Artist Bio

Hailing from the Scottish Highlands, but currently based in Leeds/Glasgow, Josephine Sillars is a pop musician inspired by art-pop  drawing comparisons to Fiona Apple and Bjork.

Her 2021 EP “Desperate Characters”, funded by Help Musicians, was described as “compelling and expansive” (Tenement TV) and as “hands down one of the finest Scottish releases of 2021” (Small Music Scene), with lead single “Enemy” selected as Track of the Week for BBC Introducing in West Yorkshire and as 71 out of 100 Top Tunes in Scotland 2021 (The Herald). She released her debut vinyl "Spend Time Wasting" via Leeds label Come Play With Me in November 2022, a 7" split with Fuzz Lightyear. "Spend Time Wasting" was featured as a Track of the Week for God Is In the TV, and described as "dreamy and immersive" by Tenement TV with features in DORK, Lock Magazine and the UK Official Charts.

From March - June 2023, Josephine was the Artist in Residence at Vinyl Whistle, Leeds, curating nights showcasing alt-pop music from Yorkshire called POP TRASH, and released two new singles,  with single "Slow" described as "A heady mix of influences such as hyperpop and 90s pop […] with rippling synths, hazy guitars and layers of pop influence, the vibrant instrumentation contrasts its self-reflective lyrical content." (Tenement TV). 

In October 2023 Josephine released a collaborative EP with electro-folk act Loughlin, titled "Someone Else's Break Up", following one of their demos receiving over half a million views on TikTok (and a celebrity cameo from Michael Sheen, after he tweeted the pair a voice note to use with permission as a sample for the lead track "Stuck in Horror").

Her latest EP "The Loveliest Things Change" was released in March 2024,  receiving support from BBC Introducing, Amazing Radio and more, with lead single "That Boy" described as "an EP standout" by The Skinny.

Alongside Rachel Johnson , Josephine is also co-leader of the Popgirlz Scotland, a group supporting women, trans and non-binary people in music. Through Popgirlz, Josephine and Rachel have led on a lecture series to leading UK, Irish and Scandinavian Universities presenting research into intersectionality within Spotify Algorithms. Their research has been championed by The Skinny, Scots Magazine and published by PRS M Magazine. 

Josephine is also a session synth player and backing vocalist.  She is currently working with The Girobabies, Lines of Flight and Declan Welsh and the Decadent West, and has performed as a session player at venues such as The Barrowlands (with Jackal Trades as a vocalist, and DWDW as a synth player/vocalist) and festival stages such as the TRNSMT Main Stage.


Download high-res images here (credit Rhianonne Stone).

Listen on Spotify

Press

"Accomplished dreamy singer songwriter Josephine Sillars has this month delivered one of her best collaboratives to date with her three track EP Someone Else’s Break Up. Teaming with Leeds based Loughlin (aka Jay Taylor), Someone Else’s Break Up pushes the limits of Sillars creativity with Oh Fuck being an mesmerising stand out track. Of the three songs, Oh Fuck didn’t generate the same momentum as single Stuck In Horror (Literally Anything) which features a literal cameo audio appearance from Michael Sheen. What Oh Fuck lacks in celebrity credit makes up in heart clenching intensity. Hauntingly simple, the stripped back appeal of Josephine and her keys is something to indulge in. Delicate yet intense, Oh Fuck gradually builds to climatic high that is frankly worthy of some of the best in the mainstream chart. The dreamy discordant synth backdrop is simply mesmerising and I swear once you listen to this track once then you will have to return for more." - Northern Exposure 
"LEEDS-based, Scottish singer-songwriter Josephine Sillars has followed up recent single ‘That Boy’ with a new offering called ‘Slow’. Both songs will feature on an upcoming EP. A heady mix of influences such as hyperpop and 90s pop, it’s an inspired creation that unexpectedly derives from a period of burn out. With rippling synths, hazy guitars and layers of pop influence, the vibrant instrumentation contrasts its self-reflective lyrical content." - Tenement TV
"Leeds art-pop artist Josephine Sillars has shared a new single, ‘Spend Time Wasting’. It is her second drop of the year, following September’s ‘Bad Dream’, and is released as the concluding record from Come Play With Me, a non-for-profit vinyl singles club that has highlighted a variety of West Yorkshire emerging talent since its creation in 2015." - DORK 
"With its delightful swagger this is a tune to light up daytime radio and serves as a grand finale to the most estimable Come Play With Me singles club. Listening to ‘Spend Time Wasting’ is unquestionably time well spent. (Simon Godley)" - God Is In The TV
"The whimsical Highlands musician now based in Leeds produced a captivatingly ethereal 4m 39s from the Desperate Characters EP that is a heady, experimental collision of trip hop moods, Asian influences and indie." - The Herald (single Enemy selected as 71/100 Top Tunes in Scotland 2021) 

Live Session:

Stage Plan / Live Band

Josephine Sillars - Lead vocals 
Jamie Hogg - Bass, bass synth, backing vocals
Jay Taylor - Guitar, backing vocals
Lauren Rycroft - Backing Vocals 
Hamish Wilkinson - Drums & Backing Tracks Samples via SPDs
Adam Bairstow - Engineer