Interview: Caity Baser to play Southampton homecoming gig in April - In-Common

It’s homecoming time for Southampton’s Caity Baser on the 19th April.

The Engine Rooms in Southampton will host this dynamic young musician when she returns to her home city following a whirlwind rise to stardom. The show is already SOLD OUT, although this is hardly a surprise due to the huge following that Caity now enjoys.

I had the chance to catch up with Caity to ask her how the last couple of years has been for her.

How did this all come about for you?

“Well, buckle in, let me tell you! It all started at school I guess. I really didn’t like school and didn’t like talking about how I felt about anything. It was the same at college, but I knew I loved music. I was studying musical theatre but realised I really didn’t want to pretend to be someone else, and I didn’t like the kind of culture around it. I used to lock myself in the music room and play the piano. I enjoyed teaching myself, almost guessing and slowly learning to understand the structure of music. I had a year of writing and figuring myself out.”

Was this around the lockdown period?

“Yeah, this put everything back to square one. I wanted to study music, to follow the likes of James Bay and George Ezra. But when lockdown happened, I had no money and no clue. I did nothing other than learn tie-dye and walk my dog. So, one day I decided to post a video of one of my songs on Tik-Tok. I nearly erased it as I really didn’t feel comfortable about it at first.

“I realised that I wanted to be successful in music, and that the possibility of mean comments from people would have been worth it if it got me where I wanted to be. It was an honest song and I really thought it was good, so I left it up there. It was the first time I really believed in myself. When I turned my phone back on, it had had half a million views! Thousands of positive comments! I’d never had this kind of validation from people who weren’t my friends before.”

That must have been a life-changing moment in how you felt about yourself.

“Honestly, it was. I was with my mate in the M&S carpark, we opened all her car doors and played this one minute video of my song at full volume and just danced around her car!!

“When I woke up the next day, I had a message from a lady called Dakota, who is now my amazing manager. Long story short, she said how she loved my song and invited me to London. It was such an amazing introduction to the music industry, so I went home, quit my job, went to London and I’m still here!”

What a story! I’m so impressed at how you grasped the opportunity and made the most of it.

“I think it’s because of how I was raised. I was always encouraged to grab every chance that comes your way. Where I grew up, this kind of thing just does not happen! I wanted to dive in and give it my all.”

So, from those beginnings to playing at Reading and Leeds Festival?

“[Caity grabs her face in the classic Home-Alone pose and screams with excitement] I know, I know! Oh my God, I honestly believed that no one would turn up, I still had doubts. I’d never done a festival before but before I went on, I could hear people chanting “Caity Caity, Rock On” which is a chant from one of my songs! I opened the curtains and saw thousands of people… I ran on stage jumping and shouting, it was amazing!”

Your lyrics are so honest and, well, can I say free of B.S.?

“Absolutely! Life’s too short! I want to be honest in what I say and how I feel.”

Are there any musical hero’s you look up to?

“Yes, Freddie Mercury and Elton John, hands down, full stop! I love them so much. I’m inspired by so many people, but as a story, Freddie Mercury.”

Is that because of their stage persona as well?

“I love watching videos of Freddie performing. When I was on the stage at Reading, I was looking around for something to jump on. The speaker? The monitor? I could see the security looking at me as if to say “don’t!” [laughing] but I was jumping off everything I could!”

You sound like you love the performance side of the business.

“I love it so much, at one of my shows I ran into the crowd and snogged someone [laughs]! I was spinning around and just grabbed someone and kissed them, it was so funny.”

What do your friends and family think of it all?

“My brother Charlie and my dad are at every single show. My brother is over six feet, so he sticks out like a sore thumb as everyone else is usually tiny and female. Whenever I see this big guy smiling at me it’s amazing, I love that everyone supports me.”

Caity is obviously relishing the chance she gave herself. She is certainly a force of nature and full of honesty and passion which comes across in her music. I’m really looking forward to the show at The Engine Rooms and I’m sure it will be full of the excitement she seems to bring to everything she does. It’s sure to be a memorable homecoming.

Read more about Caity here: