The C2C Sit Down with Hannah Ellis
After making her debut at last years C2C: Country to Country festival in London, Curb Records recording artist Hannah Ellis makes a welcome return to this years festival where in addition to performing in the UK capital, her journey will take her via Germany where she will also be playing the Berlin event of the festival for the first time.
Since we last saw Hannah in Europe she released her debut album titled “That Girl” which the Kentucky native will be able to share with the audience in a live setting across her four sets in Berlin and three in London at this years event. Ahead of crossing the pond, Hannah jumped on Zoom with Jamie to talk about her album and look ahead to returning to the C2C stage.
Hey Hannah, it’s so good to see you!
“You too!”
and I’m going to get to see you IRL so soon.
“I know right? Gosh can you believe that it is already here?”
Well, I haven’t even got to wait until you get to London because I’m coming to Germany and it will be my first time in Berlin.
“Oh my gosh, that is so awesome. It’s going to be so much fun.”
Yeah me and my friends are looking forward to a weekend of beer and sausages with a bit of country music thrown in for good measure. I remember from the last time we spoke that you had visited Germany a long time before you came to the UK, so as it is my first time have you got any tips or anything that we need to know?
“Honestly I’m such a big fan of a walking tour and I think that’s a really good way to see a city. I always try to do that in the first couple of days that I go somewhere because it gets you acclimated and you learn all the history. I’m a big history nerd so, I love that but I’m just so excited to go back and my cousin is going with me this time, it’s going to be so much fun.”
You’ve got quite a lot of sets whilst you are here and again this was something you said last time which really excited you about how it wasn’t just where you get off the bus, soundcheck, play your set and then you’re back on the road again. You have 4 sets in Berlin, 3 in London and those other German shows with Alexandra Kay and Lakeview too so, what can people look forward to if they come to see you?
“I’m excited, we’re going to try and change up each of the sets to give people something different and we have so much music out. Usually, they are around thirty minutes so we are trying to alternate sets to really give people a good glimpse of the record. Hopefully we will have a couple of days off here and there to explore the different cities but I’m just so pumped to be coming back to Europe.”
I saw that last year, when you were here in London, you did it the right way. Yes, this is a business trip where you are here to say hello to the people that have been messaging you on Instagram for all these years and play some music for a new crowd but I noticed on your socials last year you did manage to get out and about to do some touristy stuff, where you made the effort to go and do that.
“Absolutely, that is something that I am really passionate about. I have been a really big travel guru since I was really little and my family travelled a lot so, being able to explore the city that I’m in is really important to me. I want to get to know the culture, I want to go where the people that live there go and visit those spots. I’m definitely hitting the tourist spots but I just kind of want to experience the lifestyle of all of these different cities that I get to explore.”
Are there any things for this trip that when you in London that you want to do that you didn’t get to tick off last time?
“You know what, there are definitely places that we want to go back to. I loved Greenwich village and the whole Cutty Sark area, I mean my husband and I were absolutely obsessed with that area. The little Saturday market, I have to go back there because that was so cute then we never did Abbey Road last time or make it to Notting Hill so it will be fun to hit some of those spots.”
Obviously it went pretty well last year and you enjoyed it enough to be wanting to come back. You had been to mainland Europe before but it was your first time coming to the UK and your first time playing shows. With everything that you had heard about playing live over here, did it live up to all of those expectations you had coming over here?
“Yes it absolutely did. I think there was a bit of a learning curve because in America, a good crowd is loud but I learnt very quickly that in Europe or at least specifically in the UK, they are engaged. They are listening to every word and they are not yelling at you or screaming along. Someone actually came up to me after a show and said I know that it is probably quitter here than it is in America but it is because we want to hear you sing, we don’t want to hear ourselves, we want to enjoy what you’re doing! I just love that because it is people that genuinely are there to listen to good music and most of them are your fans, they are people that are there to see you.”
You said that you are planning to mix up the sets for each of the shows and just looking at the stages you are back on the Wayside stage in London which you played last year then two other stages here and from what I can see from the German stages which I must admit involves a lot of pressing translate on Instagram, they look like a lot of them are seated rooms. Are the stages, when you get to them and gauge what is in front of you likely to affect how those sets will look?
“I think that is exactly how it is. Even when I’m out on the road and who I open for will determine which songs I do and don’t play. A seated crowd is naturally going to be more engaged, they want to hear the story and you are going to play songs that maybe wouldn’t be in a super up-tempo fast set. When I get to the UK like on the Wayside stage specifically is a place where I just want to run around, have a bunch of fun and play up-tempo songs so, yeah that makes it really fun and also each person gets a unique experience.”
Since we last saw Hannah in Europe she released her debut album titled “That Girl” which the Kentucky native will be able to share with the audience in a live setting across her four sets in Berlin and three in London at this years event. Ahead of crossing the pond, Hannah jumped on Zoom with Jamie to talk about her album and look ahead to returning to the C2C stage.
Hey Hannah, it’s so good to see you!
“You too!”
and I’m going to get to see you IRL so soon.
“I know right? Gosh can you believe that it is already here?”
Well, I haven’t even got to wait until you get to London because I’m coming to Germany and it will be my first time in Berlin.
“Oh my gosh, that is so awesome. It’s going to be so much fun.”
Yeah me and my friends are looking forward to a weekend of beer and sausages with a bit of country music thrown in for good measure. I remember from the last time we spoke that you had visited Germany a long time before you came to the UK, so as it is my first time have you got any tips or anything that we need to know?
“Honestly I’m such a big fan of a walking tour and I think that’s a really good way to see a city. I always try to do that in the first couple of days that I go somewhere because it gets you acclimated and you learn all the history. I’m a big history nerd so, I love that but I’m just so excited to go back and my cousin is going with me this time, it’s going to be so much fun.”
You’ve got quite a lot of sets whilst you are here and again this was something you said last time which really excited you about how it wasn’t just where you get off the bus, soundcheck, play your set and then you’re back on the road again. You have 4 sets in Berlin, 3 in London and those other German shows with Alexandra Kay and Lakeview too so, what can people look forward to if they come to see you?
“I’m excited, we’re going to try and change up each of the sets to give people something different and we have so much music out. Usually, they are around thirty minutes so we are trying to alternate sets to really give people a good glimpse of the record. Hopefully we will have a couple of days off here and there to explore the different cities but I’m just so pumped to be coming back to Europe.”
I saw that last year, when you were here in London, you did it the right way. Yes, this is a business trip where you are here to say hello to the people that have been messaging you on Instagram for all these years and play some music for a new crowd but I noticed on your socials last year you did manage to get out and about to do some touristy stuff, where you made the effort to go and do that.
“Absolutely, that is something that I am really passionate about. I have been a really big travel guru since I was really little and my family travelled a lot so, being able to explore the city that I’m in is really important to me. I want to get to know the culture, I want to go where the people that live there go and visit those spots. I’m definitely hitting the tourist spots but I just kind of want to experience the lifestyle of all of these different cities that I get to explore.”
Are there any things for this trip that when you in London that you want to do that you didn’t get to tick off last time?
“You know what, there are definitely places that we want to go back to. I loved Greenwich village and the whole Cutty Sark area, I mean my husband and I were absolutely obsessed with that area. The little Saturday market, I have to go back there because that was so cute then we never did Abbey Road last time or make it to Notting Hill so it will be fun to hit some of those spots.”
Obviously it went pretty well last year and you enjoyed it enough to be wanting to come back. You had been to mainland Europe before but it was your first time coming to the UK and your first time playing shows. With everything that you had heard about playing live over here, did it live up to all of those expectations you had coming over here?
“Yes it absolutely did. I think there was a bit of a learning curve because in America, a good crowd is loud but I learnt very quickly that in Europe or at least specifically in the UK, they are engaged. They are listening to every word and they are not yelling at you or screaming along. Someone actually came up to me after a show and said I know that it is probably quitter here than it is in America but it is because we want to hear you sing, we don’t want to hear ourselves, we want to enjoy what you’re doing! I just love that because it is people that genuinely are there to listen to good music and most of them are your fans, they are people that are there to see you.”
You said that you are planning to mix up the sets for each of the shows and just looking at the stages you are back on the Wayside stage in London which you played last year then two other stages here and from what I can see from the German stages which I must admit involves a lot of pressing translate on Instagram, they look like a lot of them are seated rooms. Are the stages, when you get to them and gauge what is in front of you likely to affect how those sets will look?
“I think that is exactly how it is. Even when I’m out on the road and who I open for will determine which songs I do and don’t play. A seated crowd is naturally going to be more engaged, they want to hear the story and you are going to play songs that maybe wouldn’t be in a super up-tempo fast set. When I get to the UK like on the Wayside stage specifically is a place where I just want to run around, have a bunch of fun and play up-tempo songs so, yeah that makes it really fun and also each person gets a unique experience.”
The other thing is that unlike last year, you have a record out. It’s taken a long time in the music industry sense to get a full-length album and you had teased last year that you knew you were building towards it. You had said that you an album would sort of give you the chance to say “Hi, I’m Hannah Ellis and this is who I am!” As you had worked towards it for a long time, did you almost have to be able to tell yourself who you were and what you wanted to say before you were able to tell your audience?
“Yeah, I feel like with this record being out now that I don’t have to tee up who I am as much. Even from the stage, I feel like if you come to the show and you know me, then you know me. We can just dive right in having fun and talking like we know each other versus before this record was out I do feel like it was a lot of trying to explain who I am and what kind of music I make. Now people have the opportunity to dig into that before they ever even come to a show so we’re really getting to have this experience together instead of me feeling like I am trying to explain myself. That was why I was so excited to get the music out and also for the people that are hearing me for the first time, they can go and dig in more to the music to really get to know me fully.”
Looking at the thirteen songs on there, how long ago had you settled on them? Songs like “Us” and “Home and a Hometown” came out as singles nearly three years ago where I assume some of the others are a lot newer so, when did you have the whole thing done?
“You it was so funny because we actually went in and cut an original five with “That Girl” as the title track being one of them. We were going to do an EP but then 2020 happened and the world shut down so things just kept getting moved and bumped but I was still writing songs. That was when we decided ok, let’s just pick another six or seven songs and make a full-length album. We started with the five that we knew and some were already out, then we looked at what else will help round out this project and what will be cohesive with what we already have that will finish that storyline of who is Hannah Ellis?”
Once you had “That Girl” as the title track, were you working to fit songs into that theme. You said that you had a bunch of songs written so did you find you may have had songs that you thought may have been a better song that didn’t make the record but in the context of the project it was more the songs that were the right fit for “That Girl”?
“Oh yes it absolutely was because we had an original five songs, knew that was going to be the title and we had probably twenty songs that we are choosing from. I think there were definitely some parameters that we put up where it was like this is a story song, it’s about a third party and not really something that tells the story of Hannah or describes me or creates some knowledge of who I am as a person. I think that was absolutely a key part of picking the rest of the songs.”
“Yeah, I feel like with this record being out now that I don’t have to tee up who I am as much. Even from the stage, I feel like if you come to the show and you know me, then you know me. We can just dive right in having fun and talking like we know each other versus before this record was out I do feel like it was a lot of trying to explain who I am and what kind of music I make. Now people have the opportunity to dig into that before they ever even come to a show so we’re really getting to have this experience together instead of me feeling like I am trying to explain myself. That was why I was so excited to get the music out and also for the people that are hearing me for the first time, they can go and dig in more to the music to really get to know me fully.”
Looking at the thirteen songs on there, how long ago had you settled on them? Songs like “Us” and “Home and a Hometown” came out as singles nearly three years ago where I assume some of the others are a lot newer so, when did you have the whole thing done?
“You it was so funny because we actually went in and cut an original five with “That Girl” as the title track being one of them. We were going to do an EP but then 2020 happened and the world shut down so things just kept getting moved and bumped but I was still writing songs. That was when we decided ok, let’s just pick another six or seven songs and make a full-length album. We started with the five that we knew and some were already out, then we looked at what else will help round out this project and what will be cohesive with what we already have that will finish that storyline of who is Hannah Ellis?”
Once you had “That Girl” as the title track, were you working to fit songs into that theme. You said that you had a bunch of songs written so did you find you may have had songs that you thought may have been a better song that didn’t make the record but in the context of the project it was more the songs that were the right fit for “That Girl”?
“Oh yes it absolutely was because we had an original five songs, knew that was going to be the title and we had probably twenty songs that we are choosing from. I think there were definitely some parameters that we put up where it was like this is a story song, it’s about a third party and not really something that tells the story of Hannah or describes me or creates some knowledge of who I am as a person. I think that was absolutely a key part of picking the rest of the songs.”
Have you been able to play the record live to your own audiences at home since it has been out or once you get back from Europe or is that the next big step for the year?
“This is kind of the jumping off point, then we have a bunch of festivals and we are working on putting together a “That Girl” tour to really go out and play the record, let people hear it on stage exactly how I envisioned it.”
Talking about festivals back home in the summer, C2C is very different as you have multiple stages going on and people don’t just play once. You said how you liked the fact that you could play more shows during an event, do you see this as being a model that could be adopted more in the US?
“I definitely think so because I think the most similar thing that we have is CMA Fest where there are multiple shows happening and CMA Fest is one of my favourite weekends of the year. Everyone convenes in Nashville, all of the artists are here and when you do a festival like that, I feel that you are able to get more artists because there is more opportunity, all in one place, all in one weekend and your access to fans is so much more. Like over there it’s multiple opportunities to play in front of multiple people and even though all of the festivals over here are amazing and it's so good to play them, if one hundred thousand people attend it and you only have one time for thirty minutes, you are not getting access to all of those people. At C2C you are doubling down and getting to play so many shows so I definitely think that it is a model that will continue to grow and that we are already starting to see that a little bit.”
That’s cool to hear. I look forward to seeing you THIS WEEKEND which is crazy to think how it has come round so fast.
“I agree, it literally feels like we were just there.”
I’m pumped to head to Germany for the first time to see how things are over there. It’s not too bad a flight for us as it’s only two hours unlike as you are well aware by now that coming over here has the joy of jetlag.
“Oh yes. We were literally were just talking yesterday about what we take with us to help sleep on the plane.”
As you see it yourself, from your own standpoint is planning for adjusting as important as planning for the tour?
“I get into berlin on the 28th but the way that I have always operated in general when it comes to all of the travel and jumping time zones is that as soon as I land I have to immediately acclimate to that time. No matter how tired I might be or how wide awake I might be, if it’s 11 o’clock but 9 o’clock at home, I still go to bed so I can jump into their cycle as fast as possible because otherwise you’ll never recover. Last year when we got to London, my husband wanted to take a nap and I was like no, no, no, it isn’t happening, let yourself be dog tired and after you go to bed tonight, tomorrow will be a new day and we will all survive.”
That’s the way girl. Thank you for you time and I’m really looking forward to see you at the weekend. It’s going to be fun, I’m excited to give you a big hug in Berlin and hang out with you guys.
“Sounds great, I’ll hold you to it. Thank you Jamie.”
That Girl
1. 'Country Can' (Hannah Ellis, Jason Massey, Nick Wayne, Parker Welling)
2. 'Us' (Hannah Ellis, Jason Massey, Travis Wood)
3. 'That Girl' (Hannah Ellis, Hillary Lindsey, Jason Massey)
4. 'Wine Country' (Hannah Ellis, Clint Lagerberg, Nick Wayne)
5. 'Someone Else’s Heartbreak' (Hannah Ellis, Emily Falvey, Josh Kerr)
6. 'Karma on the Rocks' (Hannah Ellis, Emily Weisband, Jordan Reynolds, Michael Matosic)
7. 'Still' (Hannah Ellis, Jason Massey, Jimmy Robbins)
8. 'Replaceable' (Hannah Ellis, Eric Arjes, Jason Duke)
9. 'Somebody Else' (Hannah Ellis, Ben West, Nick Wayne)
10. 'Plans' (Hannah Ellis, Forest Glen Whitehead, Jason Massey)
11. 'Home and a Hometown' (Hannah Ellis, Mark Trussell, Nick Wayne)
12. 'One of These Days' (Hannah Ellis, Casey Brown, Parker Welling)
13. 'Too Much and Not Enough' (Hannah Ellis, Emily Weisband, Tofer Brown)
Hannah Ellis will be appearing at C2C: Country to Country in Berlin on Saturday 2nd March and Sunday 3rd March (further Berlin details on their WEBSITE or on INSTAGRAM & FACEBOOK) before heading to London across the weekend of March 8th to 10th where she will be performing on Wayside, ICON and Observatory stages. Full festival details and ticket information are available on the WEBSITE or socials (INSTAGRAM TWITTER FACEBOOK)
The debut album “That Girl” from Hannah Ellis is out now via Curb Records and available HERE. To learn more about Hannah you can check out her WEBSITE or follow her socially on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK TWITTER or FACEBOOK
“This is kind of the jumping off point, then we have a bunch of festivals and we are working on putting together a “That Girl” tour to really go out and play the record, let people hear it on stage exactly how I envisioned it.”
Talking about festivals back home in the summer, C2C is very different as you have multiple stages going on and people don’t just play once. You said how you liked the fact that you could play more shows during an event, do you see this as being a model that could be adopted more in the US?
“I definitely think so because I think the most similar thing that we have is CMA Fest where there are multiple shows happening and CMA Fest is one of my favourite weekends of the year. Everyone convenes in Nashville, all of the artists are here and when you do a festival like that, I feel that you are able to get more artists because there is more opportunity, all in one place, all in one weekend and your access to fans is so much more. Like over there it’s multiple opportunities to play in front of multiple people and even though all of the festivals over here are amazing and it's so good to play them, if one hundred thousand people attend it and you only have one time for thirty minutes, you are not getting access to all of those people. At C2C you are doubling down and getting to play so many shows so I definitely think that it is a model that will continue to grow and that we are already starting to see that a little bit.”
That’s cool to hear. I look forward to seeing you THIS WEEKEND which is crazy to think how it has come round so fast.
“I agree, it literally feels like we were just there.”
I’m pumped to head to Germany for the first time to see how things are over there. It’s not too bad a flight for us as it’s only two hours unlike as you are well aware by now that coming over here has the joy of jetlag.
“Oh yes. We were literally were just talking yesterday about what we take with us to help sleep on the plane.”
As you see it yourself, from your own standpoint is planning for adjusting as important as planning for the tour?
“I get into berlin on the 28th but the way that I have always operated in general when it comes to all of the travel and jumping time zones is that as soon as I land I have to immediately acclimate to that time. No matter how tired I might be or how wide awake I might be, if it’s 11 o’clock but 9 o’clock at home, I still go to bed so I can jump into their cycle as fast as possible because otherwise you’ll never recover. Last year when we got to London, my husband wanted to take a nap and I was like no, no, no, it isn’t happening, let yourself be dog tired and after you go to bed tonight, tomorrow will be a new day and we will all survive.”
That’s the way girl. Thank you for you time and I’m really looking forward to see you at the weekend. It’s going to be fun, I’m excited to give you a big hug in Berlin and hang out with you guys.
“Sounds great, I’ll hold you to it. Thank you Jamie.”
That Girl
1. 'Country Can' (Hannah Ellis, Jason Massey, Nick Wayne, Parker Welling)
2. 'Us' (Hannah Ellis, Jason Massey, Travis Wood)
3. 'That Girl' (Hannah Ellis, Hillary Lindsey, Jason Massey)
4. 'Wine Country' (Hannah Ellis, Clint Lagerberg, Nick Wayne)
5. 'Someone Else’s Heartbreak' (Hannah Ellis, Emily Falvey, Josh Kerr)
6. 'Karma on the Rocks' (Hannah Ellis, Emily Weisband, Jordan Reynolds, Michael Matosic)
7. 'Still' (Hannah Ellis, Jason Massey, Jimmy Robbins)
8. 'Replaceable' (Hannah Ellis, Eric Arjes, Jason Duke)
9. 'Somebody Else' (Hannah Ellis, Ben West, Nick Wayne)
10. 'Plans' (Hannah Ellis, Forest Glen Whitehead, Jason Massey)
11. 'Home and a Hometown' (Hannah Ellis, Mark Trussell, Nick Wayne)
12. 'One of These Days' (Hannah Ellis, Casey Brown, Parker Welling)
13. 'Too Much and Not Enough' (Hannah Ellis, Emily Weisband, Tofer Brown)
Hannah Ellis will be appearing at C2C: Country to Country in Berlin on Saturday 2nd March and Sunday 3rd March (further Berlin details on their WEBSITE or on INSTAGRAM & FACEBOOK) before heading to London across the weekend of March 8th to 10th where she will be performing on Wayside, ICON and Observatory stages. Full festival details and ticket information are available on the WEBSITE or socials (INSTAGRAM TWITTER FACEBOOK)
The debut album “That Girl” from Hannah Ellis is out now via Curb Records and available HERE. To learn more about Hannah you can check out her WEBSITE or follow her socially on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK TWITTER or FACEBOOK
