How do you take advantage of the momentum of 7,834,025 views and 38,500 subscribers on YouTube, and a BBC Sound of 2021 longlist nomination, all while sitting in your parents’ home in Kings Langley, northwest of London, waiting out what will become a year of lockdown? With the pandemic cutting short any hope of touring or audience-filled gigs, 19-year-old Griff has taken to communing with her fanbase by sharing against-the-clock upcycling challenges on TikTok. (The latest at the time of writing: transforming a Man United sleeping bag into a fetching sweater in under an hour.)

Griff started her musical journey aged 11, borrowing her brother’s software and kicking off the long process of teaching herself how to record and produce her own songs. She’s not interested in keeping her skills trade secrets, either: her “how I produced” TikTok video gave her 52,000 followers of @WiffyGriffy a masterclass in song production, an open invitation to join the pantheon of 21st-century, technology-enabled popstars who write, produce, sing, play and do it all.

“It’s been a mixed bag – some days are great, and some days are not great,” says Griff about pandemic living, just before the Christmas holiday break. “It forces you to be more creative and figure out new ways to try to engage with people. Honestly, it’s been a dry year for songwriting inspiration. But when I was in school and writing songs more as a hobby, it was really exciting because I didn’t get to do it all the time. I think for any creative as soon as your hobby becomes your job, it’s hard to stay inspired because you are then required to create things at such high demand and always need to be having a constant flow of ideas. I don’t know if I’ve been consciously doing new things [to find inspiration], but I think you get into your head a little bit more and try to listen to different types of music. During the first lockdown, I got really into 1970s music, which was a nice way to get inspired musically. At this point, I’m now just trying to finish a lot of the songs I started on last year and tie it all up.”

On our shoot, surrounded by the latest CHANEL Fine Jewellery collections that take advantage of her multiple ear piercings and love of accessories, Griff’s passion for fashion is palpable. “There’s so much music out there, and there are so many young girls trying to break into pop music that it’s easy to put on a pair of fishnet tights, camo trousers and a crop top and end up in the exact same world as all the rest of them. For me, fashion has been the best way to create my own lane and to look at my music with more of an artistic eye.”

Griff’s newest single “Black Hole” was recently Annie Mac’s “Hottest Record in The World” on BBC Radio 1 and has jumpstarted an otherwise nervy beginning to 2021. What’s up for her this year? “The plan is to put together a body of work that feels compelling and a real step up from everything I’ve released so far,” says Griff. “And obviously that will happen whether we’re in a pandemic or not, but then I hope that I can take it live, which I love doing. There is another element of me that people only experience in that setting, so hopefully we can put on some unforgettable live shows that are euphoric and artistic.” ◉