Spotlight On... MALKA x AMUNDA
The Hen Hoose pairing of MALKA and AMUNDA are back together for International Women's Day with On the Up and we are obsessed
Hen Hoose, the all-female and non-binary songwriting and music production collective, have come a long way since their launch during one of the many lockdowns of 2020. Last year saw them release their debut album Equaliser (available on vinyl here), and in December they were gifted one of only 50 vinyl acetates of Happy Xmas (War Is Over) from Sean Lennon and Yoko Ono, which they went on to auction to raise money for Tiny Changes.
The Hen Hoose collective was founded by Tamara Schlesinger (MALKA) and features artists such as Emma Pollock, Karine Polwart, Susan Bear, jayda, Elisabeth Elektra and Bossy Love’s Amanda Wilkinson, aka AMUNDA. On Equaliser, MALKA and AMUNDA worked with Carla J. Easton on The Best Is Yet To Come, a hopeful, pop-fuelled delight on a record chock full of highlights.
To celebrate International Women’s Day, MALKA and AMUNDA are back together again with On the Up, a bouncy pop number so powerful and hungry you can practically taste it: 'It's cause we work hard / Yeah you know we're in charge... / ...Feeling so strong and independent, did I forget to mention, the journey is ascending', AMUNDA sings before the clock has even hit the 40-second mark. To celebrate the release, we shine a spotlight on the pair to find out more.
It feels like it was only yesterday that we were celebrating the release of Equaliser, but already the two of you are putting out new music together. How did this particular collaboration come about?
MALKA: Amandah and I worked together early on during the start of the Hen Hoose collective and we just clicked with our writing styles. We have written some other tracks together over the last year or so (including the music for the Scottish Government Vaccine Campaign with Suse [Susan Bear]). We really enjoy collaborating so we decided to write some new material for fun, and this is what we came up with, it felt like a perfect track to release for International Women's Day.
On the Up is basically everything that I love about pop music: it’s bouncy, sassy and catchy as fuck. Who would you say were some of the inspirations behind this particular track?
MALKA: We just wanted to create a massive pop song with this one – full of energy – and something that would get you on the dancefloor. We were influenced by 90s R'n'B, the poppier Outkast moments and also 2000s girl bands, so quite a combination. When Amandah and I collaborate there are so many hooks flying about and it is so much fun. We both have different influences, but they come together so well.
Lyrically, what’s the message behind the track? What do you hope people take away from it?
AMUNDA: On the Up is about pushing forward despite any obstacles. Taking initiative, being independent and saying that your inner drive is what is going to get you over that line. If anything we hope it motivates and hope that it gets the message across that every person is the hero in their own story.
What are your individual plans for the year ahead? Do you think you’ll make more music together?
AMUNDA: I have a bunch of singles that I will be releasing this year. The first single Did You Get That? is coming out on 30 March. I think we will definitely be making more music together whether it be for collaboration or sync. MALKA has become one of my main collaborators thanks to Hen Hoose!
MALKA: I am working on some solo material too, I released a new single – Not Alone – recently. I am also working hard on some new Hen Hoose collabs. I love Amandah's music so much that I am releasing it on my record label [Tantrum Records], and as Amandah said, we will definitely collaborate in the future, as we tend to do so much together these days.
As it’s International Women’s Day, do you have any advice to offer women and non-binary people hoping to launch a music career this year?
AMUNDA: You are capable of achieving anything you put your mind to. I know it sounds so cheesy but you just have to know. Believe in yourself and your talent 100 percent and always put yourself forward for things because you deserve to always back yourself first.
On the Up is out now via Tantrum Records, available here