In Conversation…
Interview By: Katie Shaw
Images By: Nat Traxel
Beth McCarthy is stepping into a new era, embracing a darker, more theatrical side of her pop-rock sound. With a new four-track EP exploring love, jealousy and heartbreak, the singer-songwriter is leaning into her creative freedom and letting her inner villain take centre stage. We spoke to Beth about new music, finding her sound and the stories behind the songs.
Original: With your new single and your Pretty Villain era in full swing, how does it feel to be at this stage in your career?
Beth: Oh my goodness, I feel like it's a bit of a blur at the minute. I think, whenever you start a new project, and release a new thing, everything's a little bit crazy, but it feels really good. I'm so excited just to really lean into being creative, and having fun, and telling a bit of a story, and being a bit theatrical.
Original: Do you think this era has changed how you approach things creatively, or is it giving you more freedom to have fun with it?
Beth: Yeah, I think a little bit of both. I think I feel so much freer in this time of my life. With the music industry constantly changing, Beth sees more freedom for artists to find their own way. It's a bit of a free for all. So, it gives you some freedom to just do what feels right and fun at the time, and that's what this era is for me.
Original: You've performed everywhere from the streets of York to international stages. What's been your biggest “how is this actually my job?” moment?
Beth: Honestly, I think it was my Australia tour. I toured Australia. I did three headline shows. I did Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne. I'm here to play shows…to play sold out shows…to people in Australia. Yeah. That doesn't compute in my little brain. London now feels like home, but Beth still loves playing across the UK and beyond. Glasgow and Dublin stand out for their lively crowds, while every city offers something different. I feel like Scottish crowds always really go hard, and every time I played in Glasgow it was amazing.
Original: If someone had only heard three songs from different chapters of your career, which would you choose?
Beth: I would have to give them ‘She gets the flowers’. She would also choose Good – Bi for its connection to her experience with sexuality, and Treat Me Like a Rockstar, reflecting her love of rock music.
“I'm a rock star trapped in a pop star's body. And... she's constantly trying to break out.”
Original: Did you ever expect ‘She Gets the Flowers’ to reach so many people?
Beth: No, I didn't. I had no idea what was going on. Released during TikTok's early boom, the song resonated with listeners navigating the uncertainty of lockdown. I just happened to get lucky; I wrote that song, and it was sad, and people were sad because they've been locked in their houses for ages.
Original: Do you think the internet has changed the way artists have to build their careers?
Beth: “For sure. I think it's almost become a part of the process now, in considering how it's going to translate on social media, which is also impossible because you can't predict it.”
Despite social media's growing influence, Beth believes it is human connection behind the music that keeps people invested. My entire career, it's so interesting, but I feel like underlying thing for me is the understanding that people still want to see and love, like genuine connection.
That connection is particularly clear at live shows, where Beth gets to meet the people who have found comfort or recognition in her songs.
Original: Your songs have become soundtracks for people figuring out love, dating and their identities. Have any interactions shown you how personally people connect with your music?
Beth: “All the time, I'm so lucky because I guess that's why I love performing live so much because, you actually get to put the real people to the story. One beautiful moment that has stayed with her happened at a show in Prague, was when a trans fan held up a sign asking Beth to choose her new name. Beth offered the name Luna, a name she had always loved and imagined using for a future daughter.
I have always said, if I had a kid, and they were a girl, that I would call them Luna, and I'd loved that name forever. That was a moment of, wow, this is incredible, and music is incredible, and people are amazing, and that was the moment.”
The fan was delighted, making the experience a powerful reminder of how deeply music can connect people.
Original: Tell us about your new single, ‘The Love After the Love of Your Life’. What inspired it, and what are you hoping people take away from it?
Beth: I'm in this villain era, right? And every villain has an origin story. The track explores jealousy, insecurity and the spiralling thoughts that can emerge in relationships. There's always this tiny, unreasonable part of you that just... gets carried away into these spirals of madness.
Drawing on the idea that love can push people to extremes, Beth also took inspiration from fictional villains, particularly Harley Quinn. I think it's this sort of feeling that, you know, love can really make you crazy, and love can make you do crazy things.
Original: Can you tell us a little bit about the EP?
Beth: “It's four songs, and it's the journey… It starts with pretty villain, as she is, and then we take it all the way back to the beginning and start telling the story of a girl in a relationship.” For Beth, the EP explores how emotions that begin as thoughts can eventually become something much more consuming.
“I think that's what I wanted to get across in this EP, how something can go from being in your head to being super real. And the villain, the villain's story. It begins officially.” The music also gives Beth space to experiment while retaining elements of the sound that her fans already recognise.
“It's almost feels like the right bridge from the Beth that everybody knew and has loved and the kind of pop, chaotic, side, but in a slightly more elevated way.”
Original: You went on ‘The Voice’ at 16. What do you think your younger self would make of the artist you've become today?
Beth: “She'd be buzzing. She'd be so proud. So proud.”
Beth began writing songs by rewriting Hannah Montana lyrics before busking and performing to small crowds. Looking back, she recognises how much has changed, particularly in her ability to express herself through music
Original: You've already achieved so much in your career. What's something on your career bucket list that you still really want to do?
“I'd love to play an arena. Yeah. I would love to play the pyramid stage at Glastonbury.”
For Beth, the dream is to perform on the iconic stages that have hosted artists she admires, continuing to grow as a performer while staying true to herself.
With her new EP opening another chapter in the pretty villain story, Beth McCarthy is embracing the freedom to experiment, take risks and bring every side of her musical identity to the forefront. And if this era is anything to go by, she's only just getting started.
York born singer-songwriter Beth McCarthy has today announced her brand new EP, ‘The Origin Story of a Pretty Villain’, to be released on November 20th 2026. The announcement comes hot on the heels of the release of Beth’s latest track, ‘The Love After The Love Of Your Life’. The track is already flying on socials with clips being viewed over 3 million times and counting! Streaming figures are equally impressive, currently averaging over 20,000 daily plays. Capitalising on recent backing from Jodie Bryant on BBC Radio 1’s Future Pop, Beth continues to solidify her status as one of the UK's most exciting independent acts.
Across four tracks, ’THE ORIGIN STORY OF A PRETTY VILLAIN’ chronicles the transformation and rise of the Pretty Villain, the why of how they came to be. In this case, how a relationship can create a monster. The EP begins with an introduction to Beth’s villain alter ego, ‘Pretty Villain’, before the listener is taken back in time to before she was evil and tells the story of what made her that way.
