Hu Die Gong Zhu, Gloves – Jenn Lee, Necklace – Michael Nash Jewellery, Earrings – stylist’s own
What inspires you to write your music? What are your songs about?
I like to keep it very real. I'm very known for being blunt and saying it as it is, which I think just comes with being Northern! My music tends to be about all of my shite relationships; I write from the heart, and boys, especially shit ones, give very good writing material.
Your last single, Snakebite, was about an excellent story of revenge, tell me about that:
My ex-boyfriend decided (literally the day after we broke up) that he'd send an unsolicited picture of his, ahem, you-know-what to this unsuspecting girl on Twitter. Also like him, she’s a massive fan of a VERY famous football club; she’s a big name and face around the supporter’s club, goes to games every week, she even interviews the players. And, she's a very gorgeous girl.
So, he decided to send her a picture of his knob and she literally exposed his actions to that football community and beyond. She put the pic on Twitter with a picture of his face next to it, saying "@hisname, you think this is clever do ya? Let’s see what everyone here thinks of it, shall we?”
And it got 90,000 interactions, and 21,000 retweets. I was like, "Great. That's, uh, my ex-boyfriend's willy, but we’ve just split up so it’s not my problem…”
But then in the comments section, girls were coming forward with “OMG, this isn't the first time he's done something like this, he was messaging me back in July…” And I was like, "July? I was bloody still with him in July..."
So I wrote the Snakebite lyrics from her point of view, as well as mine: “Sick of the games, sick of the lies. Settle your scores, pay for your crimes, 'cause I always serve up cold.”
She was essentially saying: “No, you're not gonna get away with sending me that. I'm gonna report you to the police, get you banned from the football club, and publicly humiliate you.” Babes, absolute mic drop.
If I ever saw him again, I would be literally spitting venom… and honestly if I met her, I'd shake her hand.
T-shirt – Palace, Jewellery – Hu Die Gong Zhu and Ray Chu, Hosiery – Heist Studios
“I know it sounds clichéd, but there is nowhere I'm happier than being on a stage singing for people, and ESPECIALLY when I’m singing my own music.”
Jacket – Palace, Necklace – Michael Nash Jewellery, Hosiery – Heist Studios, Bag – Baggy London, Shoes – Simmi, Earrings – stylist’s own
Bandeau top – Palace (customised), Skirt and bikini bottoms – Hu Die Gong Zhu, Hosiery – Heist Studios, Earrings – Wallis’s own, Arm cuffs – Snapdragon
You’ve released 12 singles and an album so far, what’s been some of your proudest moments so far?
DJ Target picked my song out of 1000s of other submissions to feature on his WhatsApp Wednesday competition on BBC Radio 1Xtra, and the high that came with that was amazing; he's an OG disc jockey, he’s so well-respected in the music industry, and his words were, “WHAT a VOICE.” I was over the moon.
I also won the Isle of Wight Festival’s New Blood competition, from over 5000 other artists, and got to perform on the Big Top Stage to 2000 people, supporting Flo, and Example… I was strutting around that stage, and I know it sounds clichéd, but there is nowhere I'm happier than being on a stage singing for people, and ESPECIALLY when I’m singing my own music.
What’s next for you?
My next single will be out in January, it’s called “STOP!!!”, and it’s about a situationship, which I'm sure a lot of people can relate to, because nobody in the dating world seems to want commitment these days… and unfortunately, I was at the peril of one of these.
He was teasing me with all the promises, but never turned up to this imaginary date that we were meant to go on, and then I saw him out with another lass; so the lyrics describe how he can seem like this amazing prospect because he can offer you so much through your phone, but he's got absolutely no intention of committing (but he still thinks he can keep me happy by just feeding me crumbs). In the lyrics, I am pleading with him to stop playing, because deep down I know it's not going anywhere, but I secretly like the thrill… and I really fancy him. But he might as well have been a pen pal that lives in Pennsylvania.
How do you deal with navigating the hate online?
During the lockdown days, I had a TikTok video that went a bit viral. And people would write ridiculous things in the comments about my appearance. I've never been able to fathom why people go out of their way to say negative, mean, nasty stuff. I can't help it, I reply to them. I’m quite thick-skinned and I’ll cuss them out, and then they don’t ever say anything back.
“I'm not skinniest, I may not be the prettiest, but I've got a talent, and that is what I want people to notice.”
Teddy – Triumph, Lace trousers – Hu Die Gong Zhu, Blazer – Karl Lagerfeld, Bandeau belt – Selenee, Stole – Stylist’s own.
Jacket – Palace, Necklace – Michael Nash Jewellery, Hosiery – Heist Studios, Bag – Baggy London, Shoes – Simmi
Glasses – Rick Owens, Blazer – Karl Lagerfeld, Bandeau belt – Selenee
I can brush off quite a lot of stuff, but it's when they come for your appearance... I obviously know I am not the commercial sort of beauty standard, but I'm a real woman, and I'm what a woman represents. I'm not skinniest, I may not be the prettiest, but I've got a talent, and that is what I want people to notice. F*ck the face, f*ck the body, just listen to my f*cking voice and my music!
You've got Olivia Dean, a ‘commercially beautiful’ woman, dead slim, she's got an angelic voice… And then you've got people like Lola Young, who is also dead pretty but she's got a dead normal body, like she's going out with her belly out and she doesn’t give a flying f*ck.
And what I'm saying is, I'm your spokesperson here. I think it's just so easy to go online and see all of these gorgeous influencers and Insta models, with gorgeous boyfriends and the seemingly perfect world, but there's a lot more bloody normal people out there still having to go through all of the shit relationships. I am the spokesperson for the normal folk who have been through the same shit that you've been through.
Why are we all trying to aspire to look like these amazing models when, no disrespect, we just aren’t that shape? Just do you, babes.
“I am the spokesperson for the normal folk who have been through the same shit that you've been through.”
As far as I’m aware there have been no widely-known female singers from Barrow-in-Furness, how did you end up on this path when there’s no precedent?
As a child, if you told me to do something, I'd do exactly the opposite. And it was like how I was at school. I was always getting in trouble because I was always lively, talking, dancing, ALWAYS singing… Apparently when I came out the womb, I let out the BIGGEST yelp the nurses had ever heard, they said "With the lung capacity on that child, get her into performing."
I was always told at school to shut up and start thinking about real jobs and Uni and this, that and the other. But I just always, always, wanted to be a singer. There was no other option for me.
Which other artists have been the biggest influence on you?
My Mam and Dad always played Motown and Soul, my Nana was exactly the same… and old school singers like Ella Fitzgerald, Eartha Kitt, and then big, big voices like Aretha, Whitney and Mariah.
I went to BRIT, and of course all those famous names like Jessie J, Adele, Amy Winehouse all went there too, and you can’t help but aspire to that... I wanna be a household name out of BRIT. There's an alumni wall at the school, and I was always thinking ‘Oh God, I pray that one day I'm on that wall’. If I get on there, I’ve done my job.
Love heart bikini – Hu Die Gong Zhu, Trousers – Naomi Hart, Corset – stylist’s own, Earrings – Wallis’s own
Team credits
Talent – Wallis
Styling and postproduction – Airy Something
Photos – Phil Barro Thomas
Makeup – Esme Horn using Danessa Myricks and Tatcha
Hair – Michael Gray using Zen, The Smooth Company, Living Proof and Diva Pro Styling
Manicure – Shardae Green using Nail Parlour
Assistance – Mari Ajakainen
Shot at North 17 Studios, London
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