Thornton Heath is awash with musical talent and it’s not just grime and rap artists. Here we profile three local female singers.

Iranian born singer Mitra Djalili was once compared to Corinne Bailey Rae and Amy Winehouse when she was played on BBC Radio extra.

She describes her sound as soulful jazz.

Mitra has also sung on film soundtracks as her husband is a composer. ‘Listening’ is a sci fi film on Netflix, as is ‘Beautiful Wave’ both Hollywood independent features she sang on.

She said: “I really love jazz and am just starting to record some jazz classics including the Moon River which is on my Soundcloud.”

https://m.soundcloud.com/mitradjalili

In the early 90s, Beth Arzy was lead singer and a founding member of Los Angeles indie band Aberdeen and after moving to London in 2000, joined influential UK band Trembling Blue Stars, featuring ex-Field Mice Bobby Wratten.

Beth settled in the Pollards Hill area around 2002 and continued musical projects with Wratten such as The Occasional Keepers, as well as current project Lightning in a Twilight Hour. Beth also sings with London/Brighton fuzz-pop band The Fireworks and Los Angeles based The Luxembourg Signal.

Beth works at Channel 4 and spends what little free time she has supporting AFC Croydon Athletic at Mayfield Road.

https://soundcloud.com/betharzy

Another local singer to look out for is trap soul singer Arielle Haynes  who hopes to follow in the footsteps of her mother who is a reggae singer.

Trap soul is a mix of  R and B with a trap edge explains Arielle, who often comes up with lyrics while on her way to work.

She says her songs come to her spontaneously and she gains inspiration from real life experiences she and her friends go through.

“Songwriting is like a therapy to  me,” Arielle said in an interview with: www.edetltd.co.uk. The local school teacher goes on to say her mother is her role model and that she is ‘very proud’ of what she has achieved.’ Adding: “I would like to mirror her success and even excel past that.”

https://soundcloud.com/ariellesworld