Lyv Forever: local artist Lyvia talks virality and playing live

When thinking of a Notts musician that fit that ‘street artist’ tag, your name immediately sprung to mind. How did the idea of the Maid Marian Way performance videos come about?

Basically, my mum had given me a deadline to make something happen. I had been busking –that was my source of income when I was at uni, but then I graduated and I was still busking. I needed to figure something out. So, mum gave me six months to figure it out.

I called my friend Jamal (Sterrett, @jamalsterrett) who films my videos, and I was like “bro, you need to just meet me once a week, in town, and we’ll just go to a bunch of different places and we’ll film videos… ‘cause I need to go viral, I need something to happen!”

We tried a bunch of different places: Victoria café, bus stops, random streets, clothes shops – and then Jamal had the idea to film on the corner we film on now.

Then in lockdown, I used to do these things called Cup of Tea diaries. I used to sit on the step in my garden, just have a cup of tea and rap. So, I took the mug with me to the corner and was just like, “Shall I use it?” – you know, continue the whole thing. But, I just didn’t like the video. I didn’t like the clip on the corner, I didn’t like my outfit, so I decided I wouldn't post that one.

Then I went on a trip to Kenya and I was trying to be consistent with the posting. I eventually ran out of videos; the only one I had left was this one on the corner. I posted it, woke up, and saw it had like a million views – I was like, what the hell?! I then rang Jamal and said “bro, we need to film 100 videos on this spot!!” 

So that’s how that whole thing was birthed. We wanted it to feel like busking – that was what I had been doing, but the spots I used to busk in weren’t very aesthetic. 

And why did you choose Maid Marian Way in particular, was there any significance for that stretch of road or was it just that it was more aesthetic compared to those other busking spots?

I’ve got to give this one to Jamal, he’s got the most artistic eye that I’ve ever met. He was just walking through town and he saw the street. If you look at the corner – without the framing that Jamal does, it doesn’t look like anything. But he’d taken a picture on his phone and said, “we’ve got to film here, I think it will look really good!”

That’s one thing I’ve learned: trust Jamal. He’s so clever and so creative. We didn’t realise how prominent it (the Maid Marian Way spot) was going to become. Then obviously it became the name of my first project, purely just because of the videos.

And did you ever expect those clips to take off like they have done?

Never! Honestly when I was posting the songs, they weren’t even songs. I couldn’t even play guitar at the time – I just recorded this random idea I had into my computer and liked the sound and cadence of it. But it was sixteen seconds: that’s all I had! No idea that it was going to do numbers – if I had an idea, I would’ve recorded it better! 

You’ve just dropped some new music, and there’s a mixtape on the way too – tell us a bit about that project. Obviously themes of heartbreak are in the songs released so far – was that the catalyst for this collection of songs?

It’s kind of an accumulation of a bunch of different feelings – it transitions as the (EP) bundles go. The first one is super heartbreak-y – the second one is more about finding yourself and finding love. There’s also an apology song on there. I learned to take accountability in the last year for things that I might’ve done that haven’t been great. So, it’s not just about people that have broken my heart, it’s stuff that I’ve done too. It’s a lot of different feelings; the duality of me. 

I’m super excited to get this music out into the world, because I’ve been sitting on it for like a year now and I’m really passionate about it – I think it’s my best music yet. 

And was there any noticeable difference in how you approached this project compared to Maid Marian Way?

I was way more honest in this one – way more ‘heart on my sleeve’. A lot of the songs on this project I didn’t intend to put out. I just walked into the sessions and needed to write about something because it was weighing on me, but thinking ‘no-one else can ever hear this’. Then, every time I walked into a session and said that, we left the studio and everyone was like “we have to put this song out!”

So, I didn’t realise I was writing the mixtape when I was writing it. It was a happy accident, but it means it’s just really honest and raw. 

As well as the mixtape you have your tour coming up in October - your headline show at Rescue Rooms, last year, felt like a special night, and you’re heading back to do it all again. How was that homecoming for you?

I think the Nottingham show was my favourite of the whole tour, so I instantly was going to do that again for sure! I’m hoping to go out to Europe at some point as well. We just need to figure out where the fans are; it’s really important for me to be face-to-face with the people that are supporting my music.

It's also probably my favourite part: playing live. I’m very excited to play the new music because I’ve never really played it before. It’s going to be really fun – I’ve got my creative juices flowing already!

LYVIA will play Rescue Rooms on Friday 3 October 2025 – tickets available now

 @lyviamusic