London UK-based powerhouse vocalist Nathalie Miranda has had a very busy 2021 since our wide-ranging interview together in December 2020.

I caught up with Nathalie to get an overview of the many music projects she’s been involved since then, with as well as discussing her return to live performing post-lockdown and her experiences as a live performing artist in general.

Nathalie, you’ve been quite busy since our last interview in December 2020. Since that time, you were the featured vocalist in the following projects:

In February, you were featured in the disco-tinged vocal anthem entitled All I Need
by Polish producers Adam Twelve and Deep Rule. 

In July, you were featured in a dance track entitled Under My Skin by Sheffield UK-
based electronic musician and producer Cobbler. 

Also in July, you were the featured vocalist in yet another dance track entitled I Won’t Let This Go by Italian DJ and producer Babert. 

How did these collaborations come about?

Yes, it’s definitely been a busy year so far!

I’ve been working with Babert since 2019. I’ve lost count of the tracks I’ve recorded for him haha! They started off as me singing something that another writer had put together; he just wanted my ‘diva’ vocals on the track.

Babert was so pleased with the work I did for him that he then asked me to write my own lyrics and melodies on his instrumentals.

‘I Won’t Let This Go’ was one of those tracks and Babert called upon me to put my vocals on the track, and I was happy to oblige!

I did a fair few of these during 2020, which resulted in Adam Twelve and Deep Rule getting in touch with me after hearing one of those tracks. I wrote ‘All I Need’ at the end of 2020, and it was released in early 2021. It’s a really simple hook that a lot of people have connected with, so I’m really grateful for that.

‘Under My Skin’ came about through Twitter. There is a great artist community there and Cobbler got in touch with me to see if I wanted to collaborate with him on a new track. As soon as I heard it, I knew that I wanted to write on it. It was something different and I’m a big fan of not following the norm. I really enjoyed working with Cobbler and hope we can do so again soon.

There are at least seven more dance tracks on the way, collaborations with DJs and producers from around the world. So keep an eye out!

What was the genesis of your retro rock & soul- tinged single Battle Scars? And please provide my readership with details of the process of writing it, producing it and the production of your fantastic music video.  

Lyrically, I wanted words that embodied empowerment, strength, determination. This was especially important as I’m a staunch advocate of female independence and equality for women in the music industry, and I wanted the woman in the song to be as powerful as they come.

At first, I wasn’t sure that it would work, but I really loved how it turned out. I wanted the vocals to be raw and angry. There were times when I wanted to keep redoing certain sections and my producer had to tell me to stop being a perfectionist haha! The whole idea was for it to sound slightly imperfect and so I allowed these parts to remain on the track.

For the video, I immediately knew that there had to be a band performance. At the time, London was still in lockdown but music studios were allowed to stay open thankfully, so we filmed the band scenes in Mill Hill Music Complex, my favourite studios in London.

I definitely wanted to pay some kind of homage to my idol, Freddie Mercury in this video, so with a few smoke and mirrors, we fashioned a Freddie mic stand. It looks like I’ve pulled the mic stand out of the main body but infact, we had to do several cuts to create this!

The other cutaways in the video were filmed in my house using a black backdrop. I wanted this video to exude attitude, and I just happened to have some retro outfits at home (as you do!) so this worked out perfectly. Charlie’s Angels style haha!

It’s definitely one of my favourite video shoots. The song itself has connected with people all over the world, especially women who have reached out to me saying that ‘Battle Scars’ is just what they needed after their break up, or going through a tough time.

Now that lockdown has lifted in London, UK (where you’re based), in which locales are you performing regularly? And what’s London’s live music scene like nowadays?

My function band has been back performing at parties, weddings etc. since the end of June. These are all gigs from 2020! So that has been really fun, getting back out there with the guys and performing in ‘real life’!

I’ve done two or three gigs with my music around London. I don’t have a band or anyone that can accompany me, so I tend to use my own backing tracks, which isn’t ideal, but it’s the best I can do right now.

The London music scene is one of the best. However, many venues have closed down due to lockdown, and some are still struggling to survive. To be honest, I don’t attend many gigs myself. I tend to lock myself away and get on with my own music!

Can you provide my readership with hints about your next single as well as any other upcoming projects you’re involved with?

Yes, sure! I have several more dance tracks and a couple of other collaborations coming out this year and beginning of 2022.

My own next single will be totally different from any other song I’ve released. All I’ll say is that it will be ‘happy’ for once haha! So keep an eye and an ear out for it!

Fun question: of the many gigs you’ve performed or projects you’ve been involved with during your music career: which one was the best, which one was the worst, and which one was the strangest?

Oh wow, great question. Ok so the best gig I think I’ll have to split over two gigs. I’ve been part of an event here in the UK called Top Model UK since 2008. I was just starting out performing professionally and the director of the show took a chance on me, and the rest is history. They gave me a professional platform to perform on each year, and for that I am truly grateful.

The next best one was performing live on the BBC show ‘Later…with Jools’. It’s a show here in the UK where all the stars perform on live, and I was lucky enough to get a backing vocals gig for the UK band James back in 2018.

It was a long day but definitely a memorable one. You can check it out on YouTube!

The worst gig I’d say would have to be one of my many function gigs that I’ve done with my band. You get asked to perform in some strange locations as a band, and some that are really not conducive to being in a band!

There are too many to recall, but as an example, a lot of these gigs are in the middle of nowhere in a field somewhere, with no source of heating, so we are all freezing, often hungry as sometimes they don’t leave us enough time to grab something to eat, and yet somehow, we have to perform and put a smile on our faces! We always do the job well, but it’s not ideal!

As far as strange gigs go, they are all a bit strange in their own special way!

As a corollary to the previous question, are there any gigs that you’d refuse to do, despite the fee being offered? For example, weddings, funerals and the like?

Well, weddings and parties are the staple gig of my function band. To be honest, I’m not overly keen on performing in pubs. The crowd can be unpredictable to the point of sometimes being a bit dangerous, especially if you’re performing solo with no band to back you up.

I’ll consider every opportunity that comes my way, but as you gain more experience in this industry, you start to realise that there is only so much you are willing to do for an extra pound (dollar in your case).

Finally, how would someone reading this article get in touch with you if they needed your services as a professional singer?

The best way to get in touch is via my website www.nathaliemiranda.com or through any social media platform (see links below), which you can find through my website also.

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You can check out Nathalie on her various social media accounts at Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube as well as her official website at nathaliemiranda.com.

And of course, you can listen to her music over at Spotify, Apple Music and other major streaming platforms.