Can I Succeed as an Artist Who Performs Welsh/Bilingual Music
By: Tesni Hughes
Hello there! I’m Tesni, a Welsh artist from Anglesey. I’ve been writing and gigging in Welsh for several years now. In this blog, I want to talk about the good things, the not-so-good things, and the reality of what it’s like to be someone who wants to succeed by singing in Welsh or bilingually. I’ll be talking about my own experiences, local bands from Wales, as well as bands that have made it big by creating music bilingually. In this blog there will also be a few conversations with Welsh/bilingual musicians who will discuss their experiences too.
Obviously, Welsh is a language that is often seen as a minority language today. So I’m sure you may have asked yourself questions like: “Why should I write in Welsh?”, “Can I really succeed by creating Welsh-language music?” or “Is it possible for me to go far with Welsh/bilingual music outside of Wales?” These are very fair questions, and something many singers and songwriters from Wales have considered.
I hope that by the time you finish reading this blog, you’ll feel that you can also create, sing, and write through the medium of Welsh or bilingually, with at least a few answers to these questions — or at the very least, a better understanding of what’s going on in the Welsh rock scene!
I’m sure you’ve heard of bands like Manic Street Preachers, Stereophonics, Catfish and the Bottlemen and Catatonia before — or at least heard your parents talking about them. Although these bands sing in English, they all come from our small country! These bands have flown our flag around the world at festivals and gigs in many different countries.
“But didn’t these bands become popular in English?” I hear you ask.
You’re right — but there are many other bands who have become popular by singing in Welsh.
Bands like Super Furry Animals, Gorky's Zygotic Mynci and Big Leaves were bilingual bands that gigged across the world. However, these were mainly bands from the 1990s and they don’t really gig much anymore. Although Super Furry Animals are doing a tour this year!! (I do recommend it.)
Bands such as Alffa, Adwaith, The Royston Club, Band Pres Llareggub, Pedair and Bwncath (and many more) have developed from bands/artists who only gigged in Wales into acts that have performed at festivals such as Glastonbury Festival, as well as gigs in America, Canada, Europe and many other major festivals around the world.
Luckily, I had the opportunity to chat with Dion Jones from the band Alffa about their experiences in the Welsh rock scene and outside Wales.
Tell us more about Alffa.
Alffa started while the two of us were still in school, just two friends from Llanrug enjoying writing and jamming. A bit of fun quickly turned into quite a serious career when we started to find our sound and develop as a band.
We’ve always tried to stay as true as possible to what we originally were as a band — two friends having fun. Since then we’ve played all over the world, from Canada to Italy to Brittany and back to Llanrug again. Somewhere along the way we were also lucky enough to become the first band with a Welsh-language song to reach over a million streams — a bonkers experience.
It’s been an incredible journey so far and we can’t wait to see what comes next.
Why did you choose to create music bilingually?
Welsh is so important to us as a band — it’s the language that raised us, it’s part of us forever. English came along as our audience grew. When it comes to writing songs, there are no rules — it’s just whatever flows on that day.
How important is the Welsh language to the band?
I think music can keep the language healthy and alive, so it’s essential that people use Welsh through music.
Best experience as a band?
It’s really hard to choose just one experience, but here are a few — playing around the world, recording two albums, and being part of a community of people who are like us.
Best place you’ve gigged?
Personally for me (Dion), Canada. An incredible place, incredible people and just an experience I’ll never forget.
Any challenges?
There are quite a few challenges. Money to pay for rehearsal spaces, time because the two of us are so busy. But our love for our craft beats it all haha!
Any tips for a young person who wants to start their career in Welsh or bilingually?
It’s better to try and fail than to not try at all. That’s our motto as a band. You’ve just got to go for it — otherwise someone else will take your place. Enjoy yourself and go for it.
A huge thank you to Dion from Alffa for his time!!
There are so many ways to succeed bilingually in the music industry in Wales and beyond — whether that’s through songwriting, gigging, writing, but also through producing and recording! Sometimes you just have to push yourself out of your comfort zone and go for it. If you’re passionate about something — GO FOR IT!