LIKE everything else in the Scottish music scene recently, Eliza Shaddad's album has been a long-time coming.

From its inception back in March 2020, the record has been a labour of love for the songwriter and a companion through the pandemic era.

The Woman You Want will finally be released next month, with teaser tracks in the form of Blossom, Heaven and Now You're Alone having already landed.

Shaddad, the daughter of a Sudanese astrophysicist and a Scottish diplomat, will also unveil her next single The Man I Admire on June 18.

With most of the writing coming at the height of the first lockdown, the album bears all the hallmarks of introspection at a time of frustration and isolation.

Shaddad tells The Weekender: “When I was choosing the songs to make up the final track listing I realised they all were all striving towards the same thing – a theme of who I want to be, and how far I feel like I’m achieving or failing at that. The album title The Woman You Want and the song of that name kind of sum that up."

The singer continues: "Most of the album was indeed written in March-April of last year, and largely influenced by the intenseness of lockdown one and the few months leading up to it. I had so much time and, honestly, so many different feelings whirring around it was a pretty unique creative moment in my life.

“There are also three songs on the album that I’ve been playing with, and in one case playing live, for a while and I wanted to try recording for this album.

"Normally, when I get in the studio everything is 100 per cent finished and I’m quite resistant to making any changes, but this time I definitely found myself really wanting to sculpt little things about the lyrics and instrumentation to match the personal and collective things that were on my mind – the BLM movement, the revolution in Sudan, and Covid and all its ramifications.”

Shaddad's most recent track Now You're Alone conveys the myriad of emotions felt during the early stages of the pandemic. The uncertainty, the anger and the fear.

But the singer feels the writing of the track helped her through it all, and also now provides her with an outlet when things get too intense.

She says: "I think every song brings a catharsis of some kind for me really – the kind of self-exploration it takes to put lyrics together proves to be quite healing, or at least instructional – I know myself better for writing, and that definitely brings me some peace.

"And with that song in particular I now have a song that I can scream-sing, too, when I feel disconnected and frustrated, and that's always a good way to get some emotions out."

The singles released so far have been well-received by fans and critics, but she is, of course, not finished yet.

Shaddad says: "I’m pumped for [the album] to come out. And pretty bowled over by the reaction from fans and the media [to the singles]; it’s so exciting and lovely, and I feel really lucky, especially given the crazy circumstances under which the album was made. There is indeed more to come ahead of July 16."

Next Friday will see the release of The Man I Admire, which the singer feels will document her growth over the last couple of years at a time when she is “working out womanhood for me, and what it means to be an artist, and independent boss, a daughter, a granddaughter, a friend, a wife".

It is just another journey in a lifetime of journeys. Indeed, the well-travelled Shaddad has garnered admiration for her approach to music, which is down to her unique upbringing.

She describes herself as Sudanese-Scottish but has never formally lived in either country. She spent so much of her informative years soaking up so many rich and diverse cultures, but always feels the pull of her heritage.

The singer reflects: "My family are from Perth and Aberdeen mostly – but, actually, from birth I was travelling with my mum around Europe and Africa (Spain, Nigeria, Poland, Slovakia, Russia) and then at 18 ended up studying in Birmingham, then back to Spain, and then to London to pursue music. So, weirdly, I’ve never actually properly lived in either Scotland or Sudan (where my dad’s from) but they’re the closest things to roots I’ve had.

Asked how her nomadic childhood impacted on her writing style, she adds: "I think it’s been an incredible influence really, I feel so open to language and genres and have a lot of respect for non-western music. It was also brilliant prep for tour life."

She adds: "I’ve always felt very drawn to traditional folks songs, the idea that people have been singing the same songs and telling the same stories for generations, maybe in part because my upbringing was so diverse I like the idea of a single thread through history – and I love a good long yarn and I think that has had a big influence on my songwriting.

"I also think the stories often ring as true today as they ever have, and I hope that can bring us some comfort at least – maybe in a kind of nihilistic way if nothing else. Time passes, people change, but the human experience is pretty similar – we strive, we love, we suffer, we overcome.

Eliza Shaddad will perform at The Hug and Pint in Glasgow on November 20.

Her album The Woman You Want will be released on July 16.

Eliza Shaddad Tour Dates

8th November – Green Door Store, Brighton

9th November – Crofters Rights, Bristol

10th November – The Portland Arms, Cambridge

11th November – The Dome, London

13th November – Voodoo Daddy’s, Norwich

18th November – Clwb Ifor Back, Cardiff

19th November – YES (Basement), Manchester

20th November – The Hug and Pint, Glasgow

22nd November – Oporto, Leeds

23rd November – The Victoria, Birmingham

24th November – Yellow Arch Studios, Sheffield

26th November – Old Bakery Studios, Truro