Issy Aldridge caught up with Welsh punk princess CATTY for a chat filled with laughter, candid comments, and chaos.
CATTY is an artist no stranger to the music industry. Her beginnings grew from Welsh duo Dusty Grey – a pop group that built staggering Spotify stats, represented the UK at the Europa Song Contest, and even supported Scotland’s national treasure, Lewis Capaldi, at Kew Gardens in 2019. But despite this success, she wanted more.
Stepping away from Dusky Grey to channel a formerly suppressed alter ego, CATTY is exposing the artist that never truly got to shine. Issy Aldridge caught up with the Welsh punk princess for a chat filled with laughter, candid comments, and chaos.
Do you want to start by introducing yourself?
So, my name is Catrin, but my artist name is CATTY. I’m from Wales- a little town called Caernarfon, and it's very, very beautiful but very, very tiny. I think something like only nine-thousand people live there, and then I moved to London when I was eighteen. I got into a band called Dusky Grey and we did that for a while! But yeah, writing and releasing music was just what I've always wanted to do – the whole pop rock thing that is. So, I started out on my own only about a year ago, and here we are now!
Looking back at your musical heritage, did you grow up listening exclusively to pop/rock?
I grew up listening to a lot of rock and country. With my parents, there was always eighties rock playing in the house, and that's the only thing that I remember listening to growing up. Having said that, the first band that was in was very, very pop, which I also love. Like, I love pop music more than anything, but I've always just wanted to do that rockier side of the spectrum because it comes more naturally to me. And quite luckily, pop rock has just had this huge surge! So, I was like, here we go!
Here at LOOP, we're all about bridging that gap between emerging talent and established talent. How have you found your journey so far?
Yeah, it's really weird because I've been doing music for nearly six years now, but this chapter is strange because it feels like I'm coming out new again! I don't think that feeling ever goes away though. Like, I’ll always feel like I’m having my first day.
That’s a good thing though surely? Because it’s a reminder that you can always just change direction at any point.
Yeah, 100%! It feels weird to be starting again but I also feel better this time around because I have that experience and know what to and what not to do. I’m still making loads of mistakes but I’m a little less silly than I was at nineteen. I’m still super chaotic though, so don’t worry about that!
And obviously, you were featured in our first-ever print magazine! What was that whole experience like when you saw it there?
When I got the email, I was so excited because I've never been in like a physical thing, like even in Dusky Grey, we only ever like existed online. With the LOOP feature, I was so gassed! It’s literally placed on that shelf behind me! Whenever anyone comes over, I'm like ‘Guys, have a look at this!’
I love that! Let’s talk about the new single, Maybe All The Rumours Are True - what is it all about?
When I started my artist project, I was kind of like, ‘am I not gonna use female pronouns or just like, be a queer artist’ - because obviously, I am a queer artist, but I feel like as soon as you identify as that, you're automatically thrown into one category and it’s hard to get out of that. And it's like, put me in your queer playlist but also like you put me in your pop ones and put me in your rock ones too. I feel like there are some exceptions, but for the most part, it feels like as soon as you're a queer artist, you’re only allowed to be featured in queer things. But then I was like if I don't do that, then I'm not being honest at all. And then I realised that I can't just avoid writing songs about my life. This is my life.
So when we wrote Rumours, I was kind of like, right, if I'm gonna do it, I want to commit to it. And I wish I’d had a song like this when I was growing up because everybody thinks I should have been with this one boy because he was great. He was so, so lovely. And everyone was like, what a catch, but I just felt nothing towards him. [Laughing] Wisdom at its finest there! I just wanted to write about something that is such a normal experience for so many people and tell people that you’re not as alien as you may feel.
Does the boy in question know that you never felt anything though?
Well... He knows that I got a girlfriend… so I assume so yeah!
So, if you could describe the track in only three words, what would those three words be and why?
Tying its best. Yeah, it's trying his best!
But it's doing so well!
You know what I'm so gassed! Obviously, for a new artist, it's not hitting millions of streams and it's not on big radio yet but for me, I'm bloody gassed. I'm so excited.
You mention there that it’s not hit the radio, but you have been played on BBC Radio Wales! How was that?
You know what, I’ve always been really lucky because obviously I'm from Wales and I grew up there. So, Radio Wales is always dead nice to me and pops me on the A-List. It makes me so happy. So so happy.
And you're also doing some support slots over the next couple of weeks, but should we be expecting any headline stuff too?
That is my aim, it's something that I've always wanted to do. I'm such to Leo because like I was like “I'll get my old band to open it [the show] and then I'll do my own headline thing.”
Stop, that’s iconic!
I was like yeah; I’ll be the support act and the headline act! But for me, doing headline shows is definitely the aim. I want to make an album and I want to do a headline tour but where I’m an independent artist, it’s very expensive. So, I'm going to have to sell a bit more coffee to be able to do that, you know? Eventually, we'll get there.
Where would your dream headline show be?
Do you know, I've been thinking about this. I love the Camden Assembly, and that was where I did my first support gig. It was also where we did our first headline gig with Dusky Grey, so I’ve just got great memories there!
And I saw your tweet about putting out an album…
I keep getting in trouble because I forget that people can see the things that I tweet! I really need to stop using the internet as a diary. But it’s always been something I’ve wanted to do, and I just really want to release a full body of work. Where I've been writing for ages, it's all pretty much there, I just can't afford to put it out.
I thought for this last bit, we just do some real quickfire questions! What is your favourite song at the moment?
Recently, I've been listening to Blonde by Maisie Peters - I really like that song a lot. I've listened to it a lot more recently and her lyrics are insane. What a powerhouse. I'm a big fan!
Which song would you like to release next? If you can say!
I wrote a song called I don't miss you, I just miss your Mum, and that's the next one for sure.
If you were to collaborate with one artist, which artist would that be?
Oh, it changes all the time but my all-time favourite person ever is Stevie Nicks. Oh, I just love her but maybe Joan Jett? Or if we're going like newer Harry Styles or Miley!
And lastly, who is one emerging artist that you’d like to recommend to our audience at LOOP?
Oh, India Parkman – she is just incredible. She’s always been compared to Dolly Parton but she’s just brilliant. Absolutely amazing. She blew up on Tik Tok a little while ago and her new song Bride and Groom came out recently. It’s so good!
CATTY’s latest release, Maybe All The Rumours Are True is out now on all streaming platforms.
*This article was first published on Loop Zine in August of 2022*
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