Strictly Speaking with Stewart Pink

Ahead of a storming live set at The Ironworks in Southend, it was great to chat with BLAB all about her music. From some of her earliest songwriting memories and learning the violin to playing Arctic Monkeys on the ukulele and eventually bypassing the orchestral experience to fully embrace the guitar. We also talked about the Age Gracefully remix by Mike Darrah and BLAB's next live performance alongside Southend's Asylums & A Cause In Distress on 10th November at The Old Blue Last in London.

Katy has been one of the rising stars of the Essex music scene for a few years now and it was great to have a chat all about music, creative writing and her fantastic new single Money Motel. Katy talked about all sorts from pineapple gin and lemonade to how keeping a side hustle in hospitality going inspired her new single. We also covered birthday celebrations, her recent EP "Kinda, Almost" and how "Fabricated" became a Spotify hit. Plus a little about Katy's songwriting process, her creative writing, a few teasers about what's to come later this year and what exactly would she do if she could check out of the money motel for a week?

The Trusted have been putting Southend on the indie music map for a while now and it was great to have a chat with lead vocalist Tom all about their new single, Doomsday. Tom talked about all sorts from the beginnings of the band in high school (and the womb!) to some fantastic tips on keeping a band together through life's trials, tribulations and changes. We also talked about how their writing and musical style has evolved over the years, why The Trusted are more Monty Python than Game of Thrones, which firework best describes the band, plus some exclusive insight into exactly which part of the beach Tom's been singing on! Of course, we also covered the new single in detail, and some exciting new projects.

Frankie Peroni has quite a story to tell! The singer songwriter lives in Westcliff and has been performing locally and making music for years, currently working on his second album, due out on Lumpy Gravy Records in December. We talked all about his music and why it became an important part of his life but Frankie also told us about the incredible events that unfolded thanks to his recent appearance on ITV's Long Lost Families. In the first episode of the programme's thirteenth series Frankie meets his long-lost brother, Paul Connolly for the first time thanks to the researchers of the programme. Their lives share a lot of spooky similarities including going to the same school and the same boxing club yet despite this, the two had never met before the programme!

It was great to catch up with Frankie and hear more about this bizarre and amazing story. We also talked about how music became a big part of his childhood and his upcoming album. We covered all sorts of other things too from some first class online dating tips to mandolins, hats and why he might be writing a few extra Christmas cards this year!

Great by name, great by nature; The Great Leslie have been gaining momentum as one of Essex's most exciting local bands in years. They released their debut EP, The End and The Beginning, earlier this year and are gearing up to drop their second EP, 21st Century Problems soon. It was great to catch up with the band all about what's been happening since they dropped their first EP, their new single "My Left Eye" and all sorts of other things too including and why Ryan's recent experimentation with a croissant almost caused an international incident.

A lot has happened in the world since we last had new music from Charlotte Carpenter so it was great to catch up ahead of her new album. We talked about all sorts from experiencing a real-life Portuguese Love Actually moment and getting married (congratulations!) to learning to play the piano. Charlotte opened up about what it was like to come through a difficult working relationship, how it impacted her life and songwriting and gave us some priceless advice in the process. We also talked about what it was like "giving birth to" her upcoming debut album, A Modern Rage, some of the singles and what else we have to look forward to. Plus a cameo from Olive the cat and an unexpected saxophonist! You can see Charlotte Carpenter performing live on tour this year, for tickets click here.

It doesn't get much cooler than zooming in from some 20 stories high above the Las Vegas strip on the morning after the first night of the tour! But whatever the backdrop, it's always great talking to singer, songwriter and multi instrumentalist, Katie Cole about her music. Katie talks so openly and is always ready to help deconstruct songwriting in an accessible way. We talked about her fantastic EP “Rivers & Roads” and what it was like trying to get it funded via a Kickstarter campaign. We covered all sorts of other things too from earliest memories listening to vinyl records with her mum, to chasing dreams, adulting and finding time to work on her solo career alongside being a part of The Smashing Pumpkins. Plus, we found out what really does happen when you mix red and white together in an attempt to make rosé!

Ahead of the release of their debut EP, it was great to catch up with Southend's own San Quentin all about their new music, their upcoming launch show at London's famous Moth Club and the inspiration behind their current single Serotonin. We also covered all sorts of other things too from their love of Johnny Cash to what it was REALLY like playing Isle of Wight festival! Plus most importantly, who’s most likely to get arrested in the band and who wouldn't they want to share a room with on tour! San Quentin will be playing live at Moth Club on 1st September click here for tickets.

Ahead of his homecoming gig at Chelmsford's Hot Box, it was great catching uo with the guitar slingin' and paint flingin' Jack Browning. We covered all sorts from filming Spaghetti Westerns and his favourite hats to what it was like breaking through a creative dry spell and putting together his debut solo album, Red Eye Radio. We talked about all sorts of other things too from why it's really just Wilba's world we're living in to Jack's unorthodox first experience on lead vocals! Plus a little detail on his latest singles Kerosene and The Family Guns.

In this episode we’re joined by singer, songwriter, TikTok star and power cut enthusiast, the wonderful Sophie Griffiths. It was lovely to catch up with Sophie about her super-relatable new single Power Cut and why it’s so important for all of us to unplug and take a break from time to time. We covered all sorts of other things too with exciting news about Latitude, singing on a bus, singing on a train, singing to strangers and singing with a choir. Plus we even talked about Sophie’s early Olympic dreams, Love Island, cake, radio 1 and of course… what does she actually do in a power cut?