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At just 18, North London’s Bella Barbe is already carving out a space entirely her own, one built on vulnerability, grit, and an uncompromising commitment to honesty. Her debut mixtape Bird of Prey marks a defining moment in her evolution, pulling together the first chapter of a life lived through sound, self-discovery and emotional risk. Raised in Enfield in a single-parent household, Bella grew up in a home where music was constant, a quiet companion that shaped her curiosity long before she realised it could be a career. What began as singing other people’s songs quickly turned into writing her own in her bedroom, where she first discovered the fearless sense of purpose that music still gives her today.
Bird of Prey lands at the end of a breakthrough year, arriving just days before Bella’s sold-out headline show at The Waiting Room—an early signal of the audience her raw storytelling is beginning to command. Blending soul, hip-hop, trip-hop, punk attitude, and poetic lyricism, Bella builds a sound that’s as multifaceted as the influences that shaped her: the cinematic freedom of Kate Bush, the sample-rich grit of Wu-Tang Clan, the shadowy atmospheres of Portishead. These contrasting worlds collide to form a voice that refuses to fit neatly into one genre, something Bella once questioned, until she realised that chaos, instinct, and experimentation were exactly what made her sound uniquely hers.
The mixtape traces the emotional terrain of stepping into adulthood: friendships shifting (Close Call), independence taking shape, and the bravery required to look inward. Its lead track, Bird of Prey—written during Bella’s first trip to LA—carries a moody, cinematic tension, while Into The Night marks her most vulnerable moment yet and her first production credit. Born from a period of stress, exhaustion, and anxiety, the song became a turning point, grounding her in a new self-awareness: the realisation that strength comes not from perfection but from honesty, rest, and facing the dark head-on.
Across the interview, Bella reflects with striking clarity on the experiences shaping her art, from collapsing on a plane due to burnout, to learning the power of pacing herself, to embracing the imperfections that once made her self-conscious. She speaks openly about therapy, journaling, and the courage it takes to dismantle the pressure to appear endlessly put-together. Vulnerability, she says, isn’t weakness but a way to connect something she hopes will make others feel less alone.
Driven by instinct, sharpened by resilience, and rooted in a generation unafraid to break genre rules, Bella Barbe stands as one of the UK’s most compelling young voices. Bird of Prey doesn’t just announce her arrival; it documents the moment she chose to fully step into who she is, with all the chaos, courage, and clarity that come with it. And if this first chapter is any indication, Bella isn’t just rising, she’s soaring.
What was your earliest memory of connecting with music? Was there a moment when you realised it could become more than just a hobby?
I grew up hearing music playing constantly, so much that it felt weird to not have music playing. I always felt so comfortable and relaxed, it always made me feel curious and creative. I started singing other musician’s songs quite young but it was only when I got to secondary school and started writing songs in my bedroom and rapping that I realised that it was the only thing that had ever made me feel natural and fearless. I just want to keep doing that forever.
North London has such a rich creative energy from its community spirit to its underground scenes. How has your area influenced your sound or the way you approach your art?
In the part of North London that I grew up in, I found there was a lack of creative energy in my area on a day to day basis, so I had to find my inspirations from other sources, getting on the train every weekend to visit galleries, listen to new artists and take part in music events and discover other parts of the UK. I think that London is beautiful because of its blend of culture, style and fashion. Even the grey weather has inspired me, I think it adds an element of ruthlessness and bravery to the music that I make.
Growing up in that environment, who were some of your biggest inspirations, either musically or personally?
During that specific period of discovery, I became very inspired by a Bristol-based music group called Portishead; their samples and dark sounding drums were very intriguing to me as I hadn’t heard anything like that before. I always was and still am really into an artist called Kate Bush, I had never heard any vocals like hers, really emotive and free, not so worried about the typical structure of a melody, and also the Notorious B.I.G who’s cold, hard east coast rap, really felt relatable to me as it reminded me of the cold London weather, and it reinforced my desire to get hustling with my career from such a young age.
You’ve described ‘Into The Night’ as your most vulnerable song yet. What headspace were you in when you first started writing it?
When I wrote ‘Into the Night’, I had just collapsed on a plane on the way to take my first break in a long time with my mum. I passed out due to stress and fatigue, which hadn’t been the first time it had happened. It was a real wake-up call for me, I’d been living under the illusion that good work meant no breaks and that good work meant perfect. I was wrong, I’m still going through a process of changing the way I treat myself in times of stress, allowing myself more grace. Sometimes, you have to step into the night or the dark to face fears and come out better for it.
The song began as a demo in your bedroom before being co-produced with Jonny Coffer. What was it like turning such a personal track into a collaborative process?
The song started as a demo I made in my bedroom. I’m used to writing songs on the spot in the studio, so writing it all solely from home and then sharing it with the incredible Jonny Coffer after it had been written, really allowed me to immerse myself in what I was saying, I wanted to be very clear with what I was trying to say, “I am struggling right now, but I won’t be forever”, when I shared the song with Jonny, he really brought that message to life and made the point so much stronger, that is why this song means so much to me.
You mentioned this track came from a time when you were dealing with anxiety and pressure. How did making the song help you navigate or process those emotions?
This was the first time I had dealt with anxiety, so I really had no experience or coping skills, these are the things I did, therapy, lots of journaling and exercise and self love, I’m still learning to be kind to myself and loose this feeling that I should try to be perfect because it has no benefit, so this is where it stops.
It’s also your first time stepping into production. What inspired you to take that leap, and how has it changed your relationship with your own music?
Stepping into the early stages of production for the first time felt like it opened another pathway for me, one I hadn’t really seen myself doing before, but it allows me to explore ideas on my own, ones that I might feel nervous to present to others, so it just allows me a safe space. In the future, I would definitely like to advance my skills in that field.
Your sound blends soul, hip-hop, trip-hop, punk energy, and poetic lyricism. It’s such a unique mix. How did you find your voice within those genres?
Someone called me confused once, which made me feel bad for this ambitious blend that I have, but I feel like each genre helped me to accept and understand myself more and more, so that confused blend is helping me make my own unique sound. These genres showed the beauty of chaos and effortlessness. Each genre adds an element to the music, whether that’s instrumentally or lyrically or vocally.
You’ve cited influences like Kate Bush and Wu-Tang Clan, two very different worlds. What do you take from each, and how do they merge in your creative process?
When I listened to Kate Bush, she showed me that there is more to singing a song; you gotta be able to stand by what you are saying. She really believes every word. As an artist, she really resembles someone who is wild and free, something that I had struggled with in the past, until I had tried to put that in my own music; she lets her instincts and vocals lead the way. Wu-Tang Clan taught me so many valuable lessons; get inspired by the past, their use of samples taught me this, taking old Jazz, Motown and Classical samples. And most importantly, that I had to invest in my pen, my vocabulary – they are so expressive and bold, and I want to be like that. That’s where rap came into play for me. I started reading more books and listening to rap all the time until my brain started to form its own ideas. The two together help me to be as expressive as I possibly can.
Do you think your generation of artists approaches genre and storytelling differently compared to those before you?
I think the beauty of my generation is that we have much more choice and freedom and access to art compared to the past; however, I think we can constantly improve and evolve. But I think it still comes from the same place, which is the soul; the best art, new or old in my opinion, comes from the soul and your own unique life experience.
You’ve released powerful songs like ‘Go To Dinner’, ‘Ten Toes Down’, and ‘Lonely Soldier’, each exploring resilience and emotion. How do you see your evolution from those earlier tracks to ‘Into The Night’?
I think when I started making music, I was quite naive, especially compared to those around me, compared to my friends, it felt embarrassing, so that’s what ‘Lonely Soldier’ came from, a lot of lyrics about the world through my innocent perspective. This past year has been a tough one for me personally, but it’s really brought me a lot of confidence to say what I gotta say, and that’s what ‘Into the Night’ was born out of, the message didn’t become diluted.
What does vulnerability mean to you in music? Do you ever feel scared to share that side of yourself publicly?
Being vulnerable is the strongest thing to be in my opinion, it’s so scary but I feel like it’s important for human connection so we can understand each other better, but I feel like for my own wellbeing it’s important to have the balance of a personal life and being vulnerable, it’s not nice to be worrying about what people may take out of context or use against you, but it may also make someone feel less alone. Sometimes when I say the things that scare me out loud, it makes them less scary.
If you could write a message to your younger self from when you first started making music, what would you say?
My most important message to my younger self would be, you are absolutely fine, you don’t need to be anything other than yourself, so just say what you gotta say. But I feel like I should still be saying that to myself now. I’m not fully there yet, but I’m hoping to be one day.
Looking ahead, what kind of stories or emotions are you most interested in exploring next?
As I’m stepping into young adulthood, I face more things on my own that bring new stories to tell and new people in my life. I look forward to the trials and achievements of the upcoming year as I step into young adulthood. Also, I definitely want to get more into the production side of my music.
