Ross LearmonthĀ embraces where heās come from and where heās going as a solo artist.
When did your love for music originate?
Ross Learmonth:Ā I grew up in a home that always had The Beatles or The Rolling Stones playing, and at the age of 16, I overheard a group of kids playing music in the school hall. It was in this moment that I realised thatās what I wanted to do ā be a musician.
When did you first realise you have a distinctly amazing singing voice?
Thatās a bit of a difficult question to answer, but when people started to tell me that they could pick up my voice in a line-up, it made me realise that perhaps I had something unique and distinctive about my voice. I didnāt know if that was a good or a bad thing, but I knew I loved the act of singing and that I wanted to explore where it could lead.
You play both acoustic and electric guitar. Is there a favourite of the two and why?
Iāve always favoured the acoustic, just for its quick application and the ability to write on it anywhere. I love to pull out the electric for those big songs, but these days Iāve even been playing the bass and piano a lot more live and, through that, exploring my edges.
Throughout your musical journey, what are the other skills youāve developed?
I always like to think I have the heart of a drummer, but Iāve never acquired the skills ā though Iāve been known to slam a good bongo drum! Iāve really started to enjoy the piano more, which I learned to play during lockdown and have actually started using it as my base for a lot of my songwriting over the last few years.
Who have been your musical inspirations and why?
That is a hard one to pinpoint or summarise as it is constantly changing, and depending on where in the world I am, an album just sounds different. Walking down the streets of London, youāve got to put on a Rolling Stones album, as itās just so fitting.
But I love a variety of genres, from soul to pop to R&B. I love everything from Leon Bridges, Black Pumas and Chris Cornell to The Killers and Coldplay, with a huge appreciation for Sia and Billie Eilish as songwriters. And surprisingly for some, Iām a Swiftie too.
When and why did you embark on a solo career?
I started experimenting with my solo sound in 2019 and 2020 when I travelled to London and the USA to do some songwriting. Iād only written for Prime Circle. I wanted to explore other sounds, genres, musical directions and avenues, as I felt like I had a lot of music within me that wasnāt necessarily the Prime Circle sound.
It was an exciting time to test my boundaries. I was sitting in rooms with individuals from all different genres, from cowboys to rappers, and I could feel this natural progression. As an artist, I was evolving. I released my first solo single in 2022, followed by a full album in 2023, and then went completely solo as of January 2024.
Are there benefits to āflying soloā?
Yes, there are. Although I loved my time being in a band ā the good times were really good ā as a solo artist, I have a lot more freedom from a creative perspective as well as in a mental health place. There is a different type of pressure and expectation that I put on myself, as there are fewer dynamics at play.
As a solo artist, I also have the opportunity to be selective with where or how I perform.
You are a songwriter. What is your process?
I see myself as a songwriter before being a musician. I talk about this a lot in my shows. I truly believe that if you pay attention to what is floating around a room, you can capture magic.
I love to write in different places and spaces and to see what comes out and up. Writing music is a form of therapy for me, but it is also such an exciting process watching a song come together.
A second solo album! Please tell us a bit more about that.
Itās really exciting! Itās been done in a way that I have never recorded an album before. Itās a bit similar to the process of how they make comic books.
I write a lot at home and then head through to record the basics at Mark Belingās studio in Johannesburg, who then sends it over to my producing team in the UK, and they work on it there. The big focus for this album is my voice, and as Brendyn āRustiā Rossouw, my executive producer, says, ātrying to honour that initial magic which is captured and not lose it.ā
Itās given me an objective approach to the songs, and I donāt overthink them as I tend to do.
The songĀ HoneyĀ is written from a personal perspective. Please share the meaning of the song.
Honey started out as your typical love song, but the more I started to develop it, it turned into a self-love song about my own journey of recovery. So, it is an extremely personal and vulnerable song.
I cannot stress how scary that is, but when you hear from people who listen to it that it has helped them or inspired their own decisions to face their own demons, it reminds me of why it is all worth it.
If you watch the music video, it will give a deeper context to the nature of the song. The message is that whatever it is that youāre facing, you need to do it for you.
Exciting projects on the horizon?
Always! Working on new collaborations, gearing up to hit the road again, and, of course, the excitement of performing alongside the Goo Goo Dolls this December!
Text |Ā HelĆ©ne RamackersĀ
Photography |Ā James Reynolds
Follow Ross Learmonth on Instagram:Ā @rosslearmonth.
Buy tickets for the Goo Goo Dolls atĀ Webtickets.