– Allie Ruden, Staff Writer
This Women’s History Month, we are highlighting different women artists all month! Today, we chose to put the spotlight on Florence + The Machine. To learn more about her and her music, read this article!
Biography
Early Life
Florence Welch was born in London in 1986. She grew up on London’s south side. Welch was raised by her mother, an academic and historian, and her father, who was an advertising executive. She progressed through two prep schools in London, and then she eventually dropped out of the London Arts College to pursue music. Welch was inspired by her father, who was a musician in his 20s. Her mother also inspired her in a more aesthetic sense, as she was a professor of Renaissance studies and the academic dean of arts at Queen Mary, University of London.
Both influences can be seen in her music, which embodies a poetic, rock-ish vibe, and her style, which is inspired by medieval and gothic styles. When she was young, she would perform in school plays or at family events. When she was a teen, she was the lead singer of the band Toxic Cockroaches, and eventually joined another band where she was signed to a record label.
Rise To Fame
Her big break came in an unexpected way. In 2006, Welch sang Etta James’ “Something’s Got a Hold On Me” to Mairead Nash of the DJ duo Queens of Noize. After the impromptu performance, Welch was invited back the week after and shortly later signed by Nash.
Welch and her friend Isabella “Machine” Summers started Florence + the Machine, and by 2009, they had a 7-piece band. They went on to open for MGMT and gained lots of praise for their debut album Lungs, which features songs like “Dog Days are Over,” “Kiss With a Fist,” and “Cosmic Love,” which are still considered alternative classics. After a 2010 performance at the MTV Awards, she also gained an American audience. After her quick and intense rise to fame, she also became a style icon and muse for designers.
Recent Work
Since then, she has released several highly acclaimed albums, and most recently, she released Everybody Scream in 2025. Her newest album takes a more occultish, horror-inspired approach, as her title track features a chorus of screaming voices behind her powerful vocals. She doesn’t shy away from saying something controversial, as Welch often critiques the male-dominated music industry, as she wrote in “One of the Greats,” “It must be nice to be a man / and make boring music just because you can.” Welch is known for her beautiful, often challenging imagery and themes. She frequently writes of life, death, fame, and her personal struggles. One of the best songs off her recent album, “Sympathy Magic,” Welch’s triumphant, yet intimate instrumentation is on display. Her vulnerability is one of her greatest strengths, and her honesty is at the crux of her art.
She is known for her incredibly powerful visuals and evocative lyrics, each album embodies a unique aesthetic–whether its 2015’s How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful’s moody, black and white imagery or its her 2025 album, Everybody Scream, which features a colorful, wooden room with her front and center. Welch finds a way to balance authenticity with eccentricity, and it works!
Artists Who Influenced Florence + The Machine
- Kate Bush
- Stevie Nicks
- Sinead O’Connor
- Nina Simone
- David Bowie
Artists Influenced by Florence + The Machine
- Ethel Cain
- Chappel Roan
- Hozier
- The Last Dinner Party
FEATURED TRACKS:
“South London Forever” (2018)
My personal favorite Florence + the Machine song is “South London Forever” which is a haunting ode to her youth, off her 2018 album High as Hope. The song has an incredibly powerful drum build overlaid with her wandering vocals makes for a perfect indie-rock song, laced with nostalgia. Her vocals and obvious passion for the story illustrate what makes her such a compelling artist. She reflects on her youth, and says, “And I don’t know anything, Except that green is so green, And there’s a special kind of sadness that seems to come with spring,” which feels quite perfect given this time of year. Welch’s almost orchestral composition mixed with her vocals is truly remarkable and worth many listens!
“The Bomb” (2022)
“The Bomb” is one of Welch’s more intimate, pared-back songs that highlight her poetic lyricism. The song starts softly, with only a bit of vocals and almost non-existent strings, but as the chorus comes in, she keeps the listener waiting for something. And Welch delivers. “The Bomb” gives the listener a beautiful bridge that literally sounds like it glistens. The tender, intimate, and heartfelt song almost didn’t make it onto Dance Fever because of its vulnerability. It’s one of my favorites off my personal favorite album, so I’m incredibly happy Welch decided that it made the cut. It acknowledges Welch’s commitment to “The Bomb” or the unstable life she embodies as a musician, and she gives us a series of poetic musings.
My favorite lines, “You said this could have been the best thing, That ever happened to you, So you decided not to do it, Now you come back every summer, Like a carnivorous flower,” show her poetic skill. This record as a whole is absolutely worth a listen, and especially this second-to-last song!
“Sympathy Magic” (2025)
Off her most recent album, “Sympathy Magic” is an absolute standout from the excellent 2025 album. It is the most intense of all of my picks, as it begins as most of her songs do: poetic and intimate, then it builds. It’s almost a sprint to the chorus, and feels as if Welch is itching to get the song off her chest. The chorus is followed by a streaky synth section that feels big and free. The song is perfect to scream in your car on a sunny, summer day. Welch explained to Radio X that Sympathy Magic is the connection you feel with others, and this song absolutely feels like that beautiful connection. It’s free, wild, sparkly, yet grounded and is an excellent representation of Welch’s artistic range!
