Brook Hodges: Songs for the Brave and the Broken

“I often know I've found what I wanted to say when I can't sing it because it makes me cry... It doesn’t take much to make me cry.”

In an era crowded with polished personas and algorithm-ready pop, Brook Hodges arrives like a quiet revolution — unfiltered, late-blooming, and totally magnetic.

By day, she’s a GP. By night, a singer-songwriter whose debut album Scared of Heights is packed with emotional truths and melodic grace. Her music is personal in a way that feels universal — love, identity, heartbreak, hope — told not with drama, but with the aching clarity of someone who’s lived it.

What makes Hodge so compelling isn’t just the raw honesty of her lyrics or the warmth of her voice — it’s the story behind the songs. She didn’t start writing music until the COVID-19 lockdowns, when a Facebook “Live Lounge” group challenged her to post a song a day. Running out of covers, she nervously tried one of her own. It struck a chord — and the songwriter she’d always hoped to be suddenly burst into life.

On Falling Fast and Writing Fast

Hodges’s latest single, Tomorrow No-one Knows, captures that moment when you dive headfirst into something — or someone — without knowing how it’ll end. "It’s about enjoying the moment because you don’t know what’s around the corner,” she says. “It tells the story of falling in love with a girl I met on a dating app — how it happens before you really know the other person. It all came together really fast. That’s not how it usually works for me — usually it’s more of a gestation — but this one just… popped out.”

From GP to Gigs

Before stepping into the singer-songwriter spotlight, Brook’s life was already more full than most. She’s a GP by day — “my other life,” as she puts it — and a mother, too. Songwriting came late, and came hard.

“I’d wanted to write songs for years,” she reflects, “but only really started in the past few. I also came out as gay around the same time. I don’t think that’s a coincidence. Once I could write from a place of real authenticity, the creative floodgates opened.”

That honesty spills into every lyric — never overwrought, always grounded. “I can’t sit down and force lyrics. They come when I’m not trying: out on a run, or first thing in the morning. And often, I don’t even know what a song is really about until I’m deep in it.”

John Martyn, Kylie, and Alternative Tunings

Musically, Hodges is as comfortable discussing open tunings as she is dissecting perfect pop. “I’ve been listening to a lot of John Martyn lately — his guitar work is incredible, and I’ve been experimenting with some of his tunings. It transforms the guitar into something fresh.”

But don’t mistake her for a purist. “I went to see Kylie recently — she was amazing. Writing a pure pop song that holds up is high art. Better the Devil You Know is just… brilliant.”

Live From Malawi to Sheffield

Brook’s gig history is as varied as her sound. One standout show? A no-mics, all-heart acoustic night in Malawi. “I was living there for a while, and a bar owner bussed people in from the capital — four hours away — like we were actual popstars,” she laughs. “I sang a hit song in the local language, Chichewa. Must’ve played it five times that night.”

Now, she’s preparing for something closer to home: her album launch party on June 20th. She’s been sharpening her live chops at open mic nights across the UK and has grown to love being on stage. “I used to get so nervous. Now, it’s like I’m feeding off the connection with the crowd. When I feel them with me, I rise to it.”

The Doctor Who Sings

There’s a beautiful duality in Brook’s life. Doctor and artist. Healer and confessor. “Music had been on the back burner for years,” she says. “But lockdown brought it to the front again. I joined this Facebook Live Lounge group and started posting a song a day — mostly covers. Eventually I thought, why not try one of my own? The feedback was so positive, it encouraged me to keep going.”

And here we are: debut album incoming, live shows booked, new songs already in the works. “I’d love to find the right person to collaborate with — someone I really trust. But there’s also something liberating about being a solo artist. Everything is on your terms.”

When asked about her dream collaborator, she doesn’t hesitate (today, anyway): “Romeo Stodart from The Magic Numbers. I saw him solo in Sheffield and was blown away. When I listen to their songs, I can hear the collaboration — the way the songs shift direction with different inputs. That’s what I’d want in a co-writer. Someone who takes the song somewhere you couldn’t have found alone.”

The Final Word: Vulnerability as Power

There’s something deeply human about Brook Hodges’s music. She doesn’t posture, doesn’t pretend — she feels, and lets us feel with her. These are songs born from real life: late-night heartbreaks, early-morning lyrics, a guitar tuned just left of expected, and a heart finally speaking its own language.

And she’s just getting started.

Scared of Heights isn’t just a debut album — it’s a quiet triumph, a record written in the cracks between identities, responsibilities, and moments of doubt. It’s for anyone who’s ever hesitated before the leap, and jumped anyway.

Listen closely — Brook Hodges doesn’t just write songs. She leaves the door open, lets you in, and hands you the kind of truth you didn’t know you needed.

Brook Hodges – Scared of Heights

Out 20th June on all major platforms.

Follow Brook for gig updates and new releases. If you want songs with soul, substance, and a touch of sparkle — this is your new favourite artist.