The Making of Me

Kelli-Leigh started out her career on an upward trajectory, with big hits that you’ve probably heard on your party or gym playlists a number of times. However, after a car crash in 2012, the path of Kelli-Leigh’s life changed drastically, leaving her unable to walk and in a wheelchair mid-way through a tour with Jessie J. As a self-confessed workaholic, this left her questioning everything she knew, including her body, her friends, medical advice and her career. In this episode, hear Kelli-Leigh candidly discuss her life-changing injury, why she thanks her bed sheets every night, and the story of the performance that left her collapsed in the middle of Times Square.

Having grown up in Slovenia, July Jones holds the values of her culture and upbringing close to her heart. However by the age of 18, she had already travelled to multiple countries and spent a year living abroad in America, something that she now sees hugely shaped her as a person. July sees herself as the black sheep of her family. Whilst her family members were working in economics and law, she was joining music school at the age of 6 and learning to play piano and the flute. From there she discovered her natural solo vocal ability and found her love of soul and jazz music. In this episode learn about July’s coming out story, why moving to America opened her eyes to the LGBTQ+ community and sparked a passion for trans rights and the reason she decided to leave the Jazz and Soul industry behind her.

Tai Verdes has a determination and flair for creativity that you only see in someone at his level of a promising music career. On the surface, Tai happened upon viral success on TikTok with his song ‘Stuck In The Middle', which went on to achieve 62 million streams on Spotify. However, the journey to get there was filled with reality shows, stand up comedy and 6 months of daily vocal practice. In this episode find out from Tai why he knew it was the right decision to drop out of university, the impact he thinks social media is having on the music industry, and how he learned to let go of his parents approval in order to achieve what he wants.

With a platinum selling song that has over 694 million hits on YouTube, JP Cooper came upon a viral success that many musicians only dream of. However, throughout his life and music career, JP has faced hardships that many of us will never have to.He talks to us about how losing his mother at only 11 months old has affected him and how he manages the anxiety disorder that was triggered by his music career. In this episode, find out why JP Cooper loves being a dad, how gospel music saved him, and the record deal that helped turn his life around.

Winning The Voice at the age of just 18 means that Blessing Annatonia is already off to a promising start in her music career. Music has always been a central focus in Blessing’s life, from the age of 2 she was already obsessed with being in front of the camera and knew her voice was a gift.Blessing talks to us about her relationship with her music and her faith, and how her religion has helped to keep her driven and focused amidst new found fame. She also reflects on the strong sense of community she has around her, both from her childhood in Zimbabwe, and her later life in England, and how that grounds and supports her. In this episode find out how Blessing dealt with the racism she faced on social media after winning The Voice, why she values her friends so much, and why she continues to hold Zimbabwe so close to her heart.

For AJ Mitchell, building a music career was an obvious path for him. He wrote his first song at the age of 6 years old, and he grew up in a supportive family environment where his musical talents were encouraged to flourish throughout his school years. For AJ, heading to LA was an obvious step in his music career. He talks to us about the bold decisions he made in regards to the people he was surrounding himself with, and why he chose to leave the influencer crowd to seek out an authentic career as a music artist. In this episode, learn why AJ Mitchell thinks growing up in a small town shaped who he is, and why he is thankful for the time he had during the pandemic to slow down and reflect.

In AWA’s own words, music was always her Plan A. From an early age she was at music school, studying and developing her craft. She then went on to win the Sweedish X Factor at just 14! However, such big success as a teen left AWA with mental health struggles she is still learning to manage to this day. In this episode, AWA talks to us about how she navigated her music career whilst at school, and how she dealt with the extra unwanted attention that brought her. AWA candidly discusses the lessons she has learned from being in the music industry, the depression she’s lived with and why taking a 5 year break and learning to meditate truly saved her life.

Lewis reflects on how his previous break up fuelled such powerful music for him, and how his struggle at school and sixth form lead to him dropping out of formal education to pursue music. After feeling deeply unhappy and out of his depth during his time at sixth form, he went against his teachers’ advice and took a leap of faith to study music at college.Whilst his music career grew, Lewis learned how detrimental criticism was to his confidence and his well being, and tells us about the journey he went on to overcome that. Changing his perception of criticism through the saying “Everybody likes you until everybody likes you”.

On paper, Hunter Hayes has had an incredible music career so far. From first performing at the age of 7 years old for President Bill Clinton to accumulating over 50 award nominations and wins, musical success has become familiar to him. However, Hunter talks to us about the other side of fame, how alienated he has felt and his realisation that when all of these big life moments were happening, he didn’t have any true friends to call on. Through going to therapy, he has developed a healthier relationship with his career and a bigger appreciation for the life path music has set him on. In this episode, find out why Hunter is such a big advocate for therapy, what about flying fulfils him and how he turns a rainy California day into an opportunity.

Singer-songwriter and guitarist, Orla Gartland, talks to us about her rise to success as a musician and the life moments that made her question whether it was the right path for her. From sofa surfing in London and working at The Cereal Cafe in the early days of her career, to rebuilding trust in her management after a bad experience, and then going on to achieve viral success through YouTube - music has always been a huge part of Orla’s identity. In this episode find out why Orla is glad she has never signed a record deal, and what motivated her to keep going.

The Making of Me - A show where Mikey Cobban sits down with musicians to find out more about the people behind the melodies. What moments in their life made them who they are today?

Musician and creative artist, Nduka talks to us about his mother's death when he was only 9 years old. For Nduka, grief continued long after the funeral was over, the cards stopped and the flowers died. He often felt depressed, confused and disconnected from others. But he worked through it and channelled his emotions into positive activities.Despite tragedy, Nduka has an explosive personality, which is reflected in his art instalations and clothing line. His voice is drenched in texture, and his songwriting bleeds personal triumph and struggle. His music is a vibrant tapestry of Altenative, Soul, electronic and with a tons of Afro vibes. Thank you:NdukaSofar Sounds (discount code: TMOM2020)Credit:Creator/producer – Christina MooreSound Designer – Jan Piasecki

Producer and one half of Farr, Linden Jay talks to us about a life-changing ailment while he was studying at Berklee College of Music. Born in London, Linden started playing instruments at 10 years old. Creativity runs in the family, so by the time Liden was 15 his older brother, also a musician invited him on tour. By 16 years old Liden was making beats. He has since produced songs for Rejjie Snow, Lion Babe, RITUAL and Born Dirty.Linden is a man who has truly cultivated his craft. Learning to play multiple instruments, work in a variety of roles and experiment with different genres.Jay, a self-described obsessive, narrates his journey from obsessing about his music to obsessing about his health.Thank you:Liden JayCredit:Creator/producer – Christina MooreSound Designer – Jan PiaseckiFixer - Jordan Calver-Moise

Hailing from the Lower East Side of Manhattan, singer-songwriter Linda Diaz describes growing up in the Projects and the changes she made to cultivate a career in music.Linda discusses how her mother helped her to get a scholarship at Columbia Prep School, where she learnt to play Chess. She faced challenges being female and of Caribbean descent as a chess player. But she grew more confident and sharpened her skills to the point where she earned herself the nickname ‘The Tank’.Diaz later went on to Oberlin College where she mingled with musicians. Soon, her personal love for singing turned into public performances. Thank you:Sofar Sounds (promo code TMOM20)Linda DiazCredit:Creator/producer - Christina MooreSound Designer - Jan PiaseckiWould you like to create a podcast you can be proud of? If you have a personal brand as musician, author or thought leader, you can record your podcast at the Don’t Skip studio in London www.dontskip.co.uk/hire You might work from home but your home isn’t always open for business.

Lisa Canny is a singer, songwriter and harpist from County Mayo in the Republic of Ireland. Lisa is known for being a rock star on the harp but her Irish folk community played a big part in laying creative foundations. Lisa learnt multiple instruments quickly by ear crediting the Irish folk scene as a fantastic environment to practise discipline and patience.Gifted with a banjo when she was still in primary school, Canny threw herself into music. Going on the perform on the Irish music scene and compete in national competitions. Canny later moved to London to experiment with different genres.Lisa describes herself as fearless, so we spoke to her about a childhood that nurtured her kick-ass personality.Thank you:Sofar Sounds (promo code TMOM20)Lisa CannyCredit:Creator/producer - Christina MooreSound Designer - Jan PiaseckiWould you like to create a podcast you can be proud of? If you have a personal brand as musician, author or thought leader, you can record your podcast at the Don’t Skip studio in London www.dontskip.co.uk/hire You might work from home but your home isn’t always open for business.

Olivia Lane is a country singer/songwriter/performer in Nashville, TN. Originally born and raised in Texas, she moved to LA as a teenager to pursue her dream of becoming a performer. Olivia describes how her mother sacrificed her friends and lifestyle to help Olivia achieve her goals and remains eternally grateful for her mother’s display of selflessness. Becoming despondent with LA, Olivia then moved to Nashville where she has spent the last couple of years learning to understand herself. She views it as a continuing journey.Olivia has donated a signed copy of her EP ‘The One’ and t-shirt for one competition winner. Listen to the show for instructions and email your answer to competition@dontskip.co.uk The winner must be a UK resident.Thank you:Lime Tree MusicOlivia LaneCredit:Creator/producer - Christina MooreSound Designer - Jan PiaseckiWould you like to create a podcast you can be proud of? If you have a personal brand as musician, author or thought leader, you can record your podcast at the Don’t Skip studio in London www.dontskip.co.uk/hire You might work from home but your home isn’t always open for business.

Singer-songwriter JC Stewart describes trying to find his place in the world and discovering songwriting. Would you believe he didn’t like music as a child? He’d rather be playing rugby...badly. But after some encouragement from his Mum JC tried his hand at performing. Press play and enjoy listening to JC’s early memories (and his Northern Irish accent) in Magherafelt, County Londonderry.2020 is off to a great start for JC, he was named as one of MTV’s Ones To Watch for 2020. His new single ‘Lying that You Loved Me’ received its first play from Radio 1’s Best New Pop and was highlighted as Apple Music’s New Artist of the Week.Thank you:Warner MusicJC StewartCredit:Creator/producer - Christina MooreSound Designer - Jan PiaseckiWould you like to create a podcast you can be proud of? If you have a personal brand as musician, author or thought leader, you can record your podcast at the Don’t Skip studio in London www.dontskip.co.uk/hire You might work from home but your home isn’t always open for business.

Musicians narrate a moment or event that defined them and made them who they are today.A show where your favourite artists are never interrupted by the host.