Rebecca Downes Biography

Birmingham-based Rebecca is a fully independent artist creating original blues/rock music with her co-songwriter Steve Birkett and releasing it on her own label Mad Hat Records. She usually plays live within a 5-piece band, performing tracks mainly from her studio albums Believe (2016), More Sinner Than Saint (2019) and The Space Between Us (2022) along with new material and one or two classic covers.

Wolverhampton-born Rebecca’s current music began when she linked up with co-songwriter Steve to write blues-infused material to create their excellent first album, Back To The Start (2013) followed by Believe and the live album BeLive (2017). Rebecca was voted Female Vocalist and Emerging Artist of the Year at the British Blues Awards 2016 and Female Blues Vocalist of the Year in the FORM UK Blues Awards 2018.

More Sinner Than Saint (2019) contains material honed with advice from producer Chris Kimsey, famous for working with the Rolling Stones and Peter Frampton, and the tracks were mixed by California-based producer Bill Drescher and Thunder’s bassist Chris Childs. The album received considerable critical acclaim and the second single – Hurts – was playlisted by Planet Rock Radio UK.

In April 2021 Rebecca released Stripped Back, an album created under lockdown conditions, and containing ten tracks from Believe and More Sinner Than Saint each reimagined and re-presented in a laid-back style, together with two previously unreleased tracks.

Birmingham-based Rebecca is a fully independent artist creating original blues/rock music with her co-songwriter Steve Birkett and releasing it on her own label Mad Hat Records. She usually plays live within a 5-piece band, performing her original tracks along with one or two classic covers.

Wolverhampton-born Rebecca’s current music began when she linked up with co-songwriter Steve to write blues-infused material for their excellent first album, Back To The Start (2013) which was followed by Believe (2016) and the live album BeLive (2017). Rebecca was voted Female Vocalist and Emerging Artist of the Year at the British Blues Awards 2016 and Female Blues Vocalist of the Year in the FORM UK Blues Awards 2018.

More Sinner Than Saint (2019) contains material honed with advice from producer Chris Kimsey, famous for working with the Rolling Stones and Peter Frampton, and the tracks were mixed by California-based producer Bill Drescher and Thunder’s bassist Chris Childs. The album received considerable critical acclaim and the second single – Hurts – was playlisted by Planet Rock Radio UK.

Stripped Back (2021), is an album created under lockdown conditions, with ten tracks from Believe and More Sinner Than Saint each reimagined and re-presented in a laid-back style, together with two previously unreleased tracks.

The Space Between Us (2022) features ten new songs and one cover in a collection of raw, passionate, multi-hued tracks with a very live feel that allows Rebecca to deliver her very personal lyrics with vocal conviction. The album was produced by Steve Birkett and mixed and mastered by Gavin Monaghan.

Stranger Blue EP (2025) is a collection of cover songs recorded in ‘stripped back’ style, some of which were released as singles.

A new studio album is scheduled for release on 31 October 2025 with the first single released on 16 May.