About
“There must be better songs
to sing than this.”
(Educating Rita, 1983)
Better Songs is Leeds based audio collective Rosie Parsons and Verity Watts. We work together and independently to tell stories in new ways, falling between the cracks of sound art, music, journalism and turntablism.
We believe in the power of sound. We think the stories we tell and share can make an impact on the world around us. We know the even smallest noise, song or word can transport people to other worlds and paint pictures of better ones. We want to showcase the artistic power of sound, music and words, combining them in a way that connects an audience even more deeply to the content.
We often work by commission but also look for funding to grow, develop and share untold stories that we think are important to tell. We enjoy collaborating with other organisations and individuals to bring those stories alive, and we’d love to hear from you if you want to explore an idea further.
We are…..
Verity Watts
After her postgraduate training in Broadcast Journalism at the University of Central Lancashire, Verity bribed senior managers at BBC Radio Leeds with cake to give her a work placement and a few freelance shifts. A long night was spent editing a Breakfast show package in the style of Cilla Black’s ‘Blind Date’ which ultimately landed her a full time role as the station’s Breakfast show reporter and then District Producer, based in a broom cupboard-cum-studio at Wakefield Town Hall.
When the Commonwealth Games came to Manchester in 2002 Verity was selected to lead a team of new and inexperienced recruits to launch a temporary station for the BBC, aimed at reflecting the diverse communities and stories of the area within the framework of the Games.
After getting a taste for brand new stations, Verity then landed a role as a Producer for the freshly launched BBC 6 Music- back then a little known digital station that no one thought would last. She was part of a team that helped establish the station’s role as the go-to place for both new and established musicians and their audiences to share their passion and give a platform to unheard creativity.
Despite much fun in London Verity returned to Leeds and entered the world of commercial radio, working as Breakfast Show Producer at Radio Aire and then as part of the newly launched Rock Radio in Manchester, where she is still randomly approached on social media by fans of ‘Mistress V’.
In order to keep everyone on their toes, she then left radio and set up her own business, baa ram ewe, an award winning hand knitting brand trading in 25 countries and 5 continents. Ten years on she reconnected with the audio world by becoming the Community Broadcast Worker at Chapel FM, then going on to form Better Songs Productions with Rosie.
As well as her sound art work, Verity performs DJ sets, playing the sort of stuff you you probably suspected she might, leaping from a brand new jazz artist discovery on Bandcamp to Kim Wilde’s Kids in America via Francoise Hardy.
Rosie Parsons
Rosie is an audio producer and artist based in Leeds. Using sound creatively has always interested her, and through making electronic music and field recordings she developed a passion for radio and telling stories through sound.
Her radio journey began with making work for experimental radio arts festival Radiophrenia, and she now brings her creative approach to producing podcasts, audio documentaries and radio shows.
She’s interested in unearthing hidden histories and exploring what makes a place unique, with recent projects taking the listener on journeys via narrowboats and market stalls, through lost botanical gardens, and long demolished buildings.
A sound artist, marketing and communications professional and audio producer, she makes commissioned audio work for community and arts organisations such as Leeds Literature Festival, Chapel FM and The Conservation Volunteers, and her work has been featured on local and national radio.
She’s now joined forces with Verity to create Better Songs Productions, where they make audio that surprises, moves, and immerses you in stories.
