Podcast Afternoon with Morgan Harper-Jones
Welcome our first ever Podcast Guest
Singer/Songwriter
Open Mic Host
A British singer-songwriter, Morgan is known for her emotionally honest lyrics and soulful melodies. Raised in Rochdale, she draws influence from Motown, folk, and vintage pop. Her debut album Up To The Glass explores themes of love, self-worth, and the quiet dramas of everyday life. With a voice both delicate and powerful, she crafts songs that feel deeply personal yet universally relatable.
Advert Writing
Morgan has built a successful parallel path writing music for adverts, film, and television under different names, which she finds creatively freeing. Unlike the personal vulnerability of her main songwriting, sync work provides structured briefs and deadlines that help her focus and play more easily within creative parameters. She enjoys the clarity and distance that commercial songwriting offers, allowing her to experiment without the pressure of self-representation. This work has become a steady part of her musical life, offering both financial support and creative variety.
Host of the weekly Open Mic night at the Ladywell Tavern in South East London, a role that grew out of her regular gigs there and a serendipitous sponsorship from Brixton Brewery. She curates the night with warmth and spontaneity, encouraging chaos, collaboration, and moments of unexpected brilliance. The event has become a beloved local fixture, offering an inclusive space for newcomers and seasoned performers alike. For Morgan, it’s not just a gig—it’s the community she once journaled about and now helps foster every Wednesday.
What we learned over lunch...
“I think my favourite thing is just curating madness and letting people explore it.”
Mandolins, Drama School, and Diana Ross
Welcome to the very first episode of the Phaedra’s Books Podcast. Recorded at Churchgrove. Today gels sits down with singer-songwriter Morgan Harper-Jones at the Grove Kitchen Table.
Morgan is known locally for hosting the legendary Wednesday open mic nights at the Ladywell Tavern.
In this warm, funny, and gently revealing conversation, Morgan talks about:
• Growing up between two sets of grandparents — one musical, one… not so much
• Her first DIY recording session at age six (featuring a demo button samba beat and a strict no-grandad policy)
• The perils of school choirs and Helen Clark
• Why theatre lost out to guitar strings, love/lust, and a free trip to Germany
• How pub gigs paid better than burning toast in café jobs
From tambourines in Rochdale pubs to the London open mic circuit, Morgan reflects over lunch at The Grove on music, family, and the joys of saying yes before you’re ready.
Personal Note from Gels
This episode wasn’t just special because it was our first. It’s because Morgan sang — right there in my kitchen — with me and Dylan - My son and Producing/techical wingman - sat close by. It became more than a recording. It became a moment.
A moment worth sharing.
Two of the songs Morgan shared with us today in the kitchen are linked below for all to enjoy and share.
She said she’d come back if Rex makes pasta, so… I guess we’re boiling water.
Follow Morgan Harper-Jones:
Instagram: @morganharperjones
Spotify: Morgan Harper-Jones on Spotify
Presented by: gels (M.ORoyan)
phaedrasbooks.com
Morgans Links:
Breathe
In Breathe, Morgan Harper-Jones delivers a delicate, emotionally layered performance that feels like both a private confession and a quiet act of strength. The video’s soft light and stillness mirror the song’s intimate honesty — each lyric like a held breath in the space between memory and release. It’s a meditation on staying present, letting go, and finding peace in the pauses.
Main Character
Main Character is a wry, vulnerable anthem for anyone who’s ever felt like a side note in their own life. With gentle defiance and disarming humour, Morgan reclaims the spotlight through rich melodies and self-aware lyricism. The video leans into that tension — playful, poignant, and quietly empowering, like finally saying what you’ve rehearsed in your head a thousand times.