Self Esteem has delivered a stripped-down cover of ‘Remember’ by Becky Hill and David Guetta while performing for the BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge.
Rebecca Lucy Taylor’s primarily a cappella rendition of the 2021 song considerably pares back the high-energy electro-pop of the original. For the most part, she’s accompanied solely by a group of backing vocalists providing harmonies, with some understated but effective piano chords towards the latter half of the song.
Taylor also performed ‘Fucking Wizardry’ from last year’s ‘Prioritise Pleasure’, also with a relatively sparse arrangement. Watch both those performances below:
Self Esteem is one of 12 artists nominated for this year’s Mercury Prize, which will be revealed at a ceremony at London’s Eventim Apollo in Hammersmith tomorrow (September 8). ‘Prioritise Pleasure’ is currently the bookies’ favourite to win the honour, with Little Simz‘ ‘Sometimes I Might Be introvert’ and Wet Leg‘s self-titled debut behind.
Self Esteem will also perform at the ceremony, along with 10 of the other 12 nominees, including Sam Fender, Kojey Radical, Nova Twins and Yard Act. Harry Styles is the only nominated artist who will not be performing at the ceremony, airing a pre-recorded performance instead.
Speaking to NME about her nomination recently, Taylor said: “I’m not being coy, but I can’t believe what’s happened. I’d really made my peace with being consistently underground and under-dogged.
“Something has happened where people have connected to [the album]. It’s still kind of a slow-burn and slowly growing – it’s not like my life has changed overnight – but my greatest joy is making music.”
‘Prioritise Pleasure’ arrived in October of last year. In a four-star review, NME called the record “assured and apologetic”, adding that it was “charged with a dark, smirking wit that’s impossible to turn away from”.
Last week, Taylor added six shows to her 2023 UK and Ireland tour. She’ll begin the run on February 21 next year at Cambridge’s Junction, wrapping up the tour at Manchester’s Albert Hall on March 18. Tickets are on sale now.
