Lucy Rose launches new independent record label, Real Kind Records.

Lucy Rose is proud to launch a new independent record label, Real Kind Records, and the details of her first artist signing and release.

The British folk musician, who released her fourth album ‘No Words Left’ in 2019 to widespread acclaim, will build the label’s foundations throughout the year and is incredibly excited to welcome the US singer-songwriter Samantha Crain as her first signing.

Real Kind releases Crain’s new album, A Small Death, on the 1st May 2020. It is preceded today by a stirring introduction to the record with its opener, An Echo, streaming now. Listen here.

An Echo is an atmospheric and brooding listen by this Oklahoman musician who has long since been gifted with a finely-tuned ear for melody, and achieved much critical support across her previous releases. A Small Death heralds a fresh new era for Samantha Crain and a hard-fought victory in her relentless battle against illness and injury that at one stage suggested she might never be able to hold and play her guitar again. It makes for an emotionally-charged, richly-textured record, underpinned by Samantha’s poetic way with words and expressive means of delivering them. The album is self-produced.

Samantha will arrive in the UK in March to headline a one-off night at the House of St Barnabas on the 4th March 2020. Tickets are on sale now.

Samantha Crain: “This record was written and recorded during and after some serious hardships in my life. I had lost use of my hands, sank into despair due to the apparent loss of my ability to perform on instruments. I was suffering from a mental and physical breakdown and when I eventually came out on the other side of it, with my capacities renewed, I found such joy and appreciation to be able to create again and put all of this into this record, because of this, in my eyes, it is the most important record I've made and I held it firmly in my arms and carried it through to completion. I saw this as my bonus round, my second chance, and a time to re-evaluate my principles as an artist and my objective as a person. The state of peace that I came to following this tumultuous time in my life allowed me a real clarity towards desires for this record.

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“Around the time that I finished this record, I became re-acquainted with Lucy. We had met before a few years back on a broadcast of Loose Ends on BBC Radio 4 and at one of my London shows the previous year, but she had asked me to support her on a tour and I immediately felt a kinship with her--not only because of our shared navigation of being a woman in the music industry but I was also floored by her artistic integrity and her ability to adroitly manoeuvre herself, intelligently and clearly, through the business of it all too.

“I feel like this record is a new beginning for me, a re-birth after a small death. It is A total mirror of who I am, more than anything else I've made and because of that, it could only find its shared place with someone who truly loved it and believed in it, and Lucy has over and over again shown me that warmth and dedication.

“I feel so honoured to be the first release on Real Kind Records and believe in Lucy and her vision as much as she believes in mine.”

REAL KIND RECORDS: THE FIRST MOVES…

The initiative to launch a record label has been an idea long since considered by Lucy Rose. Ever since she stepped away from her major label record deal following the top 10 release of her second album, she has sought to remain fiercely independent in almost all aspects of her life. Coupled with her passion for discovering and unearthing new artists, Real Kind feels like a natural extension of combining the two and helping to put a spotlight on young artists making their tentative first steps, or those that are deserving of so much more attention than they’ve had.

Explaining her thought process and vision for the label further, Lucy revealed: “Like all musicians, I've always felt interested and passionate about other musicians and the art that's constantly being created. Choosing support acts for my tours is always so exciting for me, to take a musician that I really care about and admire on the road with me and hear them play every night, fills me with such happiness.

“That's what happened last year when I took Samantha Crain on tour with me, an artist that I've been listening to and following since 2015 when we met. But having her on the road and listening to her play every night, my love and passion for her music grew enormously. During those weeks on the road we grew closer as friends and she sent me her album - 'A Small Death' that she was in the process of finishing. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. This album that she had self-produced and made in her home of Oklahoma was one of the best albums I had heard in years, maybe ever. I was so excited and thrilled for her but as we talked more it became clear that Samantha wasn't sure of how she would release the album.

“I spoke to Communion Records, my label, about Samantha and her album and they gave me this great opportunity of starting my own label as an imprint under them, so I could release Samantha's album. I couldn't believe it!

“After a lot of thought and consideration, this is what is happening. I've started Real Kind Records and Samantha Crain is my first signing. It has been one of the most exciting moments of my life. Samantha Crain is one of the most talented, genuinely inspired artists I've ever come across and to work with her is truly an honour. When it came to setting up the label, I knew that what was most important to be was that the artists needs came first, artist friendly deals, and at the forefront of what I wanted to achieve was that Samantha enjoyed every moment of releasing this album.

“I have real ambition for Samantha and this album. It's such a profound and intelligent album, musically and lyrically. I'm so grateful for the braveness she has shown in doing this. It's a deeply personal album and one that I will continue to listen to and enjoy for all the years to come. I hope many, many more people will too.”