ELLE COVES

Unassuming but undeniable, Elle Coves’ raw tales of Gen Z life have struck a chord with songs that are as timeless as they are completely of the moment. Praised by publications like Clash as a “pop force” and Sunday Times as “straight from the school of Taylor Swift””, Coves is poised to become not just a breakout name in 2024 but a songwriting talent far beyond her 19 years.

Born to Spanish parents in Freiburg, Germany, Elle Coves’ international background has deeply influenced her artistry. She was raised near the Black Forest, often travelling there to hike, whilst summers were spent in the sun-drenched beaches of her parent’s hometown, Alicante. Both environments have seeped their way into Coves’ visuals, but more importantly informed her nomadic, self-confessedly introverted nature.

Music proved something of an early mouthpiece for Elle. She grew up listening to her parents’ Nirvana records, but only began writing songs when encouraged by a German teacher. Moving with her family to Cork, Elle’s musical influences blossomed: she found herself immersed in the flourishing Irish Arts community, having toured with Waterford’s Moncrieff and Dublin-based band Wild Youth. Coves also found an early ally in global superstar Lewis Capaldi; the Scottish phenomenon personally praised her voice backstage at a Wild Youth gig, and subsequently asked her to open for him.

Like many of her peers, Elle Coves has spent a good deal of her time figuring this all out online - developing a fanbase (and her sense of self) DIY, and in real-time. In Cork she started singing lessons and founded a dedicated Instagram account covering her favourite artists with stripped-back, soul-bearing arrangements. Coves’ TikTok account became a portal for unreleased songs of her own, quickly bringing together an impassioned young audience. Suddenly, a wave of fans amassed, each of whom resonated with Coves’ emotionally nuanced lyricism and how it related to their own lives. Even at this early phase in her career, Elle Coves has a dedicated fanbase who have the words to her snippets (let alone full songs) memorised – and are hungry to hear more from the burgeoning singer- songwriter.

Things first clicked into place with debut single ‘Before I Fall Apart’,

banger inspired by the intersection of artists like Maggie Rogers, Max Martin’s anthemic work with Taylor Swift, and the shimmering, nostalgic rock of Fleetwood Mac. “For me,” says Elle, “Before I Fall Apart’ is about realising that no amount of running or hiding from your feelings will keep you away from that person; that your paths are inexplicably entangled with one another, and there's no escaping it." ‘Before I Fall Apart’ was mixed by the legendary Spike Stent (Ed Sheeran, Florence + the Machine), resulting in a record that - far from falling apart - became a breakthrough. The record received over 1 million streams in its first week, and was followed by standalone tracks ‘Summer’ and ‘Headcase’ in anticipation of Elle Coves’ first body of work. Summer which is already flying up the radio

a cinematic coming-of-age

play charts in German radio.