UK Singer Harriet to perform first Green Bay show

GREEN BAY – After a string of US dates over the winter, UK singer-songwriter Harriet now embarks through the US on the second leg of her “Trying To Get The Feeling Again” tour.

As she prepares to play Green Bay’s Meyer Theatre on April 15, Harriet commented on her musical journey up to this point.

“I’ve been singing since I could talk. I always had this deep sense of what I’d want to do from a very young age, but it was when I moved to London at 19 that I fully threw myself into music as a career,” she said.

Like the experiences of many musicians just starting out, Harriet’s experiences as a performer began as an uphill battle.

“There’s a lot more no’s than yes’s when you start off. I started performing at 14 at all these restaurants and weddings nearby and it’s so funny in retrospect to imagine this kid wailing away in the corner of a bar I wasn’t even old enough to be at! I always loved it though, and it made me feel at home,” she said.

“It really was my parent’s record collection that helped me discover a lot of my favorite music. A lot of the most intense memories for me were from my childhood, with both lots of good and lots of melancholy memories, however there was always a song to coincide with those experiences,” she added.
Inspired by much music of the 70’s, Harriet combines different inspirations together under her voice, aiming to add something new to every song she covers.

“On ‘All By Myself’ by Eric Carmen, much of the arrangement is similar to the original, but vocally it differs because I don’t quite have the range that Celine Dion had when she covered it. We really lent into how the song could work in a deeper, moodier tone and we did a section at the end with a lot of stacked vocals. The song sits in a very heavy, melancholic place, different from the version most know,” she said.

Harriet uses covers as a way to explore music as not just sounds, but also as a dialogue. Working within the limitations of the band and her vocals, the covers allow both a challenge and opportunity to find common musical ground while building musical experience.

“We also covered ‘Rainbow Connection’ on my last album. That song is so timeless! It still resonates with me because the lyrics are all about hope. And with the way the lyrics and melody pair together, you can really feel that sense of hope come through. When we play it live we bring Kermit out onstage and it’s just a blast,” she said.

“I typically change the key to better fit my voice when I cover a song. However, for some songs, especially sung by a lot of male singers with lower voices, I leave it sit in the same key because I also have a lower voice. We always work to ensure there’s something different there and some type of different energy, because otherwise it’d feel just like a cover record. At that point why not listen to the original?” she added.

Outside the challenge of originality, one of the other biggest challenges Harriet combats with is the weight of her own vision.

“I’m a perfectionist. I’ve had to work hard on letting go and saying it’s done. When you’re rewriting and revising, there’s something in your mind that knows when it’s finally right, but until you reach that point, it’s difficult to compromise on that vision. I love the process of songwriting, I love connecting with other songwriters and exchanging emotional energy and experience. I just love it all, and all these songs are part of my DNA,” she said.

In reflection of her recent leg of the tour alongside her newest album “Trying to Get the Feeling Again,” Harriet comments on some of her favorite recent experiences.

“There’s a song called ‘Mountain’ that I was able to write with songwriter John Bettis, who wrote a lot of songs with The Carpenters. The song really has defined this chapter of becoming more confident with the voice I’ve been given and getting to be more comfortable in leaning into that.

The song’s really about intention. If you have the intention, it’s not just the decision but the belief you can get there and know how to get there. I don’t always feel that way but it’s important to take the wheel towards it,” she said.
Harriet also shares some details on her upcoming album.

“There’s no set date, but we are looking to explore other songs from the era I love. There’s slightly more originals, but don’t worry it’s not a crazy shock sonically,” she said.

“I’m so excited to come. I heard The Meyer just celebrated a recent anniversary and there was some beautiful footage of the venue. It looks absolutely gorgeous! I’ve never been to Green Bay either,” she said.

Harriet starts her second leg of the tour on April 10. Tickets are available at meyertheatre.org/events.