Lauren Housley was born and raised in Rotherham, South Yorkshire. Although she was a shy child, she always possessed a strong desire to perform on stage. By the age of 10 she was a National Dance Champion and began moving into theatre acting shortly afterwards. Her passion to sing and write songs came unexpectedly at around the age of 14, Her influences spanning the broad spectrum of guitar music, stemming from her Elvis fanatic dad who raised her on the sounds of the king. Spending a lot of her formative years between Rotherham, after moving to Manchester, Lauren developed a cultured appreciation of the Northern music scene, drawing inspiration from the thriving music culture in which she was cocooned. She has since teamed up with childhood friend, Steve Pycroft, where they began hosting a night at Matt and Phreds Jazz Club in the Northern Quarter called Soul Sessions.
“It came over me one day like an uncontrollable urge. I had ideas about the world and personal situations that I needed to get out of my body and mind. Like a flick of a switch I was writing songs, without even realising that’s what they were.”
Lauren and her writing partner, now host a regular event with their country band, Chorlton Country Club on the 2nd Wednesday of the month at Carlton Club that offers a similar platform for Country, Roots, Blues and Americana bands, local and international.
Since arriving on the UK music scene in 2016, Lauren Housley has two albums behind her, earning critical acclaim from the likes of Q, The Telegraph, No Depression & the BBC Radio 2 Playlist. Bob Harris and Paul Sexton both selected her music for play on their specialist BBC shows and BBC Radio London Robert Elms made her track, “The Waiting Game”, one of his favourite tracks of the year. Lauren and her band have also been honoured to open for the likes of Van Morrison, Jack Savoretti, Vintage Trouble, JP Cooper and First Aid Kit as well as travel the UK playing sold-out headlining tours.
After taking a break to focus on writing and recording her upcoming EP (set for release in Autumn 2018), Lauren returns with her Nashville inspired anthem “My Sleeping Heart”. The track is a collaborative effort with fellow Rotherham musical director Thomas Dibb, a crucial part of the duo’s creative process on the new album. Having been influenced by the sounds of Blues, Rock and Soul in Nashville, past and present, Lauren and her band took the plunge and made the pilgrimage at the end of 2017 for the Americana Music Festival. A chance conversation with a broken hearted man sat at the bar in Dee’s Country Cocktail Lounge, sparked ideas for a new song.
“I understood where this man was coming from. He had been carrying the hurt from a past love for a long time and was finally making peace with it. As soon as I got back to the room, I picked up the guitar and started writing “My Sleeping Heart”.”