Self Esteem

Photo by Olivia Richardson

Jesus fucking Christ, this is one hell of a special episode. Self Esteem is the moniker of Rebecca Lucy Taylor, a Northern English indie rock vet who’s transformed into a certified pop star. How would I describe the music of Self Esteem? Imagine a Baz Luhrmann film, where the characters are self-deprecating but wear their uncertainty-like armor; and you might be close. On her second album, Prioritise Pleasure (also hailed as Album of the Year by The Guardian), Rebecca outdoes herself as a songwriter by sharing an unflinching portrait of what it looks like to be a woman who’s only now putting herself first. There’s a frankness about what comes from saying “fuck it” towards the expectations people bestow upon us and it’s those realities that we delve into within today’s podcast.

I first got to know Rebecca years ago when she was in an indie band called Slow Club and in a weird way, the birth of her Self Esteem project came about when she realized she needed to break away from the stifling conventions of the indie music world. We recorded this right before a sold-out show Rebecca and her band played at Baby’s All Right, and man…I’m so happy with how this talk turned out. While editing it, I felt like that indescribable magic of people having a conversation in a room beautifully came through and I hope that you feel the same way. This is a talk full of laughs, full of real moments and it's all down to the fact that Rebecca isn’t afraid to speak her mind.

If you’re in the U.K. you can catch Rebecca live throughout the year, with her tour resuming on April 3rd in Cardiff, Wales. Be sure to check out selfesteem.love for all of her tour dates.

Also, after you hear the episode, be sure to check out Self Esteem’s track I Do This All The Time on the official New Exchange Playlist. Also, follow Self Esteem on Spotify, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.