Haylee Goldthorpe: Lead Vocalist
Ruari Forrest: Current
Bassist
Katy Woodrow: Current Guitarist
Iain Campbell: Current Drummer.
Two Part Mixtape.
Solo and Band.
Solo Mostly Experimental.
Band Rocks!!
Haylee G – Devils in Skirts began life once upon a Pride
when a younger Haylee G stumbled across an old school Scottish Hip Hop
Head on her way to the festivities, and discovered rap in a Scottish
instead of faux London or American accent. A friendship was soon
established between the two and Haylee began working on a song with him
(this song became Get Outta Here), while encouraging her to pack more
syllables into a bar and to rap with her Scottish accent.
Armed with this, she and her friend, Jamie, formed a duet
called Hayz N Jayz. Jamie's strength was in melody, which added another
dimension to Haylee's songwriting. With a few songs under their belt,
they performed together during Edinburgh Pride 2014 and a Battle of the
Bands for Isle of Wight Festival (joined by a trans guitarist).
Haylee had a personal interest in rap battling. She'd been
writing battle bars after watching Don't Flop, and attempted to enter,
but didn't realise there was a whole underground community at the time.
She was asked through a producer's friend if she could battle someone
who was known for his cheeky banter.
The Battle of the Bands was an important moment for the
band, as they came third (only a few votes from second place), and much
of the audience commented to them that they were surprised they hadn't
rehearsed much for it. Filled with confidence, Hayz N Jayz continued
gigging, most notably for Fashion Loves Music.
When Haylee became unemployed, she decided to put all of
her efforts into taking music seriously, but it wasn't to be with Hayz N
Jayz. Jamie and the guitarist left the band to focus on other things.
Through a friend, Haylee met Harry Mulligan, a music journalist and
drummer, who had expressed an interest in working with her after
watching her perform. The line up was completed when Ruari Forrest and
Nathan Whyte joined the band, and Devils in Skirts was born.
Devils in Skirts took Haylee's hip hop songs and turned
them into rap rock, reggae and funk, and began gigging around Edinburgh
and Glasgow, highlights being XFM Live Wednesdays for Jim Gellaty at
Hard Rock Café Glasgow and Creation Sessions Presents... at Electric
Circus Edinburgh.
This was also a big year for Haylee as she was finally
entered into a few rap battles, events that she'd wanted to do for a
while. Thanks to Werd, a pillar of the Scottish rap community, and other
artists’ support, Haylee got into the Bristo Battles (but lost), and
Breaking the Barrier through Cain (winning the Wildcard). Werd has also
given Haylee G and the Devils slots in The Hip Hop House, a night he
hosts for upcoming talent in Edinburgh. Tru Factz discovered Haylee
through an event, and couldn't believe she wasn't signed, so offered to
produce some tracks in the hopes she’ll sign with Dark Poetry one day.
Nathan soon left to pursue college and Harry took time out
to concentrate on his journalism and family, so Haylee found Katy
Woodrow (guitar) and Iain Campbell (drums) to fill the empty space. So
far this year, the band have played at a few festivals, hosted a charity
event for Macmillan and performed at several underground venues across
Edinburgh, while also recording and releasing a two part mixtape
(Parallel Universe) independently, and unveiling a new website :
www.hayleegdevilsinskirts.co.uk
The new album is available through the website and directly through the band, or pick up a copy at the Scottish Design Exchange based in Edinburgh.
