West London artist Matilda Mann embodies a genuine romantic spirit, and on her beautiful debut album ‘Roxwell’, she delves into every intimate aspect of that theme.
Although Matilda Mann has a busy 2025 ahead, including the release of her debut album and her largest UK headline tour to date, she has another exciting project in mind. "I basically want to be Cupid," she smiles when discussing her idea for tour matchmaking. "I just love love!" For those singles eager to find a connection, Matilda has you covered. Last month, she announced on her TikTok about her plan to pair some fans together during her performance of her latest single ‘Meet Cute’. While she is still working out the details of her blind date scheme, she is clearly enthusiastic. “It’s really daunting to approach someone; you never know if they’ll say yes or if they’re taken,” she acknowledges. "But if you’re placed in a situation where it’s like, 'Why not!' It’s just fun!” She chuckles, "Tee hee hee!" For Matilda, love is an endlessly captivating topic. While it may not be the most original source of inspiration, its blend of commonality and individuality draws her in. “Everyone experiences love in different ways, whether it’s platonic, familial, or romantic,” she says. “Two people in love represent two unique lives that haven't existed before, so it's impossible to exhaust the subject.”
In many respects, Matilda is a traditional songwriter. Growing up surrounded by the sounds of The Beatles, Joni Mitchell, Norah Jones, and others (thanks to her equally music-obsessed parents), it’s no surprise that even before reaching her mid-twenties, she has emerged as a skilled storyteller with a sharp eye for detail and emotion. “It’s really the only thing I could see myself doing,” she reflects on her early musical ventures as a child. “I started songwriting at 10. It was obviously terrible, and I had just learned the word ‘decade,’ which appears about 12 times in one of my songs,” she laughs, “but it’s something I’ve always enjoyed.
Music was something I naturally gravitated towards as a child, something I loved in every form – theory, choral music, playing in bands, singing, and various instruments. I’m fascinated by all of it.”
“I’m still continually discovering what my sound is and what I enjoy, and I believe it’s constantly evolving and adapting.”
Having attended the BRIT School for her sixth form, Matilda didn’t initially realize her passion could become a career. “If you go there, you have some intention of pursuing something in the music field. I thought about being a music supervisor or involved in something creative in music, but I never truly considered being an artist – I just wrote songs and figured, 'Well, who’s going to sing them? I guess I will.'”
Since those early days, she has released three EPs (her 2020 debut ‘Because I Wanted You To Know’, the 2021 follow-up ‘Sonder’, and last year’s ‘You Look Like You Can’t Swim’), was a runner-up in Glastonbury’s Emerging Talent Competition, and amassed a few million streams. However, what’s perhaps most surprising is that despite her often poignant music – like ‘The Day I Met You,’ the quiet opening track of her 2023 EP that could leave even the toughest listener teary-eyed — she doesn’t see herself as particularly emotional. “I don’t think I’m that emotional of a person,” she shrugs. “I’m quite a logical thinker and feeler; I examine my emotions. I feel them, but I’m also very aware of what I'm feeling and why, making it easy for me to articulate my feelings in a precise way.”
Instead, her songwriting sometimes unveils her true emotions before her conscious mind catches up, akin to a musical tarot reading. “Sometimes I think I feel things subconsciously without realizing it, possibly because it’s slightly suppressed. When I write songs, there are no limits,” she explains. “I wrote ‘Worst Person Alive’ without realizing I wanted to end a relationship, and then when I did a month later, I thought, 'Oh my God, I totally wanted to leave this person!'” She chuckles. “I had no idea that’s what I was really thinking!”
This somewhat diary-like approach has significantly influenced her deeply personal debut album ‘Roxwell’ – set to be released in early 2025. Named after the west London area where she grew up (“I don’t live there anymore, but nothing else captures the essence of home for me”), the album represents her most expansive work to date. With a scrapbook-like quality, it traverses various genres and sonic landscapes, all tied together by her lived experiences. “A lot of the album le
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Matilda Mann, a singer-songwriter from West London, embodies a true romantic spirit, and in her beautiful debut album 'Roxwell', she delves into every intimate facet of that theme.