As I write this interview up, Heather Peace is in Los Angeles.
Her breakfast this morning? "Pancakes, maple syrup, eggs, smoked
salmon and vats of coffee." As you've probably guessed, I know this
because in common with more than 24,500 others, @DIVAmagazine
follows @heatherpeace on Twitter. Along with innovative websites
like Pledgemusic.com, where Heather recently met her album
fundraising target within seven hours of her page going live,
Twitter has transformed the way that artists are able to reach -
and be reached by - their audience. So, with a growing celebrity
profile, and theoretically accessible 24 hours a day, how does
Heather negotiate that blurry line between a public and a private
life?
"I have a rule with myself," Heather says. "I don't really go on
Twitter once my girlfriend is back from work. So you won't get much
from me at the weekend, and you won't get much on an evening." It
is work, she agrees, and she's very aware of Heather Peace as a
brand. "When there was just a small group of fans on there they
were all lovely but it's a bit scary, the direct contact. I do
fear..." she trails off. "When Waterloo Road came out [earlier this
year] I thought if people Google my name and see that I'm gay,
well, I was prepared for loads of homophobia and I didn't have any.
I had one guy saying 'Shame you're a lesbian', she laughs. "I just
tweeted back 'Sorry about that'. I think the world's changing."
To read the rest of this interview, buy a copy of
the June 2012 issue of DIVA.
The June issue also contains some great extra
content. There is an exclusive behind-the-scenes
video clip from Heather's Better Than You music video
shoot embedded in the issue, which you can access in the print
version of the magazine via an Aurasma scan (simply download the
free Aurasma app and use it to scan the image of Heather inside the
mag).
The same video is also available in the version of the
magazine that is downloaded via the DIVA app from
iTunes. Simply purchase the June issue via the DIVA app and check
out the interview on page 58, and you'll see the video content
there. The app version has an additional treat - you can
listen to the title track from Heather's forthcoming album,
Fairytales. Just tap the blue button on page
sixty and the track will begin to play.
Buy it here!
Heather's album Fairytales is on sale from May 21. Check out the
video for the first single, Better Than You, below.
PHOTO: Andrew Whitton
