To have seen someone become the person they are artistically is one of life’s greatest pleasures. To have watched a talent flourish and blossom is a thrill that sometimes defies words. From having watched in awe as the sound of a young woman took tentative steps and be beguiling even in the realms of student radio and onto a stage infront of hundreds can only surely make you smile. For Mersey Wylie this coming weekend is going to be the biggest step yet as she steps from behind many a shadow and shows the audience at Zanzibar that the Wylie name is something that will forever associated with the city of Liverpool.

Being the daughter of a much loved local icon could be a double edged sword but like one of the masters of Liverpool’s music heritage, Mersey Wylie is nothing but a strong person in a world that wishes her nothing but well. Ahead of her busy weekend in which she will perform at the auspicious Threshold Festival 2014 ran by Kaya Herstad Carney, as well as providing support for her father in his gig at Zanzibar, I was able to catch up with this incredible young woman.

Congratulations Mersey on your superb progress, it is very much what you deserve. You must have been chomping at the bit to get started, how are you feeling ahead of the shows?

Mersey: “It’s been a long time coming, I can’t wait! I’ve had the first couple of rehearsals and that has been the icing on the cake really, I’m raring to go, my nerves are going now!”

You’ve taken part before, haven’t you, but that was part of being with the backing singers?

Mersey: “I’ve done a lot of work with other people before – Silence of the Lamps, Dave O’Grady, Sense of Sound, also Jasmine Sinclair so yeah I’ve been involved in the last three years but this is my first set of my own  which I’m really, really excited about.”

Obviously, people might not know, you’re going to be on the same bill as your dad, which must be quite exciting for you?

Mersey: ”On the Saturday I’ll have my own set but on the Friday I’ll be supporting my dad at the Zanzibar, which will be a nice little lead up to it as well.”

It’s a good way to get rid of the nerves for Saturday really!

Mersey: “It’s a really good lead up and usually he’s in the audience anyway but this will be different!”

I don’t envy you. I’ll get a lot of pleasure watching you on the night but I can’t imagine how you’re feeling!

Mersey: “There have been a lot of nerves leading into it but it’s been a long time coming.  I’ve been writing my own stuff for the past two or three years but I haven’t let anyone hear it besides me so it’s a big jump to be doing five original songs to hopefully quite a lot of people over the two nights. The main thing though has been the two rehearsals, I had a full band one last week and then a rehearsal with the keyboard player yesterday and that has almost got rid of all the nerves and just got me really excited about it because appearing outside of my bedroom with just me tinkering away it has been really exciting and I can’t wait!”

Just as an aside to this, do you know I can hear a bit of Australian in your voice? You have spent sometime over there recently?

Mersey: “Can you? I’m bit nasal! Absolutely! I was in Australia for nine years so I mean for a good chunk of that I did really have a strong Australian accent and its only just starting to level out now.”

Did going to Australia help ease any pressure of wanting to be a singer?

Mersey: “That’s a hard question. I wouldn’t say I was a singer, when I went to Australia I always wanted to sing but sort of going through adolescence and all of that, threw myself into school and University and so I sort of put things aside. Coming back to England really helped me open up and singing with dad and joining Sense of Sound – those two things are what really opened me back up.”

Obviously, I’ve had the distinct pleasure of not only watching you the past couple of years along with Dave O’Grady and Sense of Sound, Kaya – Silence of the Lamps but I’ve also interviewed you at the Liverpool University Radio studio before and even in that period of time, you have flourished!

Mersey: “It’s definitely been a long road, I’ve only really started concentrating on singing about four years ago when I first started that it was very nerve-wracking and so scary. It’s only been in the past six months to a year that I’ve confident, the nerves are by no means gone but they are definitely miles better than they were.”

I find it hard to imagine I just remember distinctly watching you at Leaf with Dave O’Grady and you blew me away, you just seemed so comfortable in what you were doing that I thought you’d been doing it for years and years.”

Mersey: “Thank you, that’s really lovely! I was absolutely…. I’m sure Dave will tell you, I was really nervous because that was one of the most exposed gigs that I’d done up until that point with just the two of us singing and it was a quite a huge step for me but it was a lovely thing with Dave and it was a really lovely gig to be a part of as well.”

Going a little bit ahead to the Threshold Festival, the five songs that you are going to do, what can audiences expect to hear?

Mersey: “It’s so difficult to describe my music which I’m sure a lot of people can relate to but I think it’s kind of soul influenced, may be a little bit of old school jazz and r n’ b and all that. It’s definitely pop as well, the stuff with the band is really driving and exciting. I hope people feel that as well but that’s kind of the place where I come from.”

It’s going to be interesting and I can’t wait to hear it. Threshold as an entity, this huge weekend of music, how important do you think it is to Liverpool to have this festival on?

Mersey: “I’m such a massive fan of it, having spent the last three years as a performer and an audience member, I’ve seen it from both sides and it’s so much fun just as an audience member, it is so great to discover so many people you have never would have heard of and they take it very seriously and very carefully. So no matter what room or venue you stumble into, the odds are that you are going to see something great whether it be to your taste or not! You will always discover something new, they do get the big headliners in there as well but there’s a great vibe and Liverpool is a great city and Threshold really exemplifies that and shows it to the best of its ability through the music but also the visual arts that go and as well. I think they round it out so well and as a performer you are also very well treated and the audiences are always so lovely, it’s a real joy to be a part of and be right in the middle of it. It’s great to be my dad’s daughter as well and to be in the city where that means so much. He’s got a great fan base and that means a lot to me. I really appreciate it.”

Ian D. Hall