By Sugandha Rawal
New Delhi– After a terror attack struck music lovers at singer Ariana Grande’s concert in Manchester, English songstress Lucy Rose says people should “keep playing and keep going to gigs” because bowing down in front of terror outfits is not the solution.
Music can open gates to escape all the negativity, she averred.
“Sometimes you feel like you want to escape everything. The world can be a pretty brutal place sometimes with the things that happen and I think now social media is an amazing thing which allows you to connect and share, but also some days it also feels like you have extreme news which can sometimes be bad — like terrors that happen,” Rose, whose real name is Lucy Rose Parton, told IANS by an email.
Rose, who was in India last week for a multi-city tour, added: “Music can escape all that, you can plug in on your headphones and you can forget about it all and escape from everything.”
On May 22, as many as 22 people were killed and 116 injured when the attacker, Salman Abedi, detonated a home-made bomb in Manchester Arena’s foyer as crowds were leaving after performance by American singer Ariana Grande. There was yet another terror attack in Britain last week, wherein six people were killed and 48 others injured in two terror strikes in London.
Rose, who hails from Warwickshire, England, says the Manchester terror attack was not just shocking but “sad and heart-breaking”.
“Music should be a safe place for people going to gigs. Again, it should be just for joy and the fact that there is anything in people’s mind now that just isn’t about that, it’s really sad. I guess you should just keep playing, keep going to gigs,” added the 27-year-old.
Rose’s tryst with music started when she was young. She began playing drums in her school orchestra. She began writing songs soon after, and that’s how she started making her way deep into the music industry.
Rose went on to join English indie rock band Bombay Bicycle Club as a vocalist. Her rise to prominence began when she came out with her first album ‘Like I Used To’ in 2012 and followed it up with ‘Work It Out’ in 2015.
Other than her tunes and composition, Rose is known for her own way of finding inspiration, and going on quest to find music. She picked her bag and guitar and left for a musical adventure, which she has summed up in her third album “Something’s Changing”.
Her love for travel took her to Ecuador, Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico, where she played for free and stayed with fans. She has captured all her experiences in a documentary that accompanies her album “Something’s Changing”.
Rose performed in Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru as part of her India tour for her global cinema tour to promote her third album.
Talking about her experience in India, she said: “I did a tour here a year ago which was my first time in India…I’m learning about so many (things)… I’m really forgetful when it comes to remembering names but we were listening to a lot of good musicians here. To name some, Prateek Kuhad, Nischay Parekh (Parekh & Singh) and MADBOY/MINK.”
What is the image of India that has remained with her?
“I think It’s different this time because I’m learning a lot more culturally this time…. About firstly how different each cities are. I feel like I can’t even sum up Delhi and Mumbai in the same sentence because they feel so different from each other. The thing I’m going to take back is how diverse it is… India is one of the most diverse places I’ve been to.” (IANS)