IN CONVERSATION WITH HENRY MOODIE

interview by MAREK BARTEK

A rising start of the music industry, Henry Moodie just released his latest EP ‘good old days’ on 27th September. At just 20-years-old, Henry already achieved more than 450 million streams worldwide, landed in the Top 10 most viewed UK artists on TikTok in 2022 and has been named amongst Amazon Music’s Artists To Watch in 2023. His release is followed by a UK and European tour in October and November, which includes a headline show at the Roundhouse in London on 28th October.

Your new EP ‘good old days’ just came out in September. What has the response been like from fans so far, and how does it feel to finally have this project out in the world?

The response has been so lovely, everyone already has their favourite songs! It feels amazing to finally put out this record. I wrote so many songs over the past year and I felt like these six reflected what my late teens felt like the best! 

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shoes MANOLO BLAHNIK
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The ‘good old days’ EP touches on themes like mental health, friendship, love, and heartbreak. How did your personal experiences shape the songwriting process for this record?


I wanted this record to reflect different aspects of growing up. For example: ‘right person, wrong time’ is about my first love, ‘still dancing’ is about my first heartbreak, ‘beat up car’ is inspired by friendship, ‘bad emotions’ is a song about my mental health, and ‘the old me’ is a song about having an existential crisis. The title track ‘good old days’ felt like the perfect song to reflect the EP. It's about how sometimes growing up can feel like hell but these experiences will ultimately shape us and one day when we get older we look back and call these the good old days. I feel like growing up comes with so many emotions, the highs are high, but the lows are low - that’s why this EP is full of so many different moods!

You’ve released singles like ‘beat up car’ and ‘bad emotions’ leading up to the EP. Were these tracks always intended to be part of the project, or did they take on new meaning as the EP came together?

Yes, these tracks were always intended to be part of the project. I felt like ‘beat up car’ was the perfect lead single as it felt like a step forward in the right direction for me. My music before 'beat up car’ was quite bedroom pop - and I wanted to indicate a new era by putting out a song that sounded anthem-like, and almost cinematic (in the production).

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You’re about to embark on a major UK and European tour, with a headline show at the iconic Roundhouse in London. How are you preparing for these performances, and what can fans expect from your live shows?

I’m so excited for tour! I love falling asleep on the bus and waking up in a completely new city and performing in front of lovely crowds. I get a bit nervous before tours, so I’ve booked in a week of rehearsals to make sure I nail the set! These are gonna be the longest shows I’ve ever done as we have a whole new EP to play and we’re bringing in a lot more on the production side of things. Hopefully this will feel like a level up to everyone.

Your songwriting often carries a lot of emotional vulnerability. Do you find it challenging to be so open in your music, especially as your audience continues to grow?


It is quite difficult to be vulnerable with your music because once it’s out in the world, everyone has access to your deepest thoughts. However, artists like Taylor Swift and Conan Gray have helped me through such difficult times because they are so vulnerable with their music. And that inspires me to be vulnerable, so hopefully I can help other people going through hard times and make them feel less alone with their experience.

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Having achieved more than 450 million streams globally at just 20 years old, how do you stay grounded and continue to evolve as an artist?


I have such an incredible family and all my friends from school, so when I come home, it’s very much back to normal life! Sometimes I feel like Hannah Montana with a double life. 

Your music has resonated deeply with fans across platforms like TikTok. How has social media influenced your connection with fans and the way you share your music?


TikTok is incredible! The power of that platform is nuts. It fully changed my life and most new artists break through that app. Social media definitely brings me closer to my fans, as I can connect with them in real time. I’m also chronically online, so I constantly see what they’re saying. 

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top & trousers STELLA MCCARTNEY
shoes MANOLO BLAHNIK 

You completed a songwriting diploma at BIMM before launching your solo career. How has your formal education influenced your approach to music creation and performance?


To be completely honest I think teaching songwriting is kind of impossible. You can teach different structures of songs and you can teach different chords, but ultimately every song is different and each genre has a completely different method of songwriting to it. BIMM was really useful because it gave me a great social life. I was in London every single day connecting with other musicians. Being in a music college definitely had me constantly inspired and that was an era when I wrote a lot of music.

Looking back at your debut EP ‘in all of my lonely nights’, how do you feel you’ve grown as a musician and songwriter between that release and ‘good old days’?


As I said earlier, I think 'in all of my lonely nights’ was a little bit more bedroom pop sounding. The production wasn’t as big and the lyrics were a little bit smaller. My life has changed so much since I wrote that record — I’ve been touring the world and making so many incredible new memories. Therefore, the ‘soundtrack to my life’ has felt much bigger and more cinematic. I wanted ‘good old days’ to feel more like that.

Without giving too much away, can you share anything about what’s next for you in 2025 and how you’re planning to build on the success of this year’s releases?

I’m gonna be working on my first album, which I’m so excited for. You only get your first album once, so I’m gonna make sure this is the best I can possibly do!

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TEAM CREDITS:
talent HENRY MOODIE
photographer DEBORA BRUNE at DILLER Global
stylist ELLA-LOUISE ANDREW
groomer JOSH KNIGHT at A-FRAME AGENCY
photography assistants MARIE WILLEKE & NINA OBERMANN
styling assistant KAY FERGUSON
editor TIMI LETONJA
editorial director JANA LETONJA
interview MAREK BARTEK