My name is Aaron Taylor, and I’m a London born and raised artist/producer/songwriter. My new EP HAVE A NICE DAY! went through several variations and tracklist selections, just because I’d built up music over lockdown. Eventually I noticed a theme of what I describe as a “day in the life” of Aaron Taylor.
There are songs about morning coffee, about wanting to have a nice day, about just taking it easy. Becoming a father has highlighted the importance of enjoying each day as much as possible and reminded me to take pleasure in the simple things. Musically, this selection of songs flowed best and were mostly composed within a similar window of time.
“Have A Nice Day” is the title track of my new EP, and so you would be forgiven for thinking it’s what initiated the inception of the project. However, it was the hardest song to write and the last one that came together; I was content to leave it as an interlude but got encouraged by numerous people to turn it into a full song.
Musically it felt too cheesy and not the “cool” musical direction I wanted to go in. Lyrically, it felt like an oversimplification of the troubles that have plagued not just me personally but also the world over the last few years.
However the more I worked on it the more I realised it felt like a song that we actually needed to hear. Something in its sing-song simplicity makes me feel good on days where I don’t. I’m super proud to have been the sole producer and writer on it – just to remind me of what can be achieved.
“Ebbs And Flows” is a song that sums up how life was for me over lockdown. I didn’t get up to all that much but also was OK with that. It’s about being content with the ups and downs of life and not breaking to the pressure of having to feel busy or purposeful. The instrumental was sent to me and it’s the first time I wasn’t involved in the musical idea from scratch.
For “Patience”, I was also sent a rough instrumental to Patience and knew I wanted to write to it. Lyrically it taps into the frustration I can feel as someone with high ambitions and was another reminder to self to be OK with the pace of life. Musically it taps into my gospel roots and I think Madison Ryann Ward is one of my favourite singers of today, so it’s really special having her contribute vocals to it.
“Joy Inside” was written whilst holding my son in my arms and trying to evaluate how I felt despite tiredness and sleepless nights. There’s an indescribable joy that underlies all of the hurdles of parenthood. I wanted to write about how I felt about fatherhood and it was beautiful to again have a choir and my sons’ mother contribute vocals to the song.
“Coffee In The Morning” describes wanting to be everything to a person, an indispensable presence in their life. Songs like this tend to be born out of my own self-esteem, but needing a “pick me up” in life to function felt universal, particularly using the metaphor of coffee, and ultimately led to what I hope is a relatable ballad that underpins the theme of the EP.
The song uses electric and acoustic guitars in a way I haven’t done previously – it’s a bit more middle of the road – and it was fun to focus on writing and producing in a way that reflected the simplicity of the concept.
Listen to my new EP Have A Nice Day below and stream it wherever you listen to your music here.
