Marking 20 years since the release of her debut album, singer Corinne Bailey Rae is happy to admit that family has now become an important part of her career.
She still tours the world playing new music, as well as hits like Put Your Records On and Like a Star, but she is now accompanied by her two young daughters, as well as her father, who is in her band, and her mother, who helps take care of the girls.
And it's not just the musical side of their career that the children, who are six and eight years old, are involved in. Bailey Rae just wrote a children's book called Put Your Records On, which evolved with the help of her little ones.
“I'm enjoying motherhood, but it's definitely a challenge,” says the singer-songwriter, who lives in her hometown of Leeds and is touring the United States this year.
“It's been really nice to be able to tour with my kids; I've been very lucky and privileged to be able to take them with me. My husband plays in the band and my mom travels with us, so that's really helpful.
“It's been good that everyday life in Leeds and going to the park and cooking is normal, but also sitting on a tour bus driving around America, or going to a show for them, or going to a museum in San Francisco, or petting koalas in Australia – all of that is normal for them because they're always with the same people, mum, dad and grandma.
“So I feel happy that they've been able to have that kind of life so far.”
The Grammy-winning singer, whose self-titled debut album reached number one in the UK in 2006 and number four in the US, understands that children won't always be able to tour as much with her, saying: “Obviously, as they get older and school becomes more and more important, we just have to balance when we're away or how long we're away, or how much they come and how much they don't. That's something we're calculating as we go along.”
Another thing that was discovered as they went, with the girls' help, was Bailey Rae's new children's book.
Although she started writing the book when her youngest daughter was a baby and her sister was about two years old, “because all these ideas started coming into my head and I had a lot of free time because I was breastfeeding,” it took years to complete.
The book, inspired by Bailey Rae's hit Put your Records On, tells the story of a girl named Bea who visits her great-aunt Portia's house and is delighted to listen to some of her aunt's old records, which awaken endless emotions in both of them.
“I wanted to write something about music and emotions and how there's a song for every emotion you've ever experienced, the way songs can help you feel less alone in the world, and the way songs can help you through your different emotional states and experiences, and how it's important to feel those feelings,” Bailey Rae explains.
As the book was being put together, she read to her daughters “a bunch of different versions” and remembers: “When they were yawning and squirming, I was like, okay, there's too much description here, let me move it around a bit. I wanted to make sure that each of the pieces was exciting and interesting enough, and that there were enough pictures for the kids. So definitely, if they were really enjoying it, I'd think, Oh yeah, I'm getting this right!”
“So I guess I tried it a lot with them; it grew like a lot of good stories do, just threading one account to the next and trial and error, and I like that it came about that way.”
The singer, who married her children's father, musician and producer Steve Brown, in 2013, says whether there will be another children's book depends on how well Put Your Records On is received, but notes: “I like telling stories, I did that a lot when the girls were very little, and I like to do it now and see if I can get their attention or put them into the story in some way; I find it's a good way to use my creative imagination.”
She says she's now entering a “different phase” of motherhood, reflecting: “The early years of motherhood are all-encompassing and really affect how you sleep, where you go, what you do, and even who you see. But I feel like I'm now coming out of early motherhood: no more breastfeeding, no more diapers.”
“People say the days are long and the years are short, and I feel like I finally understand that. So now it feels like it's a little fast-paced, and I'm making sure I'm really present and just enjoying them and being able to keep them where they are, and also remember all the versions of them going back to being a baby.
“But I'm very grateful to be a father and I'm enjoying it so far.”
She says balancing work and parenting can be difficult, but emphasizes: “It's the same for all parents, right?
“You have to think about how you can keep them safe and make them feel loved and give them the care and support that they need, but how can you get enough support for yourself to be a useful parent and then how can you fulfill yourself in terms of your job?
“It's definitely been a real juggling act for us.”
Put Your Records On by Corinne Bailey Rae is published by Fox and Ink Books and is priced £8.99. Available now.
