'Fame just isn't healthy

Mercury Prize-winning band English Teacher on the pressure of success, trying not to burn out and the challenges black women face in indie music

- LISA WRIGHT

J ust a few months after scooping the Mercury Prize-beating Charli XCX, The Last Dinner Party and other similarly massive stars - Leeds quartet English Teacher are sitting in the dressing room of Shepherd's Bush Empire, reading the names of the venue's former headliners that they're about to join the ranks of: The Rolling Stones, Prince, Oasis, the list goes on. As is occurring with increased frequency, it's another case of finding themselves spoken of in the same breath as some of music's greats. Previous Mercury winners include Arctic Monkeys, Pulp and PJ Harvey; the week after we speak, English Teacher are also longlisted for the BBC Sound of 2025 poll, a tips list previously topped by Adele and Sam Smith.

For 26-year-old vocalist Lily Fontaine, the life-changing win was a result she hadn't even entertained. "Whenever I daydreamed, I felt guilty about it," she says. "I'd go there and then be like, 'No, no, no, you can't do that." But English Teacher's record This Could Be Texas contains all the hallmarks of a classic indie debut. Praised by the judges for its "originality and character... display[ing] a fresh approach to the guitar band format", it also marked the first time in a decade that the prize had been won by artists outside London.