My Music

Sid Seth wrote the chorus seven years ago. He hoped he would never have to finish the song.

In this episode of MyMusic, Graham Coath talks to Sid about “Precious Gift”, a deeply personal song he completed after the loss of his mother. Originally intended just for himself, it found its way onto a Brooklyn stage, where a stranger’s response helped him find the courage to share it more widely.

Joining Graham from Gujarat, Sid reflects on making music between India and New York, finding his way back to singing, and letting the story guide the song, even when it takes his voice to some extraordinary places.

There’s also plenty of laughter, a shared love of Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, a plea to listen to whole albums, and an unexpected encounter with a bird that took a liking to Sid’s hair.

A conversation about love, loss, curiosity and the connection that happens when an artist lets people in.

Listen to Sid Seth’s “Precious Gift”, add it to a playlist, and go and say hello. Good music deserves a conversation.

MyMusic is proudly sponsored by 13th Floor Sound.

What connects Sacramento’s record shops, a Ride and Lush gig, and a tambourine apocalypse? This episode of MyMusic, as Graham Coath catches up with Katie and Ross from Soft Science.

The conversation explores the band’s album Sand, the pop hooks beneath their dreamy shoegaze sound, and the influence of bands including Ride, Lush, Catherine Wheel and Stereolab. Katie and Ross look back on working together at The Beat record shop, seeing future favourites in tiny venues, and finding their own direction after California Oranges.

There’s also plenty of talk about recording to tape, backwards guitars, judging records by their covers, and keeping something human in a world of click tracks and perfect takes. Along the way, we consider making music in a retirement home and discover why even the song titles need to look good on the sleeve.

Fancy a creative challenge? Write a short story using all ten Sand track titles: Spinning, Go, Fade, Without, Everything, Thread, Understand, Hope, Sway and Sand. Bonus points if you can keep them in album order! You might accidentally explain the concept album the band didn’t know they’d made.

Explore Soft Science’s music on Bandcamp and your favourite streaming service.

MyMusic is proudly sponsored by 13th Floor Sound.

Brandon Z. Smith thought he was writing a rock and roll album. Then he looked at the songs and realised there was rather more sadness in there than he’d expected.

In this episode of MyMusic, Graham Coath talks to the Flint, Michigan musician about the experiences behind his forthcoming album, Strike Me Like a Match and See. Following separation and divorce, Brandon found himself navigating desire, distraction and the pull between wanting connection and wanting freedom. Somewhere along the way, those experiences became songs.

We talk about finding humour in heartbreak, why listening to a whole album still matters, and how Nirvana gave Brandon the push to start writing without waiting to master the guitar. Harry Nilsson, The Smiths, Prince and the wonderfully complicated world of Fleetwood Mac all find their way into the conversation.

There’s also an introduction to his backing band, The Wardrobe, and the story behind “Ballerina”, a music video budget that wouldn’t stretch to a dancer, and Brandon’s decision to put on the tutu himself.

An honest conversation about making music from the messy bits of life, with plenty of laughter along the way.

Listen to Brandon’s music, add a favourite to your playlist, and go and say hello. There’s a person behind these songs worth getting to know.

Proudly sponsored by 13th Floor Sound.

MyMusic Podcast: Casii Stephan – Finding Happiness, Grief and the Freedom to Make Music Your Own

What does it really mean to be happy? And can a song sound full of sunshine while hiding some much deeper questions beneath the surface?

In this episode of MyMusic, host Graham Coath talks to award-winning American singer-songwriter Casii Stephan about her new single Happy, the stories behind her songs, and an upcoming debut album that explores grief, love and what it means to keep living after losing someone close to you.

Born in Minnesota and now based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Casii refuses to be boxed into a single musical genre. Blending pop, soul, rock and folk influences, she puts storytelling and emotional honesty at the heart of her music. With recognition from Billboard, NPR, SPIN and American Songwriter, she's building a reputation as an artist who isn't afraid to ask difficult questions or challenge expectations.

Graham and Casii explore the thinking behind Happy, a deceptively upbeat track that asks whether we sometimes get in our own way when it comes to finding happiness. They discuss the fine line between a joyful melody and melancholy lyrics, the creative process, working with producer Chad Copelin, and why collaboration can help songwriters move beyond their usual boundaries.

The conversation also takes a more personal turn as Casii talks about Let Her Have Her Flowers, her forthcoming debut album, written in the wake of her father's death. It's a deeply human exploration of grief, love, mortality and learning how to keep living while carrying the people we've lost with us.

Along the way, Graham and Casii discuss musical influences, the limitations of genre labels, the realities of social media for musicians, and the importance of staying true to your creative instincts rather than simply following the algorithm.

It's an honest, funny and thoughtful conversation about music, life and the questions that don't always have easy answers.

In this episode:

The story behind Casii Stephan's new single Happy, released on 23 October.

Why a song can sound happy even when its lyrics tell a different story.

The inspiration behind Let Her Have Her Flowers, due for release on 5 March 2027.

Writing about grief, love and the experience of losing a parent.

Collaborating with producer Chad Copelin and knowing when to ask for help.

Why Casii resists being confined to one musical genre.

The influence of artists including Alabama Shakes, Florence + The Machine, Fiona Apple and Carole King.

Staying creatively authentic in a world driven by algorithms, likes and streaming numbers.

Listen to Casii Stephan's new single, Happy:

Find Casii Stephan online and discover more about her music, upcoming releases and live performances.

MyMusic is hosted by Graham Coath, bringing you conversations with the artists behind the music, the stories behind the songs, and the ideas that make music matter.

Listen, discover and support independent music with MyMusic sponsored by 13th Floor Sound.

What do Karl Marx, Liam Gallagher, Jackson Browne, Bruce Springsteen, social media, cover bands and a four-hour Bruce tribute set have in common?

Apparently, quite a lot.

In this episode of MyMusic, Graham Coath talks to Nick and CJ from Triers — The band don't pronounce it that way! ...We get into the story behind the band, how they came together and why their latest single Common Goal is about something much bigger than music.

Triers take their name from Trier, the oldest city in Germany and birthplace of Karl Marx. They talk about their unusual route into the band, including a Liam Gallagher tribute band, a wedding gig, finding the rest of the line-up and the moment they realised that the chemistry worked.

The conversation then turns to Common Goal, a song born out of frustration with the division and disconnection that seems to dominate so much of modern life.

Why are we so quick to attack each other? Has social media disconnected us from real human interaction? And can music help bring people back together?

Graham and the band also get into the complicated relationship musicians have with social media — including Triers' refreshing reluctance to spend their lives filming themselves eating sandwiches just to promote their latest release.

There is plenty of talk about gigging, festivals, supporting other bands, gig swaps, the importance of getting out there and doing things rather than constantly trying to manufacture online content, and why musicians might need to be a little more playful and creative with social media.

And then there's the future: new songs, a possible EP, the hope of an album, and a band who are still together with the same line-up three years in.

At the heart of it all is a simple idea:

Find your common goal.

And maybe, just maybe, put the phone down and go and do something.

Listen to the episode and then go and check out Common Goal by Triers.

MyMusic is sponsored by 13th Floor Sound

How do you sing Tom Waits without trying to sound like Tom Waits?

Eddie Skuller joins Graham Coath to talk about Blind Love, his four-song EP exploring Waits’ songwriting through his own voice. From slowing down “Downtown Train” to finding a different feel for the title track, Eddie explains how he chose the songs and made room to tell their stories.

Recorded live to tape at The Chicken Shack in Upstate New York with producer Nick Kinsey, the sessions came together with remarkably little fuss. The vocals intended as temporary guides became the finished performances. Sometimes the feeling is already there, and another take won’t make it better.

Eddie shares what it meant to record alongside his son, why “House Where Nobody Lives” has stayed with him, and how experience has changed his understanding of performing. The conversation also turns to the beauty in sad songs, the connection between a singer and an audience, and using social media to actually talk to people.

Give Eddie’s music a proper listen. And if a song means something to you, tell him. That conversation is part of the music too.

MyMusic is proudly sponsored by 13th Floor Sound

Jenny Jam: Finding Her Voice and Making Music That Means Something

Jenny Jam grew up surrounded by music, but it took time to discover the sound that felt like hers. Trained in musical theatre, she found herself drawn to soul and jazz, and a chance karaoke session helped her hear what her voice could do.

In this episode of MyMusic, Graham Coath talks to Jenny from Los Angeles about finding that voice, staying true to it when the industry wanted something else, and the work involved in releasing music as an independent artist. Jenny also talks about balancing music with film production and running a business, and why the glamorous version people see online leaves out rather a lot.

They get into the stories behind songs including Toy Proof, Drag You Down, Free Bird and Disco Ain’t Dead. Some came from painful experiences; others came from friendship, freedom and the simple pleasure of dancing. For Jenny, the best response is hearing that a song has helped someone through something of their own.

There’s room for Pink Floyd, football, vinyl and a possible future song title from Graham, too. But the question running through the conversation is a simple one: how do you make music that reaches people while keeping hold of what you wanted to say?

MyMusic is sponsored by 13th Floor Sound.

What happens when a song comes to you in a dream? And what happens when another one ends up painted across a listener’s wall?

Graham Coath talks to Los Angeles singer-songwriter Sam Lapides about the stories behind Kisses in My Pocket and Tonight, writing more than 100 songs, and the strange places those songs can take you. Sam tells Graham why his 94-year-old mum finally called him a poet, and how coming home from a European tour helped inspire Tonight.

They also get into first records, worn-out cassettes, home recording and whether sending someone a link can ever feel quite like sharing a piece of music you love.

TMyMusic is sponsored by 13th Floor Sound.

MyMusic: Graham Coath talks to Lydia Reddy

What happens when an artist known for bigger pop and rock productions strips everything back to a voice, a guitar and a vintage tape recorder?

Lydia Reddy returns to MyMusic to talk about her new single, “This Is How…” Recorded live in one take, the song takes a darker route through comparison and self-doubt before arriving at a more hopeful thought: you don’t have to live up to somebody else’s life to value your own.

Graham and Lydia discuss why she chose to leave the first take untouched, the nerves of singing and playing guitar at the same time, and how a song she wrote at 15 reflects the artist she is becoming now. They also look ahead to her next EP, her move to Lancaster University and the creative work of finding an audience for independent music.

It’s a conversation about trusting your voice, on tape and beyond it.

MyMusic is sponsored by 13th Floor Sound.

What happens when three siblings, three distinctive voices and a lifetime of shared musical experience come together?

In this episode of MyMusic, Graham Coath talks to Miccoli, the British-Italian alternative folk-pop band formed by twin brothers Alessio and Adriano Miccoli and their sister Francesca.

They discuss the close harmonies at the heart of Miccoli’s sound, growing up surrounded by music and the creative disagreements that inevitably arise when three siblings make records together.

The conversation follows their journey from the UK and southern Italy to California, Japan and Malaysia, including appearances at legendary Los Angeles venues, recording their debut album Arrhythmia in Penang and performing on stages at London’s Olympia and Wembley.

Miccoli also talk about making authentic music in an attention economy, why audiences are beginning to gravitate back towards real voices and organic musicianship, and the importance of creating music they genuinely believe in rather than chasing the next algorithm-friendly hit.

There are stories of videos filmed in a deserted St Mark’s Square, guitar played on an Icelandic iceberg, and the near-disasters that happened behind the finished footage. The band also reveal what is coming next, including their new song “Words”, which brings Miccoli’s signature sound into more uptempo territory.

It is a warm, funny, wide-ranging conversation about family, creativity, authenticity, and three voices that have spent a lifetime learning how to become one.

MyMusic is hosted by Graham Coath and proudly sponsored by 13th Floor Sound, the independent Las Vegas record label dedicated to keeping real music alive