Andy Hewitt was part of the Live in the Living Room Gives Back event that took place on Sunday 7th April at The Bedford pub in Balham, London. Singer songwriters from all over gathered to showcase their talents, talk about their song writing and, ultimately, raise money for Dementia UK. I caught up with Hewitt to talk about his round, the vulnerability in his music and why he only writes sad songs.
“It’s so good to come with such a captivated audience,” Hewitt says about the crowd after his set, “everyone gets the same reception”. Some artists were taking to the stage for their first Nashville style writer’s round with a lot of nerves in the green room, but Hewitt says that the audience showed the same attentiveness to everyone. “As soon as they get on stage they’re relaxed,” he snaps his fingers to show the instant switch in comfort of the artist, “it just feels like home as a musician…events like this are just what you live for”.
Hewitt shared the stage with The Ole Mule and Nashville based singer songwriter Kirstie Kraus, who brought two very different sounds. “That’s what’s so good about this kind of thing…it’s different every time. That’s what I love about the mix of artists that James puts together.”
As well as raising money for a great cause, the event also provides a platform for artists to network and meet each other. The country community is growing throughout the UK but it’s still quite niche, with some of the singer songwriters meeting for the first time at this event. “Everyone is so supportive of each other,” Hewitt says about the artists, “you’ve got this green room down here where people are meeting and getting introduced to each other and finding new music.” Hewitt is from the small village of Pilton in Somerset – yes, the Glastonbury Pilton – and says that sometimes it feels like he’s the only person in his post code, “and then you come here and it’s like, ‘someone does what I do!’ It’s that connection, it’s amazing”.
Hewitt’s music is sad – he says so himself – but it's intentional. “I write about bad experiences or difficulties in love or things like that because it’s a way of getting through that and moving on,” he says, “from a selfish perspective, song writing is my own therapy”. His sole intention – aside from processing those emotions himself – is to connect with others that may be experiencing something similar and help them heal. “I try and share it as mutual therapy. That’s what it’s about for me – making that connection through the story that I’m telling through my music.”
Most of Hewitt’s songs are poignant and personal, with his public music journey starting when he lost his mother. Reliving the pain behind such a personal song every time he performs it ‘takes its toll’ on him. “You have to go to that emotion,” he says about playing his songs, “somebody told me once: you’ve really got to act out your performance because you can’t sing a sad song with a smile on your face. You don’t want to become the person that you were when you wrote the song.”
There is a softness to Hewitt’s voice as he talks about his writing and performing processes. He is driven by his passion for using music as therapy not only for himself, but to help other people. I was curious about how he protects himself when he comes back to these highly emotive songs. “The key is not to think of it other than that three- or four-minute song and you pile it all into that,” he says, “then put the guitar back in its case. It’s done. A lot of the things I’m writing about happened years ago and nothing’s going to change what happened.”
It's refreshing to talk about sad, emotional songs for men. Although the conversation around men’s mental health is encouraged and more prevalent than it has been, there is still the ‘toxic masculinity’ and taboos around men and the ‘c’ word. Crying. I’m talking about crying. “Men cry, deal with it,” Hewitt says as we discuss the importance of these conversations, “there’s no solution in hiding that…It’s not a matter of masculinity or femininity or anything in between. It’s human emotion. We’ve all got to live it and everyone’s got to find their own way of dealing with that.” Hewitt lives on a farm back on Somerset and is up at 5am - I know, there really is two of those in a day - but when he’s played a gig and finishes late and sees a line of people wanting to talk to him about his music, he’s more than happy to oblige, despite it creeping into those precious hours of sleep. “To me, that’s what you do it for because it’s that connection. That person may not have shared that story with someone else, especially when I sing the song about losing a child.” Hewitt speaks about all the times he’s navigated those tough conversations with people who’ve found solace in his music, “if you can listen to that person for even ten minutes while they’re sharing that heartache with somebody else…to me, that’s what music and being a musician and being on that stage is all about”.
You’ll not find any uplifting songs in Hewitt’s repertoire, “I find it so hard to write happy songs…for me, happiness is lived, and it’s an experience that I don’t necessarily write about.” Instead, Hewitt finds that the joy in his music comes from the reminder to embrace life. “You’ve got to go out there and do something and seize that moment because you’re still here,” he says about his songs that deal with loss, “concentrate on being the person that you’ve lost loved, and loved you for, and do that 100%”.
Hewitt is performing at a festival in July in Somerset and you can follow along with what he’s up to on his Instagram, Facebook or his website
This interview was conducted in collaboration with Live in the Living Room
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