Triumphant debut album? Check. Successful radio show? Check. Huge TV appearance? Pending… Sara Murphy caught up with multi-talented, Welsh-Jamaican reggae star Aleighcia Scott as she prepared to rock Cardiff’s Tramshed last month.
For those who have been keeping an ear to the ground, Aleighcia Scott is fast becoming a familiar name in the Welsh music scene. For those who remain in the dark, allow Buzz to shine a light on the singer’s musical achievements. The Cardiff reggae vocalist has been lighting up the scene in recent years, culminating with the release of her highly anticipated debut album Windrush Baby.
Talking to Aleighcia about the album’s success, she says, “It’s been absolutely wild. It’s wild to me that people are listening all over the world and to be nominated for the Welsh Music Prize is massive. I think I actually cried when I found out.”
Reflecting on the album process and 2023’s landmark achievement, Aleighcia comments, “It’s a blessing to have had such a great team working on the album. We worked with a few different writers from America, UK and Jamaica across most of the songs; I think everyone just really understood the assignment, and blending all of that together with ska and reggae was a dream.”
It’s fair to say that Windrush Baby is truly a celebration of Aleighcia’s dual heritage, as she elaborates: “It’s a celebration of the foundations of where I come from. Recording the album, and being part of the scene, both here and in Jamaica is massive. My grandparents came from the Windrush generation so for me it was really important to honour them within the title and make sure we made it a really authentic reggae album.”
Aleighcia credits her musical education to her dad, with reggae, soul and jazz featuring prominently in her childhood. She talks of early influences such as Sam Cooke, Etta James and Erykah Badu through to artists such as Dennis Brown, Sanchez and Marcia Griffiths. Genre aside, they listen to music in the same way: loud. Aleighcia jokes: “I get my passion for music from my dad, but definitely not the vocal cords!”
Fast forward to today, where Aleighcia talks about how Welsh music is thriving and how the pandemic may well be the reason why. “Since lockdown,” she observes, “people are starting to take Wales seriously. I’d go to places before and people would chuckle or be sceptical when I said I was from Wales. We have so much going on here and it’s nice now that people outside of Wales get to see that too. There’s literally every genre here and people honing in on their craft, things we’ve been trying to tell people for years!”
Aleighcia was invited to take part in the Homegrown MOBO Takeover at Cardiff’s Tramshed by long-time friends within the scene, Cardiff rapper Mace The Great and his manager Perrie Wilson. The early October event, where I met up with her, is a perfect example of the eclectic mix Aleighcia talks about. “You’ve got me and Mace; Local, who might tap into drum’n’bass vibes; then you’ve got Adjua, who I would say is like neo-soul kind of stuff – but I think, strangely, it all works together. People are coming to just celebrate the Welsh culture of music.”
On a personal note, she adds, “For me, it’s really important to take my Welshness with me everywhere I go because I want to make it easier for the next artist coming from Wales.” Talking of her experiences, Aleighcia acknowledges that people have often looked at her strangely, apparently surprised to see a Black person from Wales, and thus considers it an important cultural role to educate people. “It’s more than just music.”
Using her influence for good, Aleighcia talks of her Welsh language journey and how she even teaches her audience Welsh when travelling for shows. She says: “I decided to learn Welsh two years ago – I’ve always wanted to – and I got some stick online from people saying I’m not Welsh because I’m too Black, brown, ethnic…like I wasn’t allowed to be Welsh. I thought, that means there are some stories from Wales that are still not being told. I didn’t really have anyone who looked like me in Welsh media growing up and if I can be in a space where I can make that not the reality for young people, then I’m going to try my best.”
If this journey has opened up a different part of her, it’s also opened up new, exciting opportunities, one of which is featuring as a judge on Y Llais, the Welsh language version of The Voice, alongside fellow coach Bryn Terfel. “We start filming this month! I’m really excited. I think it’s a massive thing for us.” Fans can expect the show to hit TV screens in 2025. Aleighcia jokes: “THE actual chairs from The Voice. I need to be left alone in the room with the chairs for an hour so I can get the impulse to press the button out of my system!”
Having mentored a few young artists in Cardiff over the years, Aleighcia is looking forward to passing on everything she has learnt along the way. What sort of artists she is looking for? “I’m really open-minded. I just wanna hear some good voices but more importantly, I want people to enjoy themselves.” Aleighcia claims she has the same motivation in her own music: “If I ever didn’t have fun, I wouldn’t do it anymore.”
Fast becoming a household name, Aleighcia has had success with her Radio Wales show; she’s also filming a special episode of [BBC series] Weatherman Walking, of which she says: “I get to explore different parts of Wales that I might not have been to before and get to go to community groups that are really making a difference in the world. And Derek [Brockway] is a gem, a national treasure!”
Discussing the transition between live and pre-recorded mediums, Aleighcia says, “Weirdly, they all kind of work together. I feel like within each of those you’re telling stories – whether I’m talking about a song I love on the radio, performing a song I’ve written onstage, or presenting on TV. As a kid, I was always big on reading and I love bringing a story to life.”
Aleighcia Scott is thriving off her continued success and is more assured than ever of her vital roles. Educator, cultural influencer, storyteller and performer – and an unstoppable one at that.
Info: aleighciascott.com
words SARA MURPHY
