Check The Notes with Ruby Wood

Friends! I hope you are well. I hope your heart is still leading you to find good music, particularly from independent artists. Today I have the distinct honor to introduce THE Ruby Wood. Hailing from Huddersfield, Ruby has created a presence in music that is undeniable. She’s best known for her role as lead vocalist in the world renowned band Submotion Orchestra but I was introduced to her as a solo act, while also serving background vocals for Marie Dahlstrom. It has been a joy watching her soar to heights in this season, including being a surprise act of Bryson Tiller’s during his tour run in Europe. Without further ado—

If you were having a biopic made about your life, who would you want to play the role of Ruby Wood and what are three notable moments you’d want highlighted about your upbringing in the film?

I’ve been told I look a bit like Kate Winslet so perhaps she could play me haha. 3 notable moments, hmm I’d say mostly growing up as the only white person in most situations played a huge role in making me who I am today. My upbringing was (thankfully) very culturally diverse, I grew up in a heavily Pakistani populated area and all of my friends were Muslim. My family and I avoided most of the other white people in the area as a lot of them were racist and just not our sort of people really. I then joined a steel band from the age of 7, and again I was the only one who wasn’t from a Caribbean family. I think as a white person being made to experience being “other” from a young age was actually hugely beneficial to me, and my understanding and appreciation now of race and religion. Joining Submotion Orchestra is another moment that changed the course of my life. It has no doubt been my biggest, most successful project to date and I am very proud of all we have achieved and accomplished over the years. And the final notable moment was becoming a mother to my beautiful daughter Amber. Again this was a life changing moment for me and I’m very grateful to have been lucky enough to experience motherhood and be her mama.

Can you recall the defining moment that you discovered your gift and that you would explore that gift professionally?

I had been playing the steel pan from the age of 7, but I never imagined at that point that I would grow up to be a full time musician/singer. I had singing lessons at school but I never really enjoyed singing the songs that they taught me. I enjoyed singing but wasn’t really into songs from the shows or pop songs either. I learnt ‘Someone to watch over me’ - Gershwin and thought it was a beautiful song, I then discovered the Ella Fitzgerald version and that’s when my love for jazz and jazz vocalists begun.

My parents were big lovers of jazz so I borrowed all my dad’s cds and started trying to internalise all this new (to me) , exciting music. I was the kid at school when all my friends were listening to garage or drum and bass, I’d be listening to Ella and Sarah Vaughan instead on my Walkman.

My parents could see I had an interest in jazz singing and so took me to see a touring Blues singer called Angela Brown. I absolutely loved the show, from the way she felt the music, to how she told the stories through song. I met her after the show and she said “honey, you stay away from those MEN!” Haha

I attended a Jazz summer school at what would later become the university I chose to go to (Leeds College of Music) and was taught by an amazing singer called Tina May (sadly RIP) who introduced me to understanding the basics of jazz harmony, and phrasing and I was able to practice scatting. She made me feel so encouraged and once after I had performed she said “Ella was in the building then!” Which was obviously great to hear for me! :)

Were there any specific albums associated with that moment or leading up to it?

Every Ella album (there’s too many to mention) but the album that really changed everything for me was ‘Who is Jill Scott, words and sound Volume 1’ - my boyfriend at the time bought it for me as a present! It changed everything for me! I’d never heard anything like it! Jill’s voice, her lyricism, the musicality! I listened that album to death!

You’ve had the luxury of rooting yourself in many different cultures of the world, including Caribbean culture. Which culture do you feel most influences the music you make?

Oh, music of black origin, definitely! There’s no doubt about it! I love and appreciate all music and cultures, but music of black origin just touches my soul. All my favourite artists are black. That’s no coincidence I don’t think!

Your resume speaks for itself: lead vocalist for the world-renowned band Submotion Orchestra, background vocals for Marie Dahlstrom, featured on a 4x platinum record, First Word Records signee, performing at major festivals, tours and so on. Do you recall ever feeling validated and what’s the most important lesson you’ve learned from those opportunities?

Receiving the platinum plaque as a gift from Bryson Tiller before his last show in London was incredibly special to me. And it is a reminder that music is magic. ✨ It’s always good to stay patient with it and remember that although we may not always see instant results, good music works behind the scenes, travelling through the airwaves, reaching different people’s ears. It’s lovely to be appreciated and recognised by someone who I admire so much also. When I listen to Right My Wrongs now I always remember young 22 year old Ruby, fresh out of uni, who didn’t really know what she was doing.

I’m proud of her for keeping going even though there have been many, many times I’ve wanted to give up.

I have the plaque up in my studio as a reminder to never give up.

Do you remember your initial thoughts and feelings after getting the call that Bryson Tiller wanted to sample your voice on his debut album?

Honestly, I do. And it’s kind of embarrassing. Haha!

At that time All Yours by Submotion Orchestra was getting sampled left, right and centre and mostly by people who hadn’t requested sample clearance. We’d been replying to YouTube videos saying our management will be in touch to get them to take the video down. Someone shared

Right my wrongs, and I remember we were all driving back from playing at a festival so we replied to Bryson on twitter saying our manager will be in touch lol

Next thing we know our manager calls up and tells us to remove the tweet immediately as it was legit sample! Little did we know that song would become our highest paying sample! He righted our wrongs, excuse the pun!

You’ve performed that chorus live on several occasions, including Bryson’s recent European run of his world tour. How surreal is it that folks are still discovering that you’re the voice behind the sample and hearing them sing those lyrics back to you on stage?

It’s an incredible feeling, I can’t lie! I think people are often surprised when they realise it’s me singing the hook. My friend said before she knew it was me she thought it was a black girl singing! (Another compliment!)

Bryson has been performing the song with his daughter recently also, and nothing beats watching them sing it together and the new meaning of the song and how meaningful it appears to be to them both. It really is an honour to be involved!

In what ways do you feel that motherhood has rewarded your creative process as a musician?

It’s giving me more drive, I want to make her proud of me, and hopefully inspire her to pursue a career in music someday. She’s definitely showing signs of passion and interest. I’ve written quite a few songs already about motherhood, documenting the journey so far. It’s nice, like a snapshot of this period of our lives.

Do you find yourself more impassioned about singing or songwriting? Which element has matured more over time?

I’d like to think that both have matured over time. I definitely feel more comfortable using my voice now, and I accept what it can and can’t do and discovering what my unique selling point is with it. I’d love to sing like Mariah but I’ve accepted that just isn’t my voice, y’know.

Song writing again, I hope it has developed. I feel more confident writing about personal situations now. Before I think I felt a bit shy but now I’m just like, if I felt it I can write it. For a long time in Submotion Orchestra I felt like my writing wasn’t good enough because of the different dynamics and relationships within the band, but I definitely feel better now with age, and experience.

Sincerely was a body of work about a young woman navigating love, heartbreak and friendship. What experiences have inspired you during this phase of creating new music?

Thanks for calling me young 🙏🏼🤣 - Still write about love and heartbreak. Dating in 2024 is not for the faint hearted!! I’ll tell ya that for free!! Haha!

I’ve tried to channel some of my feelings towards what’s happening in the world, it’s difficult though, sometimes I feel like I don’t know enough about what I’m trying right now wrote about. Also I’m aware that music is often escapism for some so I think that holds me back sometimes, and often feel like I should write about happy things instead.

No matter what role you choose, everyone’s journey in music is unique. Has your journey, so far, been everything you imagined? What milestones, collaborations and stages are in Ruby’s sight next?

It’s been amazing, I am so grateful for all the wonderful experiences I’ve had,

And hopefully the wonderful experiences yet to come. Im working on my next solo EP, and Submotion has a new EP and tour in November so there are things in the pipeline.

I can’t lie though, currently I’m looking for a part time job to help fund this career. Unfortunately work in the arts is up and down and very much easy come, easy go. Like Frank Sinatra said “you’re riding high in April, shut down in May” it feels very much like that. I’m in a bit of a down period currently where I’m worried about paying my next bills.

Are there any London based independent R&B acts that we need on our radar?

Other than the wonderful Marie Dahlstrom, there is Sipprell, Frenchie, Emmavie, Ego Ella May, Dan Diggas,, J Warner, Tex, Stac, Kyra, Sophie Faith, James Vickery, Cherise, Conor Albert to name but a few!

Outside of being a badass musician, you’ve also added DJ to your list of talents. What’s the backstory to that adventure and, in terms of gear, what’s your favorite set up?

Haha yes DJing came a knockin’ on my door. I’m absolutely loving the journey though! I recently moved back to the north of England after 10 years of living in London. One day a friend called Joe Luckin who drums in my solo band asked if he could pass on my details to his friend JonJo who runs an event called Ramona Radio in Manchester where they invite people each week to play their favourite music and talk about why the tunes are important to them. I thought it sounded great so turned up with a usb and 3 hrs worth of music. When I arrived the host asked if I’d ever dj’d before, and I replied no. So, in 10 mins he quickly showed me what to do and had to lend me.a pair of headphones too lol and I was left alone to do the rest. Talk about being thrown in the deep end haha, at the end of the show he asked if I’d like some dj gigs and yeah, that was two years ago and it’s gone from strength to strength. It’s become a lovely side hustle to my singing. I really love it and love learning a new skill too, and it also makes me listen to music differently as well. I’m always thinking about genres and tempos and how songs would blend.

It’s really opened up a new exciting world for me! 🙏🏼

I'm not a proper DJ in terms of playing vinyl just yet, I use the industry standard pioneer club decks and mixers. I also have a little DDJ 400 that I practice with at home connected to Rekordbox.

I think it’s safe to say that the last few years have been a rollercoaster for us all, how are you nurturing your heart and mind?

With great difficulty! Currently as I mentioned before I’m stressing about money, and that plays into my feelings of self worth. I often wonder how long I can keep this up for, always having to do shitty part time jobs in order to support my music career. I had to quit my last teaching job recently as they wouldn’t let me have time off to sing with Bryson Tiller at Wembley Arena, I obviously told them where to stick it (a no brainer) and then received a disciplinary from them but it means I’m now wondering where my next payment is. Sadly music just doesn’t pay the bills for most of us at the level I’m at.

I try to keep myself happy by appreciating time with my daughter, and family and friends, making sure I have things to look forward to such as future gigs, and spending time outside in nature. Practicing self care and trying to not beat myself up when times are hard.

From the editor: Loved ones— I’m grateful that you all continue to take this ride with me. It is an absolute honor to bring the best of what R&B has to offer to this space for fruitful dialogue. Let us continue uplifting Ruby in her journey: . Buy the EP (directly from preferred platform), buy tickets to shows, merch and so on. Let’s keep the love euphoric and as authentic as possible. I’ve linked the latest body of work below. Please give it a few spins and tell a friend about it. I hope you’ll join me again, there’s always room!

Check The Notes with Ruby Wood

Check The Notes with Taylor Contarino