Growing up in Harrow, London, Nash first became interested in music during her childhood when she learned to play the piano. She attended St. John Fisher school and moved on to the St. Joan of Arc School in Rickmansworth. Her talents were harnessed further when she wrote songs for her GCSE in Music and her time studying at the BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology in Croydon, South London. However, her first love was acting and so in 2005 she made moves to start a career in acting by auditioning at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School and was rejected. After her rejection she fell down a flight of stairs, breaking her foot. During her recovery Nash was unable to go anywhere and found solace in song writing. She began to write some new songs, finished old ones and decided that she would book herself a gig at a local bar to showcase her songs. From this experience she decided to start a career in music.
Nash's early live performances saw her play a number of cover versions. After a few gigs, Nash uploaded her music to the popular website MySpace. Her music soon began to receive support from users of the site and Nash found herself a manager, proceeding to look for producers.
Fellow MySpace star Lily Allen has stated that she believes Nash is the "next big thing", and she has also garnered support from publications such as Vogue and NME, the latter dubbing her as "chavtronica". Nash has been compared to Lily Allen, because of their storytelling lyrics, the dry sense of humour that fuels their songs as well as distinctive London accents. Some people have commented that Nash sounds like Catherine Tate when she sings. Others have compared some of her songs to music by Regina Spektor.
Nash has stated that her biggest influence has been Regina Spektor and has an extensive list of influences on her myspace page. Some of her influences include, "London, punk, Bored Teenagers and John Cooper Clarke".
Nash's début release was a double-A side single released through independent record label Moshi Moshi in February 2007. The release was limited to 1000 copies and was available on only 7" vinyl. The first A-side, "Caroline's a Victim", is a synth-fuelled song about Nash's friend Caroline. A video for the song was released and received notable airplay on MTV2. The video, directed by Kinga Burza, featured Nash playing a variety of instruments at the same time that "Caroline" sits in her room "playing killer beats", taking photographs, trying on different outfits and sitting at her computer checking a social networking website.
The second A-side to the single was "Birds", an acoustic number that tells the story of a boy's inept attempts to try and explain to his girlfriend how he feels about her, all the while the girl remains despondent about the situation.
During the promotion for "Caroline's a Victim"/"Birds", Nash supported Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly on his national tour before embarking on her own headlining tour, which took her around the UK.
In April 2007, Nash was signed to the Polydor offshoot Fiction Records. A month later, Nash was mocked through a parody of her song, "Caroline's a Victim" entitled "LDN Is A Victim". The song mocked Nash and Lily Allen, amongst others, for singing in a Cockney-drawl, despite their privileged backgrounds.
Nash's second single and first through Fiction Records, "Foundations", which she co-wrote with producer Paul Epworth, was released on June 25, 2007 and reached number two in the official UK Singles Chart.
Following "Foundations", Fiction announced plans to bring forward the release of Nash's debut album to August 6, 2007. The album, Made of Bricks, produced by Paul Epworth, included many of the tracks she had been performing on her two nationwide tours. The album was leaked to filesharing networks days before its commercial release, and has received mixed reviews, The Independent describing it as being in "pole position for worst album of the year." The album reached number 1 in the UK charts.
During mid-2007, Nash performed at numerous festivals including Wireless Festival, Bestival, the Electric Gardens, Glastonbury, Latitude, Reading and Leeds, Oxegen and T in the Park. She made her official TV performance debut on Later with Jools Holland.
Nash features on rapper Kano's album London Town, in a song titled "Me & My Microphone". She is also featured in the song "Look What You've Done" from Lethal Bizzle's latest album, Back To Bizznizz.
Regarding the recording of a new album, Nash told NME that she had been inspired by The Supremes and has written a song called "Cat Song" in their honour. She is also set to release a duet single with Billy Bragg, a cover of The Shangri-Las "Give Storey A Great Big Kiss".
On 20 February 2008 she received a BRIT award for Best Female artist.
In April 2010 she released her sophomore album in 'My Best Friend Is You". With the singles "Do-Wah-Doo" and "Kiss that Grrrl" following close behind.
I've Got a Secret
Kate Nash Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I've got a secret I cant tell you
I've got a secret I cant tell you
Ive got a secret I cant tell you
You would judge
You would judge
You would judge
Ive got a secret I cant tell you
Ive got a secret I cant tell you
Ive got a secret I cant tell you
Ive got a secret I cant tell you
You would judge
You would judge
You would judge
You would judge
Ive got a secret I can't tell you
Ive got a secret I cant tell you
Ive got a secret I cant tell you
Ive got a secret I cant tell you
You would judge
You would judge
You would judge
You would judge
I can't be friends you can't pretend
You don't know me
You don't love me
Why can't my kiss hurt this
Why can't I be with him
Why cant we have fun with this
Oh no ?
In Kate Nash's song "I've Got a Secret", the repeated phrase "I've got a secret I can't tell you" expresses a deep and painful inner truth that the singer feels unable to share with the person addressed in the song. The reason for this silence is clear in the repetitive lines "You would judge" - the singer feels that the person she is speaking to would not be able to understand or accept her secret and would instead react with criticism or disdain. The refrain is haunting in its simplicity, and the repetition of both the title phrase and the accusation of judgment create a sense of emotional claustrophobia and isolation. The final lines of the song, "I can't be friends you can't pretend / You don't know me / You don't love me", suggest that the secret may be something that has driven a wedge between the two individuals and made their relationship untenable.
Overall, "I've Got a Secret" is a powerful and affecting song that captures the pain and difficulty of keeping a hidden truth from someone we care about. The lyrics are spare but impactful, and the use of repetition creates a haunting and unforgettable effect.
Line by Line Meaning
I've got a secret I can't tell you
There is something important that I am keeping hidden from you.
You would judge
I feel that you would disapprove of or criticize me if you knew my secret.
I can't be friends, you can't pretend
Our relationship cannot continue in the same way because of my secret, and you cannot act as if everything is okay.
You don't know me
My secret is a part of me that you do not yet understand or are not fully aware of.
You don't love me
I fear that my secret might make you love or accept me less, or that it will cause problems in our relationship.
Why can't my kiss hurt this
I am struggling with the fact that my feelings might not be reciprocated, or that there might be negative consequences if I acted on them.
Why can't I be with him
There might be external factors or pressures keeping me from being with the person I want to be with, or my secret might make a relationship with them impossible.
Why can't we have fun with this
Despite the serious and difficult nature of my secret, I wish that we could approach it with a more lighthearted or positive attitude.
Oh no?
I am expressing doubt or disappointment that the situation cannot be different than it is, or that I cannot share my secret with you.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: KATE MARIE NASH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind