Leeds Festival 2024: Delilah Bon In Interview

Millie Cain’s exclusive interview with Delilah Bon, hours before their huge evening slot at Leeds Festival and ahead of the release of their upcoming album Evil, Hate Filled Female.

Millie: Have you guys ever been to Leeds Fest in your teenage years? 

Delilah: Nope, this is my first experience at Leeds Fest

Millie: How are you finding it so far? 

Delilah: Windy and everybody’s wearing tracksuits

Millie: Yeah, I think we were all getting battered in our tents last night, you guys are playing Key Club in November, have you ever played in Leeds before or been to Keys? 

Delilah: Mhmm yeah, we played another one in Leeds too at the Brudenell, but our Key Club gig has sold out now!

Millie: Do you get to pick to play at more independent venues or do you not get much of a say? 

Delilah: I used to, when we booked shows ourselves, but now agencies take precedent 

Millie: If you could pick any peep show character to collaborate with, which one would you pick? 

Hela: OH MY GOD! YOU LEGEND! Do you know that we love peep show? 

Millie: I did my research!

Hela: Favourite interview so far! Surely SuperHans, but also maybe Jez

Delilah: Yeah I’m going Jez

Hela: You’ve got to feel bad for him

Delilah: And SuperHans would take over too much

Hela: Yeah he would steal your ideas 

Other one: And knock you out the band, Jez would let you do whatever and he’d be so grateful 

Hela: Although, what would a Mark project be like? 

Millie: And what would a Dobby project be like? 

Hela: I think Dobby would write a banger (laughter) 

Millie: I read that you make all your own tour outfits, I wondered if you also designed your own merch too? 

Delilah: I just do it all, I drew it all, with our outfits we make them all ourselves. Its just fun, its part of creating the show and bringing what it all looks like together

Millie: The way you present yourself on stage can definitely been seen as a sort of armour 

Delilah & Hela: Yeah, definitely 

Millie: With this and the music you’re creating, do you feel like people characterise you in a certain way before they meet you? 
Delilah: Yeah, when people meet me they always say ‘Don’t take it the wrong way but you’re actually really nice in person’, and I’m like ‘What do you mean?’ and they expect me to be angrier. A lot of people say that to me. 

Hela: As if you walk around screaming 

Delilah: Well I can, I can

Millie: After seeing Chappell Roan discussing her boundaries and what artists owe their fans, what do you think about creating these boundaries with your fans? 

Delilah: I think its your personal boundaries, and if it gets too much like it probably is for her, if youre bombarded, it comes down to as a fan, if youre looking at an artist that you respect and care and admire, and you can see them getting overwhelmed and hassled, its understanding that maybe theyre too busy for a photograph and it doesnt make them a bad person and its not the end of the world 

Hela: Also as well, especially on tour, youre singing night after night after night and you do genuinely need to look after your voice ans stuff. The tour thing means that you do need to have a rest, its not that you dont want to meet fans, because you do, and you want to meet everyone but you want everyone to experience a wicked show. 

Delilah: Thats the difference with nice fans and those that are creepy

Hela: Go away! 

Delilah: I think youve got every right to be comfortable, there’s been too many times where I’ve been stood there for photographs with people and there’s been men who are older than my grandad have been like ‘Can I have a hug?’ 

Hela: That’s if they even ask! Most of them don’t even ask! 

Delilah: Sometimes when they ask it’s even worse, because I wanna say no but I can’t

Hela: Like they give you the option to say no but you realise that you feel like you owe it to these people – and you dont. 

Millie: Your new single ‘Volatile’ has just come out, which is about dealing with misogyny in the music industry, do you ever feel like you get compared to other female fronted bands, regardless of genre, just because you get grouped as female artists? 

Delilah: Yeah definitely, I think like if there’s anyone, they don’t even have to be in the same genre in any way, its like ‘oh its kind of a bit like paramore’ – no it’s not. 

Hela: It’s just their the only other band they can think of 

Delilah: And in ‘Volatile’ there’s a line ‘2 girls with dyed hair/think we’re really all the same?’ 

Other One: I was literally about to say that! Its so true 

Delilah: and thats a true story, when I wanted to work with a certain person, they said ‘oh we’ve already got someone in the same lane’ and when I checked their roster to see who that person was a complete different genre, but she had red hair and the rest of the roster is men. It was like they were saying ‘I don’t want another girl, I’ve got one already’. 

Hela: Oh but I’ll work with another 400 indie boy bands who all sound pretty much identical and that’s fine and you don’t get them saying ‘oh you sound exactly like this other singer’ 

Millie: Your ‘Ready To Kill’ EP is a bit more spooky, what are you favourite scary movies? 

Delilah: See I really like the old ones, like Freddy Kruger and Chucky 

O: I like the OG Scream and stuff 

Delilah: Yeah I think I’ll have to go Chucky 

Hela: Chucky! You are Chucky! 

Delilah: It’s not even really scary but Chucky’ Bride – oh I love it

Millie: Are you guys doing fancy dress for your halloween show? 

Hela: Yeah we are literally playing on Halloween 

O: Yes, the answer is obviously yes! 

Millie: I feel like people do really enjoy dressing up for shows 

Hela: Yeah they do, especially for our shows 

O: Yeah, if we say ‘Halloween Vibes’ everyone will go to town on that 

Millie: Yeah I think its so fun and it’s really cool, it makes it a better experience 

Hela: Yeah it makes it just feel like much more of an event 

Millie: Is it really important for you guys to bounce off each other’s energy on stage? 

Delilah: Yeah we’re absolutely a unit

Hela: Yeah we pick each other up and push each other on 

Delilah: And cry together 

Millie: That’s so lovely! And are you all celebrating together for the album release?

Delilah: Yes!!! We’re actually going on a girls trip to Magaluf, it isn’t something we’ve ever done before and we just thought why not?

Millie: Hahaha that’s fantastic & I hope you have a great trip, and rest of the festival !! Thank you!

Delilah Bon’s new album is available now, and they are performing at the Key Club in Leeds on 15th November.