Women to Inspire. Interview with Vicky Jones

We met Vicky in London around a year ago. Vicky works within a PR agency in London but also is an extremely talented singer songwriter who has just performed 3 shows with super group MCbusted at the O2 Arena in London as VIX.  You may have recently seen her as the red haired singer on Tom Jones team on the Voice earlier this year. Vicky is an extremely inspirational lady when it comes to working within the tough fashion and music industry; we caught up with her to let us in on the secret.

JH: Hey Love, any little details we’ve missed out in the introduction before I carry on?
We know you work at a PR agency in London? Can you tell us just a brief description of what you do?

VJ: It mainly consists of work with fashion and lifestyle brands securing press and co-ordinating product placements with celebrities.  I also manage social media accounts for clients and sometimes blogs.  A few times a year I'm involved in organising and hosting press launches and big event too, this is my favourite part!

JH: Did you always want to work in PR or has music always been your passion?

VJ: Music will always be my first love but I always wanted an academic back up so I studied a business degree in Music Management at University and realised that I enjoyed the law and Pr & Marketing modules the best.  I knew I probably wasn't ever going to fit into a legal environment with tattoos and (then) purple hair, so I decided to pursue PR as a more sensible option.  I originally wanted to work in music PR but then was offered an internship with a fashion agency so I thought why not and I've never really looked back since.  

JH: We saw your cover of Katy Perrys ‘Unconditionally’ and as much as we love Katy, we actually preferred your version. Do you find it hard juggling your day job with music?

VJ: I'm not even going to lie, it is hard. To find the energy at the end of a full work day where you've been sat on your laptop promoting brands and dealing with press, the last thing I really want to do is spend more time on my computer doing the same thing except promoting myself.  I will sometimes work till 5pm and then rehearse 10pm - 1am which can be tiring but you just get on and do it you know, I'm driven by my vision of where I want to be and I genuinely love it and the guys in my band are so much fun, we work hard but we mainly we just have a laugh.

JH: How did you become a part of The Voice earlier this year?

VJ: I was actually scouted to be part of the show.  They're quite open about the fact that they do that and the team actively go out to find talent.  I was approached by one of the shows producers. Initially I said no but after a few phone calls they persuaded me to go along to an audition, and I just thought 'What have I got to lose'? I had my first audition the next morning at 9am and I didn't even have a full song prepared.  I wasn't really singing much at the time so I struggled to choose a song and in the end I sang two songs for them.  The second song was just a track by The Civil Wars that I had been listening to a lot at the time, I didn't have any music and I made the words up, but it seemed to do the trick and I got through to call backs.

JH: And of course we have to ask you how amazing was it to play at the O2 Arena?

VJ: This was hands down one of the best times of my life.  Words cannot describe the feeling of looking out to 16,000 people and singing your own songs to them.  I only found out 6 weeks before the 1st show that I was going to be doing it so I swiftly put a band together, cherry picking a few boys I'd worked with before and others that I knew from other bands I had seen in the past.  It was incredibly hard work, we rehearsed every night for almost a month and wrote and recorded 2 original tracks 'Bang Bang" and "Remedy", then we re-worked two cover versions 'Crazy' by Gnarls Berkley and then 'Rather Be' by Clean Bandit.  I still don't know how we managed to pull it off, but we did and it was the single most exhilarating experience of my life, one I will never forget.  People asked me if I was nervous, but I wasn't It just felt so natural to be up there.  I just stood there and thought…..this is what I am meant to do.

JH: We feel that you are an extremely inspirational lady to a lot of young girls out that who want to follow in fashion and music. If you could give them advice on something you felt you were never told when you were younger before following this path?

VJ: I really struggled with feeling judged because I was related to someone famous. I tried to hide it in case people used it against me or tried to attribute my success to it.  I never wanted to use it for my own gain, I wanted to be known on my own merit but actually hiding it made it worse. I am close to my brother, we spend time together, we write together, we party together and it was just silly to feel that I couldn't celebrate that, it became stressful trying to conceal it.  So I would say the best advice anyone ever gave me was to just accept who you are because you can't change whats true,  once you can do that and be comfortable with who you are and where you've come from,  you will strive.

JH: What is possibly your biggest regret in your journey and how have you learnt from it?

VJ: Not taking more risks and not believing in myself enough.   They come hand in hand.  If i had believed in myself more i would have taken more risks to pursue music.  Having said that I believe in trusting the timing of your life, everything in its own space and time, and that time is now. 

JH: What has been your most proudest moment?

VJ: Without a doubt playing the O2 arena.  I have seen some of my biggest idols play that stage, and suddenly there I was. Magical.

JH: Do you feel that being a woman has ever effected your position within your work?

 VJ: Nah, not at all, fashion is a womans world…but if you're talking about music then yes I would say so. 

JH: These industries can be tough, what keeps your head held up high everyday and keeps you following your dreams?

 VJ: Quite simply a desire for something more.  I am OBSESSED with music, it's what I love and if i could wake up every day knowing that that is what that day had in store for me then I would have achieved happiness.

JH:Last question, what have we got to look forward to come from yourself over the next coming months?

VJ: Well at the moment I am planning a mini UK tour in November and am also writing and recording for a debut EP.  There are also some really exciting opportunities popping up for 2015 but I can't say just yet.

Check out Vicky on Facebook: www.facebook.com/officiallyvix

Instagram: @vix_official