David Briggs is an 18-year-old musician from Leeds, England who has known he wanted to be a musician since learning guitar at age 8. He taught himself multiple instruments and found that writing lyrics allowed him to express himself. His debut album Speeches, which took two years to make, tells personal stories and experiences through songs. Though he was initially influenced by 80s rock bands through his parents, David now identifies with indie rock. The album allowed him to fully express himself as an artist with his label Hassle Records. He is already writing his next album and hopes to tour, and sees music as his passion.

1. At just18 yearsold,DavidBriggsknowsexactlywhohe is,somethingrare forsomebodysoyoung.
Afterpickingupa guitarfor the firsttime at age 8, he fell inlove withmusic.He cannow playdrums
and bassalongside the guitar,andisbeginningtolearnpiano.“Musicwasimportanttome before I
everreallyunderstoodit,”he explains.“Iwascapturedbythe sounds,and I guessthat’swhyI
wantedtolearnhow to create them.” Aswell asplayingthe music,he startedtowrite hisownlyrics
whenhe was14. Back then,he sayshe wrote completelyrandomlinesandthrew themtogether,
but as he developedasanartist,he discoveredhow muchhe couldexpressthroughhislyrics.“I
beganto reallypayattentiontothe lyricsof the songs thatI was listeningto.Ididn’trealisemusic
couldtell suchpowerful stories.”
Whenaskedabouthisinfluences,he said“Growingup, Ilistenedto alot of 80’s glammetal bands,
thanksto my parents.Youknow,the likesof Def Leppard,BonJovi,Whitesnake,thatkind of thing.”
He thengoesonto talk abouthislaterinfluences.“Iwentthrougha bitof a poppunkphase during
my teenage years,”he chuckles.“Ithinkalotof usdid though,didn’twe?” Asanartist,he chose to
headdownthe path of indie rock.“It justfeltrightfor me.If you listencarefully,youcanstill hear
bitsof othergenrescomingthrough.EverythingI’ve listenedtohasinfluencedme insome way,
regardlessof genre,and Ithinkthat definitelyshowsonthisalbum.”
His debutalbum, Speeches,hasbeentwoyearsinthe making.“Ibeganwritingthe songsforthis
albumbefore I’devengottenarecorddeal.I intendedtomake an albumnomatter what,evenif I
had to payfor all of the recordingfrommyown pocket.”Luckily, he wasdiscovered andsignedto
the independentrecordingcompanyHassle,whoare alsoresponsibleforbandslike We Are the
Oceanand Cancer Bats.“I was nervousatfirst,”Davidsays aboutwhenhe firstsigned.“They’re a
fantasticlabel though.Iwasable to completely be myself andmake the musicthatI wantedto
make.I reallygotthe opportunitytobe an artistwiththisalbum.”
The albumis verypersonal tohim.“I chose the name Speeches because tome to me that’swhat the
songsare. Each of themisa little speech totell somebodysomethingthattheyneedtohear,or to
tell a storyabout mylife.They’re all aboutmyownexperiences,andIreallyusedthemtoexpress
howI feltaboutmy life.”
Davidgrewup inLeedsinthe northof England.He had a verynormal life,goingtoschool withhis
friends,andhe’sverythankful thathe wasable togrow up insuch a bigcity.“There’s justalways
somethinghappening.”Ashe talks,he leansforwardsinexcitement.“The peopleare fascinating,
and there’ssomuchinspirationforsongseverywhereyouturn.”Iaskedif he wrote songsabout
otherpeople aswell ashimself.“Definitely.If Ididn’t,I’dbe missingoutonsomany stories.One of
the mainreasonsI love writingisbecause of the storiesthatIcan tell.”Laughing,he continues.“I’m
not that interesting,sometimesIneedsomebodyelse’sstorytogive me inspiration.”
Abouthisfuture,Davidsays“I’mnot entirelysure what’sgoingtohappenforme.I’malreadywriting
for mynextalbum,whichI’ll hopefullybe able toreleasethroughHassle again.We’re alsotalking
abouta tour at the moment,butthat’sstill inthe earlydays.”Whereverhe goes,Davidisdefinitelya
youngartistto keepyoureye on.He’spassionate aboutmusic,andputseverythinghe hasinto it.
Make sure youfollowhim,because he’sgoingtodogreat thingsformusic.
David’sdebutalbum Speeches isreleasedFebruary3rd
,withpre-orderavailable now,digitallyand
physically.Hissingle Nobody ButMeisoutnow.