Evan Williams on Pete Doherty, Bojack Horseman, new music, and not being related to Robbie Williams

I spoke with singer-songwriter Evan Williams after his set at Newcastle’s Come together festival. It was the same day Robbie Williams was on the bill, something Evan laughed about and quickly cleared up as he clarified on stage that there was no relation.

Evan is a singer-songwriter from Kent who moved to London last year. Since then, he’s been building momentum, playing festivals, clubs, and small venues across the UK. His story is about leaving behind a small local scene and carving out a space in Britain’s crowded music landscape.

The inspirations for Williams’ debut album were plentiful, and one of those inspirations included the Netflix series Bojack Horseman. Williams said: “During lockdown, I binge-watched it all, and there’s that poem in it that’s the most accurate description of suicidal ideation I’ve ever heard. I thought, I want to take that. The rest of the song had already been written, but I didn’t have the chorus bit. I was like that’s the chorus bit”.

The Kent scene he grew up in was small, but moving to London gave him new opportunities. He signed to Strap Originals, the label run by Libertines frontman Pete Doherty. The connection has given him credibility and an outlet for his work.

Williams talks warmly about Doherty, especially in terms of his devotion to the up-and-coming music scene. “Pete watches all the sets; he really cares about the narrative.” Williams originally met Doherty because he took bar work at a hotel that the indie rock legend had bought. As a moving-away gift, they had gotten studio time for him. Then Doherty let him know that there was going to be space for Williams on his new label in a year or so, and the rest is history.

Williams is already working on another album.  He said: “Even before this one was finished, I’d written most of the next. ” He’s aware of the pressure that comes with a second release. Williams added: “The first one, you’ve got all the time in the world. The second one it’s like, okay, now we need another one.”

Williams added: “I’ve been lucky through being on the label… I’ve had the chance to do big gigs all over the country”.

That said, he maintains that his favourite shows are still the smaller ones. Newcastle has always been one of the highlights for Williams, he says it’s always a lot friendlier up North. Williams said: “The hospitality up here is just so much friendlier. London’s great, but it’s different.”

Five years on, Evan Williams is still writing and still doing it his way. Whether he’s in a festival tent, a pub backroom, or sharing a bill with Robbie Williams in Newcastle, he just wants people to feel like they’ve witnessed something authentic.