Genevieve Miles, a self-made artist hailing from Birmingham and Bristol, elevates her bittersweet pop anthems to new heights with the release of her single, ‘Tough Love’. Fresh from her debut UK tour, this indie pop sensation returns with her heart-rending style.
Her latest single draws inspiration from a diverse array of influences, creating a moment of solace within the anguish of heartbreak. ‘Tough Love’ beautifully combines the innocence of first love with the wisdom gained from life’s curious experiences. The track is imbued with elements of pop, dance, and reggae, and Genevieve’s enchanting vocals breathe life into some of her most poignant lyrics yet.
Genevieve provides some insight into this unconventional breakup narrative:
“It’s a song about letting go, accepting your broken heart, accepting that pain might be sticking around a while longer but also seeing that it was probably time for you to be given some tough love anyway. The brutal honesty when someone tells you they don’t love you anymore, when you’re fresh out of your teens, that’s gonna mess you up for a while. This song is a moment of bliss in the terrible grief of heartbreak – knowing that you gave your absolute all and it still wasn’t enough – but also looking back at how young I was, the innocent way you love for the first time. It’s gratitude for the harsh lessons of heartbreak: your skin is thicker, the relationship you’ve built with yourself in that time – it hurt bad, but it was about time to get out in the world on my own anyway.”
She also delves into the sonic influences that surrounded her during the songwriting process:
“When we recorded this, I was obsessed with the string arrangements on Lorde’s Melodrama album and the acoustic guitar sounds in George Harrison’s album All Things Must Pass, as well as 80s synths and drum machines used by Hot Chip, Soft Hair and Cat Power.”
Genevieve Miles’ years of honing her craft within the folk circuit of Oxfordshire shine through in “Tough Love,” exuding her trademark soothing energy. With a string of festivals and gigs already lined up for 2023, this artist continues her successful streak with this new single, leading up to the release of her forthcoming EP.
Listen to ‘Tough Love':
Genevieve Miles’ funk and dance influences blend with her trademark psychedelic pop elements, creating a sound inspired by the likes of Parcels, Talking Heads and Khruangbin. Miles grew up on the folk scene of Oxfordshire before moving to Birmingham in 2018. She spent her time in Birmingham fine tuning her innovative and unique take on alternative-pop. Her previous single ‘Good’, was first launched on a Hyundai advert in June 2022, and accumulated over a million views. Miles’ songwriting and live show continue to grow in maturity, as she begins to openly refuse to adhere to any rules, embracing rock, jazz and reggae influences.
In Summer 2022 Miles and her band opened Cornbury Festival, meanwhile Genevieve and her long-time producer and collaborator, Carlos de los Santos (Simple Fiction) finished off her new EP: an era Miles has professed as “the time of the wild woman.”
On the live experience, Genevieve says: “I love throwing myself around on stage and shouting as loud as I can: it’s for all those years that I stayed quiet, didn’t get mad, people pleased. This is the time of the wild woman: we are loud, emotional, ALIVE.”
Her wide range of influence was also celebrated when Fontaines D.C shared her acoustic cover of their song ‘I Don’t Belong’ for the online Rock the Breadline fundraiser.
BBC Radio have also consistently supported Genevieve with airplay as well as live opportunities, from a slot at BBC Introducing Live in 2019, to selecting her to play their stage at Truck Festival 2023 this year.
2023 has been an exciting year including her first UK tour, a slot at a fringe event of The Great Escape Festival, playing Big Retreat Festival.