TOYAH ON
MIX 96, AYLESBURY
WITH CHRIS MASKERY
29.8.2015

CHRIS: So "Park Life" this Saturday – are you looking forward to it?

TOYAH: Oh, gosh yeah! I love outdoor gigs. This is going to be our last outdoor gig of the season having done big festivals all through the summer so we can't wait to do this one. And it's feels very local ... I don't know why because I live in Worcester! But least I know we're not travelling up to Scotland and back!

It's going to be great fun, it's outdoors, we will have our fans there but we'll also have new people there and hopefully we will win new fans on the day as well

CHRIS: I actually was going to talk about the crowds. When you do your gigs … are they the same faces from the 80s who've supported you since then or is it new people? 

TOYAH: It's very mixed. We still have people who have been with me for 37 years and now they have children and grandchildren and they tend to come along as well. But we have a new audience increasingly under the age of 25

I think that's because 80s music is so popular and it's popular with all generations. Anyone under 25 to me is like a child! I don't mean that in a condescending way but in a sort of age related way

They are discovering people like me for the first time, therefore the music is fresh and it's inspiring and they live their daily lives to it. So we're getting a huge mix of people in our audience. Our audiences are very friendly, we don't have a reputation of having a following that wears only black

We have a family orientated audience. They want to dance and join in the choruses, sing along and film things on their phones and to me everything goes

CHRIS: I bet you see some good outfits in the crowd?

TOYAH: Actually this summer has been spectacular! I've seen more Day-Glo than I did actually in the 1980s! Men are getting braver and braver. The other week I did a huge festival in Clumber Park and there were so many men dressed as women I just couldn't stop laughing! (laughs) 

They look fantastic! I think the audience wants to participate, they want to be part of the show and to me that is absolutely cool. Go for it, dress up, have fun! This is going be the last outdoor gig of the summer. Let's go out with a bang! 

CHRIS: 37 years is long time to be doing the same thing. Is that what sort of makes performing fun still? 

TOYAH: It depends what you mean by the same thing. I've made over 32 albums so it's never the same. Each night we chop and change what we play. And to be honest songs like “It's A Mystery” or “I Want To Be Free”, which I have been performing for 37, never feel the same

The atmosphere of the grounds you play in, the atmosphere of the audience, the whole ambiance of the night is utterly unique so you never feel as though here we go again

There's never a feeling of repetition. You always have to be awake, you always have to be on your toes and I'm always spotting events that I can bring in to the show and share with the audience. For example if I've got a man out there who looks like Freddie Mercury, I'm going to tell the audience about him so I'm always on my toes

CHRIS: I can see people in Aylesbury who look like Freddie Mercury hiding, trying to hide behind other people so they don't get spotted (they both laugh) Bit of a family affair this weekend because your husband is performing in Aylesbury on Monday and Tuesday

TOYAH: It's unbelievable. I mean this is an Aylesbury week. I've already been down in Aylesbury all week because King Crimson are actually rehearsing in the area. My husband is Robert Fripp, he plays in King Crimson. Their tour starts on Monday in Aylesbury

It's just been great and very exciting and it's a family affair this weekend. King Crimson are coming to see me on Sunday and we're all going to see them on Monday. So it's very linked!

CHRIS: You could make it into a mini holiday down here?

TOYAH: It's not a holiday because all the guys in King Crimson are very nervous and apprehensive. It's a huge show for them because their music is so complex. You can actually feel the tension in the room and their nerves building. I think they're looking forward to seeing us because they've never seen us. Most of the guys in King Crimson are from America so we're going to give them a bit of party on Saturday

CHRIS: They're performing in Friars (in Aylesbury) Did you ever do Friars?

TOYAH: Yes. I was the fastest selling artist to ever play Friars

CHRIS: Really?

TOYAH: I sold out in three minutes

CHRIS: Wow! How was the actual gig?

TOYAH: It was fabulous! Absolutely brilliant! The man who is promoting me on Saturday, who is promoting King Crimson next week, is the same man who booked me in Friars so it really is a family affair!