“The whole emphasis of my name is actually to bring the uniqueness out in others and embellish it into what’s going on in the Midlands.”
If you’ve spent any significant time in Birmingham’s music circuit, then you’re sure to have bumped into Call Me Unique, received a compliment and walked away feeling lighter and brighter having met an undeniably gracious woman.
Whether it’s playing RnB in Zumhof, singing along to an acoustic guitar in Birdies or hosting Brum’s most up and coming jazz-soul fusion events at Hockley Social Club, you can always expect a vulnerable, creative and one off experience from Call Me Unique.
Her trademark treble clef under-the-eye ‘tattoo’ and warm, welcoming energy that makes you feel like you’ve known her for years are both present when we speak. We get grounded in the conversation over Chai latte’s and our connection to Gaia.
“I’ve always prided myself on having a connection to the Earth” said Unique when we asked about the spiritual influences behind her lyrics, which detail deep self-reflection and self-actualisation.
“I’m currently in that space of being in my feels. Emotionally inclined to talk about absolutely everything, the good, the bad and being able to collate that in a diary form, in audio, to allow other people to feel comfortable to talk about how they’re truly feeling.
It’s a combination of knowing that I am myself within the elements and encouraging more people to acknowledge themselves, so we can all inspire each other as artists and creatives.”
Talking about her latest enterprise, The Unique Experience, we agree that the crowd makes a the difference when it comes to creating the right environment for musicians to explore their creativity.
“The eclectic, the sporadic, the impromptu, the weird, the strange, the wonderful. Those who don’t feel like they necessarily belong.” Those are the people Unique wants at her events.
She was keen to let us know that, just like when CMU was operating at Digbeth Dining Club, as well as bringing talent from across the Midlands they’d also be looking to book artists from Europe; Sweden, Netherlands, Hungary and Berlin.
“Birmingham, or the Midlands itself, has so much to offer, and we haven’t really been allowed to explore our own creativity in a very spontaneous very fun way. I want it to go back to childhood, go back to playfulness. That element of let’s go back to fun, let’s go back to freedom, let’s go back to being ourselves without so much fear about whether it’s going to be right or wrong.”
Unique wants artists to feel like they can approach her to become part of future line-ups for CMU and not just get involved with the night’s notorious jams.
She told BABMAG “I want it to feel like there’s no separation between artist and audience, you are here for a reason.”
“I’m trying to encourage other artists and creatives to start doing Unique Experience takeovers, in which they will show their own unique experience and what they believe is unique about them.
It’s a ‘Welcome Home Family’ and it has to be that. It’s about the energy of it feeling like a living room that you’ve accidentally been invited to and somehow you’ve made friends… And then you’re actually being encouraged to dance, sing, play an instrument that you probably never have, that you’re actually encouraging that very unique experience that you would feel at home.”
To bring the conversation back to Call Me Unique and what inspires her personal approach to music, BABMAG asked about a place that Unique feels she has to go to continue her journey and develop further editions of her audio diary. Unique’s eye’s lit up and she immediately responded, “Berlin. I have been, but not as a creative. There are artists, creatives – there’s a unique experience at every event, I’ve seen it and I need it!”
It’s important to pull the focus back to Unique and make sure we present our flowers to a real OG of the scene. Despite her innate ability to reflect love and joy into the eyes of others, we must recognise all that she has done on, and off stage. Dedicated to seeing West Midlands’ musicians flourish in a healthy way, Call Me Unique is spreading her message holistically far and wide.
As a final question, BABMAG asked what makes the space Unique has created different from other events in Birmingham.
“It’s the brave faces that do it first – their vulnerability, to be okay about not being okay, then knowing that then reflects on someone to find it in themselves.”
If you fancy listening to Unique, we fully recommend taking in her 2020 EP 2.0, or making your way down to Hockley Social Club this coming Friday for a truly Unique Experience.