Laura Marling

Biography

Laura Beatrice Marling (born 1 February 1990) is an English folk singer-songwriter. She won the Brit Award for Best British Female Solo Artist at the 2011 Brit Awards and was nominated for the same award at the 2012, 2014, 2016, and 2018 Brit Awards.
Marling joined her elder sisters in London at age 16 to pursue a career in music. She played with a number of groups and released her debut album, Alas, I Cannot Swim, in 2008. Her first album, her second album I Speak Because I Can×I Speak Because I Can1 March 2010 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1Devil’s Spoke3:382Made by Maid2:523Rambling Man3:164Blackberry Stone3:295Alpha Shallows3:426Goodbye England (Covered in Snow)3:457Hope in the Air4:328What He Wrote4:079Darkness Descends3:4010I Speak Because I Can3:5911Nature of Dust1:29, her fourth album Once I Was an Eagle×Once I Was an Eagle24 May 2013 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 16 tracks1Take the Night Off4:122I Was an Eagle4:223You Know2:314Breathe5:015Master Hunter3:166Little Love Caster5:527Devil's Resting Place3:148Interlude2:169Undine3:1310Where Can I Go?3:4111Once3:3912Pray for Me5:0613When Were You Happy? (And How Long Has That Been)3:5314Love Be Brave3:0415Little Bird5:4016Saved These Words4:27, and her seventh album Song for Our Daughter×Song for Our Daughter10 April 2020 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1Alexandra3:202Held Down4:083Strange Girl3:224Only the Strong3:205Blow by Blow2:566Song for Our Daughter4:077Fortune3:568The End of the Affair3:259Hope We Meet Again4:0510For You3:57 were nominated for the Mercury Music Prize in 2008, 2010, 2013, and 2020, respectively. Her sixth record, Semper Femina, was also nominated for a Grammy Award in the Best Folk Album category, as was Song for Our Daughter. In 2024, Marling released her eighth solo record, Patterns in Repeat.
Her songwriting is associated with sex and relationships, psychoanalysis, loss, the modern concept of womanhood, and trauma. Marling's eight studio solo albums have all been met with critical acclaim and she is widely considered to be one of the most accomplished songwriters of the nu folk music scene in Britain.

Early life

Marling is the youngest of three daughters. Her mother is a music teacher. Marling's father, Sir Charles William Somerset Marling, 5th baronet ran a recording studio, introduced her to folk music, and shaped her musical taste, an experience that Marling later described as, "a bit of a blessing and a bit of a curse. ... [because] I couldn't slot myself into the age-appropriate genre". When she was five years old, her father taught her to play the guitar.
Her mother was abandoned after World War II, put into foster care, and later adopted. Marling later reflected on her matriarchal bloodline through songs written for her eighth studio album, Patterns in Repeat×Patterns in Repeat25 October 2024 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1Child of Mine4:142Patterns4:213Your Girl3:304No One’s Gonna Love You Like I Can2:035The Shadows3:316Interlude (Time Passages)3:067Caroline3:218Looking Back3:049Lullaby2:4810Patterns in Repeat4:5511Lullaby (instrumental)1:39, which was released in October 2024. Marling was born when her mother was 44 years old.
She grew up on a farm in Eversley, a small village in Hampshire. Black Sabbath recorded at her father's studio when she was six months old.
Marling was privately educated at Waverly Primary School in Finchampstead, Berkshire and Leighton Park School, a Quaker school in Reading, Berkshire, where she had won a scholarship to attend. She later described her teenage years as "solitary" but did not find it difficult to make friends. During her secondary school years, she felt uneasy around other people and was afraid of death.
She wrote her first song, "Failure" at age 14 and the song later appeared on her debut album, Alas, I Cannot Swim, released in 2008.

Music career

After completing her GCSEs at age 16, Marling joined her older sisters and settled in the outskirts of London. She soon joined a cluster of intertwined bands that were drawn to acoustic instruments and tradition-tinged melodies—the group formed a musical movement that was labelled "nu-folk" by the British press. Marling joined the original line-up of indie folk band Noah and the Whale and appears as a background vocalist on their debut album, Peaceful, the World Lays Me Down; however, she left the group before the album's 2008 release due to a dissolved relationship with the band's lead singer, Charlie Fink. Marling appeared on The Rakes track "Suspicious Eyes" from the band's 2007 album, Ten New Messages, credited as 'Laura Marlin'. Marling later collaborated with Mystery Jets and contributed guest vocals to their 2008 single "Young Love". Early in her career, Marling performed with members of the band Mumford & Sons: Ted Dwane, Marcus Mumford, and Winston Marshall.

2008–2011: First three albums

Marling was invited to tour with Jamie T after he attended her second solo gig. She has toured with a number of other musicians including Adam Green from the anti-folk band The Moldy Peaches. She performed at the 2007 O2 Wireless Festival and at the first Underage Festival in August 2007 at Victoria Park, East London, before releasing her debut EP London Town on WayOutWest Records.
Her debut album Alas, I Cannot Swim was released on 4 February 2008, and was nominated for the 2008 Mercury Prize. The album, as well as subsequent singles, were released on Virgin Records. The third and final single from that album, "Night Terror×Night Terror26 October 2008 · EPSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1Night Terror3:142Alpha Shallows (demo)4:403Night Terror (live from Union Chapel, London, U.K/2008) (single edit)3:374Your Only Doll (Dora) (live from Union Chapel, London, U.K/2008) (single edit)3:08" was released on 27 October 2008, coinciding with a six-date Night Terror Tour.

Marling's television appearances include The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson and Later With Jools Holland, performing "Ghosts×Ghosts28 January 2008 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 2 tracks1Ghosts3:032The Needle and the Damage Done2:00" and "New Romantic×New Romantic29 October 2007 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1New Romantic2:52", respectively. In 2008, she appeared on Russell Brand's Radio 2 show alongside her sister. She once chose to perform on the street after being denied entry to one of her own performances for being underage.
The follow-up to Alas, I Cannot Swim, titled I Speak Because I Can, was released on 22 March 2010. Produced by Ethan Johns, the album has a more mature sound and lyricism, dealing with "responsibility, particularly the responsibility of womanhood". The album is preceded by her singles "Goodbye England (Covered in Snow)×Goodbye England (Covered in Snow)14 December 2009 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 trackAGoodbye England (Covered in Snow)3:46", released on iTunes in December 2009, and "Devil's Spoke", released on 15 March 2010. On 28 March 2010, I Speak Because I Can entered the UK Albums Chart at Number 4. It was nominated for the 2010 Mercury Music Prize. In 2013, NME listed the album at 263 in their list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.
Marling's third album, A Creature I Don't Know, was released on 12 September 2011. The album received positive reviews and reached number four on the UK album charts.

2012–2013: Once I Was an Eagle

During October 2012, Marling completed the Working Holiday Tour of the US as a solo performer. At the time, she announced that the fourth album, later named Once I Was an Eagle×Once I Was an Eagle24 May 2013 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 16 tracks1Take the Night Off4:122I Was an Eagle4:223You Know2:314Breathe5:015Master Hunter3:166Little Love Caster5:527Devil's Resting Place3:148Interlude2:169Undine3:1310Where Can I Go?3:4111Once3:3912Pray for Me5:0613When Were You Happy? (And How Long Has That Been)3:5314Love Be Brave3:0415Little Bird5:4016Saved These Words4:27, was finished and was scheduled for a February 2013 release; this was later delayed until May 2013. On 8 March 2013, Marling confirmed that the album would be released on 27 May 2013 and would be released in the US one day later.
Marling's fourth album's first single, "Master Hunter×Master Hunter17 April 2013 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Master Hunter3:16", was released on 17 April 2013, while Once I Was an Eagle entered the UK charts at number 3.
Following the release of the album, Marling revealed that she only listened to "music made between 1969 and 1972" during the songwriting process for the album and described it as an era when "guitar was becoming a kind of masculine extension". Marling explained during the post-release promotional period that she sought a minimalist approach for the fourth album and, in contrast to the previous two albums, recorded all of the songs without a band.
Once I Was an Eagle is Marling's third album to be nominated for the Mercury Prize. The 2013 award was eventually won by James Blake.
Marling revealed in a September 2013 interview that she had enough songs for a fifth album at the time, and she will "maybe make this record and then have a big, long, hard think about what I've done". During a February 2014 performance for NPR's eTown series, Marling played one of the new songs, titled "Born to Love".
During a European tour for her fourth album, Marling expressed doubts about her long-term commitment to the music industry in an interview:

When I play, I am very much in the space where I was when I wrote the music. You could slay me quite easily, I'm at my most vulnerable. I am very private, in all aspects of my life, to everybody, so why is it that I get up on stage every night and open myself in front of strangers? I'm not sure if I've got the bottle for it, any more.
Marling added that she is sometimes surprised by her profession in relation to the music industry as a whole and often thinks, "oh, I exist in this industry" when listening to the radio, saying that she is unsure if she wants to remain in such a position.

2014–2017: Short Movie and Semper Femina

On 16 December 2014, Marling announced that her fifth studio album would be titled Short Movie×Short Movie20 March 2015 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 15 tracks1Warrior5:202False Hope3:123I Feel Your Love4:034Walk Alone3:195Strange3:176Don’t Let Me Bring You Down3:107Easy3:448Gurdjieff’s Daughter4:229Divine2:5910How Can I3:2211Howl5:0612Short Movie4:3613Worship Me3:3614Daisy3:0615David2:59. The album's title track, released on the same date, is the lead single and was made available for digital download. The album features 13 songs composed by Marling and was released in the UK on 23 March 2015 and one day later in the US.
Marling began recording songs for the album shortly after completing the solo tour for Once I Was an Eagle×Once I Was an Eagle24 May 2013 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 16 tracks1Take the Night Off4:122I Was an Eagle4:223You Know2:314Breathe5:015Master Hunter3:166Little Love Caster5:527Devil's Resting Place3:148Interlude2:169Undine3:1310Where Can I Go?3:4111Once3:3912Pray for Me5:0613When Were You Happy? (And How Long Has That Been)3:5314Love Be Brave3:0415Little Bird5:4016Saved These Words4:27. The songs were written in the US, reflecting Marling's experience of living in Los Angeles. However, after recording a new album, she felt unsatisfied with the result, and made the decision to scrap most of the songs written in that period. During this time, she became involved in activities unrelated to music. When production later resumed, she completed the album with her band at Urchin Studios in London. Marling produced the album alongside Dan Cox and Matt Ingram.
The second single from the record, "False Hope×False Hope22 January 2015 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1False Hope3:12", premiered on 20 January. The track was available for digital download the next day. Both "False Hope" and "Short Movie" were received with critical acclaim, many reviewers noting the larger sound and the confidence in Marling's vocals.
In October 2015, Marling announced a short Tour de Ville through the US, where she would be previewing material from her forthcoming sixth studio album.
In a tweet, Blake Mills confirmed that Marling's sixth studio album was completed. In November 2016, Marling announced the release of Semper Femina in March 2017, with "Soothing×Soothing28 November 2016 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Soothing4:16" being the first single from the record. The album was released to critical acclaim. Marling received her first Grammy nomination for Best Folk Album for Semper Femina×Semper Femina10 March 2017 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 18 tracks · 2 discsDisc 11Soothing4:172The Valley5:403Wild Fire4:514Don’t Pass Me By5:095Always This Way4:336Wild Once4:237Next Time4:018Nouel4:539Nothing, Not Nearly4:32Disc 21Soothing (live)4:172The Valley (live)5:323Wild Fire (live)5:074Don’t Pass Me By (live)5:185Always This Way (live)4:076Wild Once (live)4:097Next Time (live)4:078Nouel (live)5:239Nothing, Not Nearly (live)3:28, but did not win the award. Semper Femina was also nominated for IMPALA's European Album of the Year Award.
Marling covered "Red Right Hand×Red Right Hand12 June 2020 · Single · SoundtrackSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Red Right Hand1:27" by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds and "A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall×A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall21 December 2017 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall3:55" by Bob Dylan for the Season 4 finale of Peaky Blinders which aired on 20 December 2017.

2018: Lump

In 2018, Marling announced that she would be recording an album with Mike Lindsay of the band Tunng, under the name Lump. Prior to releasing an album, the duo released two singles, "Curse of the Contemporary" and "Late to the Flight". On 1 June 2018, Lump released its self-titled debut album. Marling provided the vocals and lyrics, while Lindsay played most of the instruments on the album.

2020–present: Song for Our Daughter, second Lump album and Patterns in Repeat

Marling duetted with the Radiohead guitarist Ed O'Brien on "Cloak of the Night" on his debut solo album, Earth, released in 2020. On 5 April, Marling announced her seventh solo album via an Instagram post, and released a song, "Held Down×Held Down5 April 2020 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Held Down4:08", at midnight. Song for Our Daughter was released on 10 April. The album, which had been set for release in August, was released early, in part due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic also caused Marling to cancel many 2020 tour dates.
The songs from the album featured predominately in several notable online performances including Live at the Union Chapel: live-streamed on 6 June 2020, with a selection of songs being pressed to limited edition vinyl. The performance was described by NME magazine as 'taking lockdown gigs to heavenly new heights'. The Lockdown Sessions was recorded at Marling's home in April 2020 and released as part of Rough Trade's albums of the year in December, and the BBC Radio 6 Music Festival: her 'headline' solo performance on 26 March 2021 that also included a performance of a new track, titled "The Shadows".
On 22 March 2021, Marling announced dates for a UK tour in October 2021 performing the songs from Song for Our Daughter live for an audience for the first time.
On 5 May 2021, Marling announced the follow-up album to her collaboration with Mike Lindsay as Lump, entitled Animal, along with the release of the lead single of the same name. The album was released on 30 July by Partisan and Chrysalis Records.
Following the birth of her daughter in 2023, Marling began writing and recording her eighth album, Patterns In Repeat×Patterns in Repeat25 October 2024 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracks1Child of Mine4:142Patterns4:213Your Girl3:304No One’s Gonna Love You Like I Can2:035The Shadows3:316Interlude (Time Passages)3:067Caroline3:218Looking Back3:049Lullaby2:4810Patterns in Repeat4:5511Lullaby (instrumental)1:39, in London. With themes centred on motherhood, relationships, and parenting, the album was released on 25 October 2024.
On 5 June 2026, Marling released her album Laura Sings Raffi×Laura Sings Raffi29 November 2024 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 11 tracksA1Peanut Butter SandwichA2Baby BelugaA3The More We Get TogetherA4Mr SunA55 Green and Speckled FrogsB16 Little DucksB2I Wonder If I'm GrowingB3Down by the BayB4One Light One SunB5Robin in the RainB6Thanks a Lot, a children's music album with all songs written by or associated with Canadian children's singer Raffi.

Acting

Marling co-stars in the short film Woman Driver, which was filmed in Marfa, Texas, and directed by Chris Perkel. The movie was shot and edited in 72 hours. Marling later won "Best Actress" at the 72-Hour National Film Challenge. The film was shown at the London Short Film Festival on 14 January 2015 and premiered on Vimeo the following month. The film also featured new music from Marling.

Personal life

Marling was in a relationship with Noah and the Whale singer/guitarist Charlie Fink until 2008. She also dated Marcus Mumford of Mumford & Sons until late 2010. She moved to Silver Lake in Los Angeles, California, in 2013, before relocating to London in December 2014, after purchasing her first home. In September 2013, Marling explained: "I am a solitary person but I love people, I'm not a misanthrope. I like the idea of speaking only when it's strictly necessary. The closest I ever feel to people is in shared experience. I'm still exploring that, I don't know where it's going to lead me."
As of 2020, she resides in Stoke Newington in London with her boyfriend, musician George Jephson, whom she met after returning to England after living in Los Angeles, and her older sister. In 2020, Marling was enrolled in a master's degree program in psychoanalysis. In February 2023, Marling announced, via Instagram, that she had given birth to a daughter. Her daughter, Maudie, was born at home "by accident" due to Marling's midwives stopping at her home for check-up. In November 2024, Marling announced, via her newsletter, that she was pregnant with her second child. In December 2025, Marling announced the birth of her son.
She completed her master's degree in psychoanalysis in 2024 and is a full-time stay-at-home mother, in addition to her career as a singer-songwriter. Her boyfriend owns a restaurant specialising in charcuterie in East London. Marling was previously a vegan but is a vegetarian as of 2024. In a 2024 interview with The Times, Marling described the initial five-album record deal she signed as a teenager as "dreadful"; neither she nor her daughter own the rights to her first five albums, which Marling further explained is "devastating".

Solo

Alas, I Cannot Swim (2008)
I Speak Because I Can (2010)
A Creature I Don't Know (2011)
Once I Was an Eagle (2013)
Short Movie (2015)
Semper Femina (2017)
Song for Our Daughter (2020)
Patterns in Repeat (2024)
Laura Sings Raffi (2026)