Exposed Vocals Interviews Devon Mayson
Exposed Vocals: So tell us your story. Where did you grow up? What made you decide to become an artist?
Devon Mayson: I was born in Essex and grew up in a little town called South Woodham Ferrers. Every year since I was 11, I took part in an International exchange as part of my school, until I settled in Frankfurt, Germany and spent a few years back and forward there for a couple of months at a time, so by the time I went off to university, moving away from home wasn’t even something I thought of as unusual. I’ve always wanted to be an artist since I can remember, but it’s such an unconventional and seemingly unachievable career goal, I was advised by my school to follow my skill set in the sciences and ended up at Coventry University studying Psychology and specializing in neurobiology. It wasn’t really until then that I found the confidence to start writing and performing publicly, but once I did, it wasn’t too long before paid gigs started coming in and I couldn’t tear myself away from writing. I pushed myself into finishing my degree and vowed I’d take one year out to see how I got on with my music and if nothing came of it, I could always go back to Psychology! It’s been three years now and I haven’t looked back since!
Exposed Vocals: How did you come up with that name? What was your inspiration behind it?
Devon Mayson: This is actually my real name, believe it or not! I’m the eldest of three and my parents were pretty adventurous with naming their first child, although they’d calmed down by the time they had Harry and George.
Exposed Vocals: What do you think about online music sharing? Do you ever give your music away for free? Why?
Devon Mayson: It’s a great way to get more people to download and listen to new music- It’s definitely something I’d consider doing in the future!
Exposed Vocals: Since everyone was a start-up once, can you give any smaller or local bands or artists looking to get gigs and airplay some tips?
Devon Mayson: When I first started out, I managed to get a residency spot and played at a bar in Coventry every Tuesday night called ‘The Establishment’. At the first few gigs, I’d be lucky if four people showed up, but after a few weeks of making an effort with the regulars, staying later to tell them about what I wanted to do with my music and playing dire requests, they started spreading the word. My last gig there before I moved back to Essex was one of the most humbling experiences I’ve had to date. The bar was rammed and everyone sang along to the songs I’d written and had played there since the night I first started.
Always take the time for people who make time to support you- it doesn’t take much, but it means the world to them.
Exposed Vocals: Do you ever make mistakes during performances? How do you handle that?
Devon Mayson: All the time! It really depends on what sort of gig it is, but usually if it’s a dodgy chord or a fluffed lyric, I’ll probably laugh and make a joke out of it- nobody’s perfect!
Exposed Vocals: Do you tour? Anything interesting happen on tour that you think our readers would enjoy hearing about?
Devon Mayson: It feels like I’m constantly on tour- my car has kind of become a second home! Ah, where to start? I seem somehow to always get myself into awkward situations and on the way back from a tour of the West Midlands I’d been booked with a three piece band for a wedding. When I arrived I was given a wireless microphone and encouraged to get down into the audience and dance with everyone, as I jumped down off the stage, the guests formed a huge dance circle and before I knew it I was in the middle with one of the ushers who started freestyling. As a very competitive person, I knew I needed to outdo his dance move before the instrumental break ended and I had to start singing again, so I got down on the floor and pulled out my ultimate party trick: the worm.
Unfortunately for me, I’d completely forgotten I was wearing a dress which flipped up exposing my bright yellow pants to the entire wedding- perhaps not one of my finest moments…
Exposed Vocals: Where do you usually gather songwriting inspiration? What is your usual songwriting process?
Devon Mayson: I always write about experiences. All the songs on the album are about real situations, people and turning points in my life, so I tend to find myself going through points where I’m either writing constantly or not at all- there’s never really a middle ground! Annoyingly, I write best when I’m angry or upset, but my phone and notepads are full of odd bits and ideas which randomly pop into my head most days.
Exposed Vocals: Do you have a band website? What online platforms do you use to share your music?
Devon Mayson: Facebook and Twitter are my personal favorites, just because it’s so easy to interact with real people, but my music is available on iTunes, Spotify, Amazon, YouTube and Soundcloud (I’ve probably missed some- there are so many!)
Exposed Vocals: What are some really embarrassing songs that we might find on your mp3 player?
Devon Mayson: Cotton Eyed Joe, Rednex & Peter Andre, Mysterious Girl- I’m not even sorry.
Exposed Vocals: If you were given half a million dollars and a year off, what would you do? How would you spend it?
Devon Mayson: On a beach, the half a million dollars might just cover the amount of SPF 50+ suncream I’d need to stay there for a year.
Exposed Vocals: Any planned studio upgrades? What are you working with now?
Devon Mayson: We recorded the whole album at The Harbour Studios, Battlesbridge- I can’t even start thinking about a second album or being back in the studio right now- Let’s tour this one first!
Exposed Vocals: How do you find ways to promote your music? What works best for you?
Devon Mayson: Promoting music is always a tricky one! Generally, I find people love to get involved. The support for this first album has been great, I think mainly because I’ve been writing for the last few years and now I’ve finally gotten around to releasing them, people love to be a part of that!
Exposed Vocals: If you could perform anywhere and with any artists (Dead or Alive) where and who would it be with? Why?
Devon Mayson: If I could sing with anyone, it would be Whitney Houston- her voice was just incredible, and we’d be performing at The Grand Ole Opry (obviously), although that would be a really obscure gig!
Exposed Vocals: So, what’s next? Any new upcoming projects that you want to talk about?
Devon Mayson: I literally can’t wait to tour ‘Lie to Me’. At the moment, we’re looking at Festivals and gigs we want to be involved in next year and I don’t think I’ve ever done so many happy dances in my life!
Exposed Vocals: If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing?
Devon Mayson: Probably driving myself and everyone around me crazy in a job I don’t particularly like…
Exposed Vocals: Do you remember buying your first album? Who was it? What was going through your head?
Devon Mayson: My Dad bought me Spice World and The Lion King Sountrack- absolute classics.
Exposed Vocals: How do you juggle the rest of your responsibilities while trying to stay ahead in your music life?
Devon Mayson: Although I seem to always be busy, I’m one of those annoying morning people who wake up at stupid o’ clock and fail miserably at lie ins no matter how late I got in from the gig the night before, so between that and my file-o-fax, I’m usually pretty good at staying on top of everything.
Exposed Vocals: What should fans look forward to in 2016?
Devon Mayson: Well, I don’t know about you guys, but we still have all the behind the scenes and bloopers to release from the album cover shoot, music video and all the antics in the studio, as well as some exciting stuff around Christmas!
