Vincent Littlehat – "Modelling Developed My Music Character"

A talented model goes rogue. After a strict diet of heavy reading, procrastination avoidance and wine drinking, she just started making music. Her latest brilliant music-video – Golden Locks – can now be watched everywhere!

Versatile, eclectic and exhibitionist, Vincent Littlehat fits easily in practically any kind of photographic-environment and atmosphere: urban, rustic, minimalist, fashion, budoir. Didn’t know until recently that she has decided to do music too. And my, oh my,what a voice she has! Smooth piano intro. Sweet, bjorkian voice. Insane, outworldly visuals.

Vincent Littlehat, the beautiful Berlin-London based model and photographer completely reinvented herself once she released, to her accomplishment and to our ecstasy, her two debut singles: Moondust and Golden Locks. Although her first track brought her voice to our attention, assuring everyone of a really promising beginning, the second song absolutely stunned us.

Golden Locks is the freshly released track + music video combo that will make your eyes and ears drool all over the screen. A juicy candy, rich in melancholy, heaven-like amalgam of sounds, well-captured frames and other similar flavors. Vincent’s new music video is the living proof that if you aim having a really good boost into the music industry, it’s probably an inspired idea to try modelling and photography for a while first.

I became familiar with Vincent Littlehat’s work through her collaboration with Eylül Aslan, a Turkish photographer widely known for sensitive, nostalgic approach.

CULTARTES: I got familiar with your activity through your collaboration with photographer Eylül Aslan. I’ve been stalking your Instagram since. That was it! And now, music?

VINCENT: Well, being a model is quite static (usually) and soundless in its effects. I have some things to say. Later I decided that it would be easier to sing them – easier to be heard. That’s why music.

How does music making (and video directing? What?) fit in the whole cluster of astonishing modelling and photography that you’re so deeply rooted to?

I’d say is the other way round – modelling skills and photographic insight helped me in developing my musical character. It was especially easy to perform in the music videos because I could focus on other processes of creating it. Since the beginning of my music making, I finally feel I am active, in a way that I have to make decisions. It’s less fluent, challenging.

Being a model is rather easy, intuitional, effortless (except those times when I am fighting with my childish vice – getting bored quickly – or when I am cold ‘cause not dressed enough). I am not rooted there. It’s fun, but I never felt that this job is satisfying me.

I’ve got to confess, I was completely hooked from the first beats of listening to “Golden Locks”. What is the official music style and where would you personally place it? What about the influences?

Officially or personally speaking I am not sure what genre it is. My friend who is a music journalist called it baroque pop mixed with singer-songwriter style. I nodded to that idea. The lyrics are inspired by “The Little Prince” as I wrote them while re-reading this little big book (I found it casually at a charity shop).

My producer – Tatsujiro ‘Pop’ Oto – shared with me an instrumental track which he previously composed and recorded so I put my words down for it. My main issue was the vocal recording, as my skills were far from perfect at that time. Tatsujiro and I spent days in his studio, he conducted me patiently.

I had a lot of red wine at that time, to get into that nostalgic mood. Later on we decided that the song might be a little bit too long as it’s made of few chapters, so we shortened it to a radio version to make it easier for the video cutting. Now, on Spotify, you can enjoy it twice.

From what I know, although new and catchy, this isn’t even the first single, right? There’s also “Moondust”, another piece of jewelry, and the first single ever!

Moondust was such a fun thing to make. It’s a very joyful story, good choice for the first song to be released. I felt very lucky because many professional guys collaborated with me on the music and later on the video.

Vincent, photographed by Beto Ruiz Alonso

It was stressful event, to produce, to pull all the elements together, especially on the day of filming. I found a snail at my friend’s backyard which supposed to be starring in the Moondust video, but it died a night before. I thought it could be a bad omen, but in the end everything went well.

Are this track and this music video, the promise for more audiovisual works in the future? Is it going to be part of something bigger?

Yes of course! I’ve only made it with two out there and I have plenty of song sketches that hopefully will be polished and accompanied by moving images soon. I am searching for collaborators who would like to add their ideas and time to what I am working on.

I have a demo, which I recently shared publicly on my Soundcloud, it’s quite a raw material, the songs need rearrangement and better production, but if someone is interested in more intimate and artless sound creations of mine, there they are.

What is the message you aim to set with all this this? Is it about proving you are more than a model, about letting people know there’s more behind the curtain? Or is it just you, playing around, trying to see if you’re good at, well, everything?

The only person there is to demonstrate that I [can] do or be more and better is myself. I don’t think that is the most fortunate mindset though. I wish to have somebody else to prove as I don’t have regard for myself, I disobey easily.

Of course I love to share the results of my work and it’s amazing to hear that some people enjoy it, but I wish to find somebody who could ask about the progress now and again, ‘cause setting my own deadlines is not my strong point.

That’s why both Moondust and Golden Locks were published 2 years after they were recorded.

Follow Vincent Littlehat on Instagram and Facebook for more.

This article was originally published in Cultartes Magazine #4 – “Dreams and Nightmares”. Get your copy in print here.[:]