Having entered 2023 as one of UK pop's hottest prospects, BBC Radio 1 Sound Poll shortlisted artist Dylan might only be at the beginning of her journey as one of the UK's most exciting new pop talents, but she's had her sights set on big things since her childhood.
Her candidness and determination is part of what has already scored her praise from the likes of BBC News, The Times, NME, Rolling Stone UK, i-D, Notion, Vogue Italia, and Dork; amassing an incredibly loyal and passionate fan base to form around her via her own sold out headline performances across the globe including a mammoth UK & US stadium tour alongside Ed Sheeran, and support slots with Yungblud, Bastille and Tate McRae.
The 22-year-old — real name, Tash Woods — might be destined for pop glory, but the influence of more alternative sounds colours her tongue-in-cheek characterization of herself as "a wannabe rock star in a pop star's body." "In my head, I'm so rock'n'roll, but I don't look it," she laughs. "I'm super pop! Everyone will expect something slightly more mainstream but I'm obsessed with guitars — with the only four chords I can play."
Growing up, Dylan was raised on a diet of classic rock. "My career is entirely my dad's fault — he's a very straight-down-the-line insurance man but he brought me up on a lot of rock'n'roll like AC/DC, Guns N' Roses, and Rainbow," she explains.
She began writing songs as a child instead of learning the work of other artists and soon found it to be the perfect outlet for expressing everything she was feeling. "I was a pretty sad kid and songwriting was a way of escaping," she says. "It took me away from school and friends and bullying, and into my own space." After her confidence in her performing skills took a knock in her teens, she focused on the dream of being a songwriter.
From that moment of focus, she has been on the path to becoming one of the most relatable and sharp songwriters coming up right now, and to owning her songs in front of the world. She crafted the persona of Dylan — so named because that's what her dad planned to call her if she was a boy — allowing her to step into the shoes of someone else and fake that self-assurance. "I was giving myself a huge mask to hide behind and that meant that I could be really confident even though I wasn't because that was Dylan," she notes. "But what's really insane, especially about the music that I've been writing recently, is that the line between me and Dylan is just gone. There's no fakeness anymore."
Since 2019, she's been on a journey to find her own voice, moving through more electronic- focused, synth-pop songs ('Good Enough') and mournful piano ballads ('IKWYDLN'). After two EPs (Purple and 2020's Red) worth of finding her feet, 2021 brought three singles in 'Nineteen,' 'You're Not Harry Styles' and 'No Romeo' that started to shape the real Dylan sound — big pop hooks driven by crunchy guitars, dissecting her life and loves into incisive, memorable lyrics.
With Dylan's impeccable pop anthems destined to continue hooking people into her world, that family looks set to expand rapidly and in a big way. As it does so, she's keeping her ambitions fittingly bold. "I want to be respected as a songwriter — for me it really is just about the music," she explains. "And I want to headline Wembley — that's everything I've had my sights on."
