Meet Lydia The Bard, the singer-songwriter who’s redefining what it means to step into a villain’s shoes. With roots in musical theatre and a passion for storytelling, she has built a world where jazz, folk, and cinematic sounds collide, from reimagining iconic characters with theatrical flair to crafting her debut album, The Woods.
We caught up with her to talk villain anthems, collaboration, and her journey.
Lydia, can you tell us a bit about your musical background, what first drew you to music and storytelling, and when you realized you wanted to pursue it as a career?
My musical background is in Musical Theatre! I grew up loving stories, music, and singing, and so was naturally very drawn to theatre. Performers like Lea Salonga really inspired me, and I remember desperately wanting to sing and tell stories like she did. Naturally, my path has looked a little different from hers! I always wanted to pursue a career in performing. Since I was a kid, I never imagined it would mean I'd be writing my own songs one day, but I'm so grateful for the unexpected path I've found myself on!
Your new single “Die for Me (Wendy’s Villain Song)” is so powerful and theatrical. What was the inspiration behind this track, both musically and lyrically?
When it comes to writing these villain songs, I like to reimagine characters and have the most amount of fun I can with the process. So, for me, a loosely vintage jazz-inspired theatrical number for a zombie Wendy sounded like a great time. I'm super lucky to be co-writing this with Tony Halliwell, who then brought in some great, strong modern sounds to the track, which gives it its energy.
When you’re writing, what usually comes first for you—the story, the melody, or a specific emotion you want to capture?
Always, the story and emotion first, I need to have a clear vision of what the character is experiencing and what story I am trying to tell, as that informs the melody line and the lyrics. Once I have a good idea of those thing, I'll start playing around with what the lead line might sound like. Following that, when I have a structure and a lead line, I'll send it onto my co-writer to arrange musically, and the song is born.
The Villain Series has connected with so many fans. How has your vision for the series evolved since you first started it?
Oooh, I like this question. Well, when it began, it was just a fun exercise, singing minor key covers with different intentions. Since then, I now almost exclusively release original songs for this series. I think my vision now is focused on how I can push myself creatively each time, what I can write that is different from what I've done before, and how it pushes my songwriting. Wendy's song is a good example of that, as I was trying to emulate a style I don't write in often (jazz), and the story is no longer 'revenge', which is an easy hole I tend to fall in. I'm hoping that with each song I write, I can become better and better and then pick up bigger projects in the future that are maybe longer than just one song.
You blend jazz, folk, and cinematic sounds so seamlessly. Which artists or genres have influenced your style the most, and how do you experiment with bringing them together?
The people I co-write with influence my writing a lot! For this song, I worked with Tony Halliwell, and his experience leans heavily toward rock and cinematic scores (he's good at everything, really), and so his influence is heavy in this song naturally. I also write with Ben Tomalin, who sits in a folkier space, and that really influences our songs too. In terms of artists/genres that influence me, traditional Musical Theatre shows have a heavy influence, as that's what I grew up listening to. Traditional Disney soundtracks and villain songs also have a big influence, for sure.
You’ve worked closely with Tony Halliwell on this track. How does your collaboration process work—do you bounce ideas back and forth, or do you come in with a strong concept first?
Generally, I'll have the full vocal line and concept ready to go and then throw it his way for his thoughts on what the arrangement sounds like. So, for this song, I'd written the whole thing and then sent it to him to craft his composition to go alongside and help flesh out the piece to become a finished song! Though there have also been occasions where Tony has come up with a compositional concept and we've worked from there.
The visuals for your songs are such a big part of the experience. How closely are you involved in shaping the imagery, and how important is it for you to match the visuals to the sound?
So, every video you see on my channel is created by INCREDIBLE artists, and having these made is truly one of my favourite parts of the process. Generally, I spend about 2 hours writing a comprehensive creative brief that outlines the story and provides all the ideas I have for each beat of the video. Although it's often the case that the video looks different from the initial concept, I prefer to work collaboratively, and the artists I work with consistently have great ideas. It's super important to me that the visuals match the song, and the artists I work with are always great at doing that!
When you’re not reimagining villains, what kinds of stories or themes inspire you as a songwriter?
When I'm not reimagining villains, I write my own songs with my co-writer, Ben. Stories of strong women throughout history and the subject of feminism inspire me a lot. Many of my personal songs are spurred by things that make me angry and sad, and a lot of the time, the thing I'm most angry about is the existence of sexism in the world and injustice in general. Other themes that I write about are societal expectations on children/capitalism/toxic relationships etc, I generally write about things I consider most important, and that often revolves around societal issues or personal issues.
Your debut album drops on October 11th. What does The Woods represent for you personally, and what journey do you hope it takes listeners on?
I'm thrilled that this album is finally being released! This is an album co-written with the LOVELY Ben Tomalin. For me, 'The Woods' represents moving from adolescence to adulthood and learning that the world you viewed through rose-tinted glasses isn't as magical as you hoped it could be. It's about losing some of that naivety you once had and becoming a more hardened, maybe bitter, but also more aware person. It's about entering a 'Wood' you've been dreaming about, facing challenges within, and then making it out the other side, scarred but wise.
Where do you see your artistry going after The Woods—do you want to continue building on the theatrical world you’ve created, or are there new directions you’re excited to explore?
I'm excited to explore so many new directions! I'd love to release another album at some point and will continue to create villain songs, but I have a new, more theatrical project in mind that I'm very keen to work on. It'll be one of my most significant projects yet! But before I get too excited about that, I'm focusing on releasing my debut album and seeing it find its place in the world!
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