Chloe Slater: “My Music Is Where I Unleash.”
Occasionally, an artist comes along who changes the game; Chloe Slater is that game changer. I sat down with her to talk about her phenomenal breakout year in the industry.

It’s fair to say that Slater, 21, has been one of the breakout indie stars of 2024. The release of her single 24 Hours in February – a sharp critique of the modern influencer culture that is ever present on social media such as TikTok – was just the start of the success that was to follow. The Bournemouth-born artist who now calls Manchester home has been on a rollercoaster journey that’s taken her from being a university drop-out to, perhaps, the future of an entire genre.
For Slater, it’s been a year of incredible firsts. She released her debut EP, You Can’t Put A Price On Fun, in May to critical success; she made her Glastonbury debut in June, playing the BBC Introducing stage; she played her first arena show supporting indie-rock icons Kings of Leon in Cologne in July; signed with record label AWAL – the same label as Little Simz – in August; and then more recently, she played a string of UK shows supporting The Beaches, her first touring experience.
Now, though, the 24 Hours star is back with yet more exciting music in the form of her self described “angry” and "loud” new single Tiny Screens – which was released on October 3rd. Explaining to me why she decided to lean into her “angry” side on Tiny Screens, Slater said, “I think as a woman, you’re socialised to be quite agreeable and nice, but my music is where I unleash all the anger and the craziness that I’m too anxious to reveal in my actual life.”
Articulate and witty, her energy was hypnotic throughout our interview; she’s reminiscent of an artist from a bygone age, a genuine storyteller; a writer telling her own story about what life’s like for an entire overlooked generation in an increasingly ugly 21st century.
Sitting down with Slater, the anti-influencer influencer, who was fresh from a photoshoot, on FaceTime a few weeks back, she seemed completely at ease. We touched on Tiny Screens, her year so far, her next EP, the Oasis reunion, and her favourite nightlife spots in her adopted home city of Manchester. P.S. I was an undergraduate there too.
In a year of incredible achievements, what was your biggest pinch me moment?
“Definitely supporting Kings of Leon, that was the most bizarre. The most people we’d played to [at that time] was 600 people, which was still an insane amount of people. To go from that, to 17,000 people, it was quite intense.”
Has it taken much adjustment to go from playing smaller venues to arenas like the one you played in Cologne?
“I feel like there wasn’t really a lot of time to process what was going on, so, I don’t know. I have days now where I’m like ‘oh my god, that happened.’ I think in three years time I’ll have processed it. But right now I have no idea what's going on.”
You and your band are very close, you all met whilst studying in Manchester. How and why do you think it’s important for you to have people like that around you as your career gains more and more traction?
“Oh my god, it’s so important. I feel really bad for solo artists that don’t tour with a band. You’re really tired, it’s very anxiety inducing, the adrenaline is all over the place. So, you need people that you really trust and people that actually understand you and take the edge off of that.
Also, when you’re onstage and you look around and it’s people that you really love and you’re really proud of, I almost get a lot of joy just from them being there as well.”
When you signed with AWAL you released a YouTube video to explain to your fans why you took the decision to cease being an independent artist. In it you talked about the harsh realities of trying to make it in the music industry as an independent artist without some sort of financial backing. What do you think needs to change in order to make music an easier occupation to get into, and subsequently survive in?
“I think with the music industry as it is, unless you’re blowing up on TikTok organically, it’s kind of impossible if you don’t have money [in the first place] to do anything. To go on tour, say, that used to be the main way musicians would make money. Whereas now, musicians are barely even getting paid [for shows]. So, I think first and foremost, if musicians were actually being paid fair rates for their shows, that would probably make a big difference.”
Do you feel any added pressure now you’ve actually signed a record deal?
“Yeah, I think so. A year ago it was a hobby and now it’s my job. So [sometimes] if I don’t do anything in a day, I feel a lot of guilt because I’m like ‘oh, I should be doing this, I should be doing that.’
But [right now] I’m just trying to recover from a year’s worth of burnout, so I’m just trying to just let myself do that.”
What was the inspiration behind Tiny Screens?
“It’s just about these people who get really blown up online, and everyone loves them; it’s happening with Kate King at the moment. We’ve not seen it yet but if you like Tube Girl, for example, everyone loves them, and then, a month later everyone’s sick of it and they’re all hating over [their] page and saying ‘we don’t want to see you anymore.’
That didn’t happen 10 years ago, but with the rise of the internet, it’s just become such a massive thing to put people on a pedestal and then collectively rip them down.
I guess we used to have it with X Factor stars, there’s always been a bit of it. I think especially in British culture, we love to pull people down a peg when they're doing well. [Tiny Screens] is kind of about how the internet gives people the ability to do that really easily by hiding behind their tiny screens.”
Excluding Tiny Screens, is the rest of your next EP a continuation of the themes we saw on You Can’t Put A Price On Fun, or have you moved in a slightly different direction?
I’d say, yes, it’s probably a continuation of it. It’s probably a little bit more personal in places, and there’s different themes like feminism and what it’s like to be in my position now. The first EP was then [the past] and then this one’s now. My life has changed a lot but it’s from the same viewpoint and perspective [as You Can’t Put A Price On Fun].
I’d like to think of it as the first and second EPs fitting together as a collection, and then the next project will be a totally different beast.”
What’s the plan for the rest of the year?
“So, some [new] songs might be coming out, woooh! [They’ll also be] some music video action. I’ve got quite a lot of shows [coming up] actually. We’ve got Live at Leeds; we’re also going to Paris and Amsterdam and I’ve never been to either of those places, so I’m really excited for that.
I’m [also] going to start writing for the next project from now, basically. I feel in a good place, winter is my productive time. You know when animals store all of their acorns in the winter, that’s me storing all my songs, and then in the summer I go out and party.”
Sticking with the party theme, you’ve now lived in your adopted home city of Manchester for over three years. In that time I’m sure you’ve had your fair share of good nights out. Any particular favourite spots?
“Okay so, I just really love YES bar. It's iconic. If you [however] want to get really drunk really fast I would probably say The Garratt for cheap. I don’t go there that much anymore because it’s haunted by [my] first year of uni. But when I do, I always have a good time.”
Talking of Manchester, what’s your thoughts on the Oasis reunion?
“I’m excited, I mean, I’ve not got tickets. Who [actually] has tickets? How have they sold that many tickets, but also no one has tickets?”
Do you think it’s good for music that they’re back?
“Not really, to be honest. I predict that all the support acts will be all-male, indie, established bands. So, it’s not going to be helping young musicians, especially from different minorities or female musicians. [Also] the working class have been outpriced on tickets, so it’s not going to inspire young [working class] people to get into music.”
Slater, however, quickly added, “I do love Oasis [though], that’s just my opinion on this whole scenario [generally].”
Part of the reason why fans are so drawn to Slater and her music is because she’s not afraid to tell it how it is. There’s an earnestness to her, a kind of honesty; a unique authentic sense that you’re getting the truth, her truth, when you press play on one of her songs. She’s tackling serious issues and themes in her music and packaging them in a way that doesn’t seem phoney or fake to her largely Gen Z following. Not only that, but she’s able to turn politics into streams - a tough gig. If that isn’t the hallmark of a game changer, what is?
Chloe Slater’s new song Tiny Screens is out now on all streaming services.