OLIVE JONES ON FOR MARY
- 3 hours ago
- 7 min read
WORDS MAISIE JANE DANIELS
Since the age of fourteen, Olive Jones has been a poet... and her father knew it. His favourite song of hers is still the very first one she ever wrote, a reflection on the polarities of life on Earth - pretty deep, right? But then again, this was never a surface-level household. Raised on a soundtrack of greats like Jill Scott and Whitney Houston, Olive’s musical foundations were laid early, before she found her feet in the Leeds music scene - joining a band - and eventually stepping out solo, later supporting Bombay Bicycle Club.
Fast forward to now, and she’s released her stunning debut album, For Mary. Midway through our conversation, she casually discovers it’s sitting in the Top 10 of the Spotify UK album charts - a notable, but somehow unsurprising, moment.
For Mary is a reflective album made for slow living - for warm spring walks, for picking flowers absent-mindedly, for those first days of freshly cut grass hanging in the air. There’s a calmness to Olive, but also a depth, woven seamlessly throughout the record.
We chat about the making of For Mary, the transition from studio to stage, the shared experience of being a woman, and a very interesting favourite “F” word.
Maisie Daniels: You spent your childhood in Dorset - how was that for you? Did that shape your music at all?
Olive Jones: Well, I grew up in a very beautiful place. I mean, it was by the coast, and the sea has always been really important to me. That’s kind of where a lot of the imagery comes from - like the front cover, for example. I painted the backdrop with my friend, who’s an artist, and I was trying to emulate the sea that I grew up by.
In terms of inspiring my music taste, I don’t think where I grew up was necessarily instrumental in that. I didn’t really find my tribe in terms of people to play music with until later on, when I left home. It was really when I moved to Leeds - the Leeds music scene is where I found my grounding. That’s when I started joining bands and things.
MD: What about your parents - did they influence your music?
OJ: Yeah, definitely. My parents’ music taste really shaped what I was listening to growing up. There was a lot of Jill Scott, Alicia Keys, Whitney Houston, India.Arie, early Amy Winehouse… and then a lot of jazz - Burt Bacharach, those kinds of voices.
MD: Had they not introduced you to all the greats, do you think music would have still found you?
OJ: I think I would have found them eventually. I’ve always loved music - and singing. I started singing when I was about seven, when my parents realised I could actually hold a tune. So I went to Stagecoach - like a theatre school - and every weekend I was performing. You learn a lot of amazing songs through musical theatre, but I wasn’t necessarily drawn to it in the same way songwriting made me feel. But yeah, I learned a lot from that experience.
MD: You picked up the saxophone at eight years old - when most kids are stuck on the recorder…
OJ: Well, I was already playing the recorder [smilies]. But I think the sax came from listening to jazz. And also my best friend at school started playing it, so I was like, “I want to play.” I picked it up quite quickly, and I think my parents could tell there was musicality there. My music teacher said I had an ear for it - I think that’s something you either have or you don’t.
MD: Oh, definitely. Unfortunately, I am the latter. When did you start writing songs or poetry?
OJ: My dad bought me a guitar when I was about 11 or 12, and I just started teaching myself - learning chords on YouTube and figuring it out. As soon as I had some chords under my fingers, I started writing songs straight away.
I’d always written stories as a kid and been interested in words, so it felt really natural. I was drawn to writing original songs very, very early on.
MD: You’re an amazing lyricist but I have to ask, what were the lyrics of 14-year-old Olive Jones?
OJ: Do you know what - my dad’s favourite song I’ve ever written is actually the first one I wrote. Which sounds like a proud parent thing, but it was actually pretty deep.
I grew up in a family where conversations go deep (not very surface level) and my first song was called Heaven or Hell. It was about how, even though we all exist on Earth, for some people life is hellish, and for others it’s amazing.
I remember a line like, “There’s poverty amongst the rich, it’s a fucked up situation, but we know it exists.” And something about people dying in the name of their Lord... questioning whether that’s what he would want.
MD: Ohhh okay! I was not expecting that.
OJ: I wasn’t going for puppy love at that age…
MD: Fast forward - you’re in a band in Leeds. What were you called?
OJ: Noya Rao. Kind of electronic soul, a bit like Little Dragon.
MD: And what made you decide to go solo?
OJ: I gave a lot of time to the band, and we were progressing, but quite slowly. I think being based in Leeds, outside of London, things just take a bit more time. We were meant to play South by Southwest, and then COVID happened. That pause gave me time to reflect. I’d always been writing my own material, but I hadn’t properly committed to it.
And I think during COVID, I just realised I needed to give as much to my own project as I had been giving to the band and see where it could go.
MD: Your solo career’s already seen you touring with Bombay Bicycle Club, which is huge. What did that experience do for your growth as an artist?
OJ: They were amazing. They really respected that I was an artist in my own right. Whenever there was an opportunity, they’d let me support, so I got to play my own music in front of their audiences. It was also my first time touring at that level - worldwide tours, buses, the infrastructure of it all. I’d always been doing original music, so it was my first step into that kind of space. We did things like Jools Holland, loads of radio. So now, if that happens for me, it won’t feel as daunting because I’ve already experienced it.
MD: It’s so nice to hear that sense of community and artist's supporting each other. Let’s talk about For Mary. It’s been out a week - what’s the response been like?
OJ: Honestly, it’s blown me away. I’ve been putting out music for so long, and you can get used to it going into a bit of a void. But the response… people have really understood my artistry and what I’m trying to do. I just saw it’s in the Top 10 Spotify UK albums, which I couldn’t have imagined. All my vinyl sold out, we’re already repressing. It’s just such a joy, especially in an industry where you’re constantly managing expectations. It feels like the right time.
MD: And so well deserved - it’s a beautiful body of work. It’s raw, it’s vulnerable… but how would you describe it to someone who’s never heard it?
OJ: I describe it as a tapestry of my artistry and development. There’s a lot of variation: soulful moments, folk-leaning, more indie, riff-heavy tracks. But what ties it all together is the sonic world I’ve created with James, and the feeling of the record. I call it “soul alt-folk” - but really, it’s about feeling.
MD: Okay, I love this question - if the record was a taste, a temperature and a smell? Let’s start with taste.
OJ: There’s a richness and a sweetness, but also an edge. Maybe like a lemon meringue… or actually, a tiramisu.
MD: Strong choices.
OJ: Temperature is warm. Like a balmy British summer’s day, around 25 degrees.
Smell - freshly cut grass.
MD: Oh yeah, you can’t beat that.
OJ: Is that too much of a good smell?
MD: No, not at all - especially for a spring release.
OJ: Exactly. And it’s nostalgic - it makes me feel like being a kid. I think there’s something nostalgic about the record too.
MD: Touching on that - the album covers topics like Brexit and lockdown. How long was it in the making?
OJ: Some songs are seven or eight years old, and others I wrote last year. So it really spans a long period.
But in terms of recording, I started around 2022.
MD: Do you write in the moment, or more reflectively?
OJ: I think I’m quite a reflective writer. I process things internally, and songwriting is my outward reflection. Sometimes it’s in the moment (like during lockdown) but often I need distance. Like with Brexit, I wrote about it years later, once I understood the impact and the division it caused.
MD: A Woman’s Heart really hit me - it made me quite emotional. What sparked that?
OJ: I started it on International Women’s Day a couple of years ago. I was reading about women’s achievements, and it made me reflect on how we’re constantly having to prove our worth. It also made me think about the shared experience of being a woman, across generations. Even though things are changing, there’s still a universal thread there.
MD: Yeah - the lyric “you’re telling me it’s alright, but I can’t even walk the streets at night”… it’s so real. I remember thinking, “Is this just me?” But every woman I speak to has the same experience.
OJ: Exactly. That’s the reality. Even if you don’t feel oppressed day-to-day, those things still exist - catcalling, safety, all of it.
MD: Does writing songs like that help you process it?
OJ: It does, but I also hope it helps other people understand. It’s not just a song for women, it’s for everyone.
I want men to hear it and realise that imbalance - that women have to think about their safety constantly.
MD: You’ve got a tour coming up - including EartH in London, which is such a good venue. What can fans expect?
OJ: A full band show - a proper, true interpretation of the album. It’s actually Lianne La Havas’ original band, who are now my band, so the musicianship is incredible. And James, who I made the record with, is playing too.
MD: It feels like a full-circle moment. How are you feeling about sharing it live?
OJ: Honestly, over the moon. The live space is where everything makes sense to me. We don’t have as many communal spaces anymore, so gigs feel sacred - like rituals. To create that experience and make people feel something… that’s everything.
MD: Final question. This is F Word. What’s your favourite F-word?
OJ: I love this. I’m going to say flange.
MD: Okay…[laughs] talk me through that.
OJ: It’s a musical effect - like an audio modulation that creates this sweeping sound…
