Becki Rutherford: The Raw, Empowering Voice of 2025 Pop

Becki Rutherford is the name on everyone’s lips in the Scottish pop scene. A multifaceted artist with a sharp pen and a unique vocal style, Becki writes, records, and collaborates with her long-time friend and producer James Allen, on a mission to create fresh, empowering pop anthems. Known for her raw authenticity and “bad bitch bangers,” Becki’s music resonates with listeners on a personal level, all while keeping the dance floor alive.

With her highly anticipated track "Leaving Alone" set to drop on March 13, 2025, Becki is ready to make her mark. Inspired by a failed situationship and produced in her bedroom, the song is a powerful anthem of self-empowerment. In this interview, we chat with Becki about her journey in music, her influences, and what fans can expect from her next big release.

Your music blends personal storytelling with a strong sense of empowerment. How did your experience writing Leaving Alone for your best friend shape the song’s message, and what do you hope listeners take away from it?

I hold my friends so close so writing about their lives comes really naturally, and Is definitely not a first. I feel a such strong connection and deep empathy with my friends so anything they’re going through I feel I take on as my own as I try to give the best advice I can. For Leaving Alone I tried to intertwine his experiences and my own to honour what he was going through but put it through my lens to make sure the song still felt like me. I hope the song resonates with anyone stuck in a dead end situationship or is watching a friend go through it and allows them an outlet to feel seen in the mistakes made and empowered to maybe make a change.

You describe yourself as a "connoisseur of bad bitch bangers." What makes a perfect bad bitch banger in your eyes, and how does Leaving Alone fit into that category?

For me being a bad bitch isn’t about looking hot or being a diva, granted that definitely helps, but more so a mindset stemming from self love. Being a bad bitch is about backing yourself and not accepting anything less than you deserve. A perfect bad bitch banger for me blends confidence, humour and a whole lot of brutal honesty. Being a bad bitch for me derails this notion of being the polite, gentle, ’feminine’ woman and instead allows for anger, dominance and blunt candour that as women we are taught to suppress out of fear of being labeled a ‘bitch’ or ‘unstable’. Leaving alone fearlessly encompass that with the idea of knowing when to walk away, even if you do stumble or have some setbacks, ultimately you chose yourself and your happiness over short-term satisfaction and the telling of that in an honest yet comedic way once the rose tinted glasses are off for good. 

You’ve taken time off from releasing music to refine your sound. What has that journey been like, and how do you feel Leaving Alone represents this new chapter for you?

Taking some time off from releasing was never intentional but was definitely well needed. I came out of Uni in 2022 and felt pretty lost plunging into a much bigger pool of musicians. I think I really needed that time to just fall back in love with writing and take the pressure off, Leaving Alone I think really encapsulates a maturity and confidence I gained with the time off. I feel far more self -assured in what it is I’m releasing now and I’m excited to share more of what I’ve been working on in 2025.

Your music has been compared to early 2000s R&B but with a fresh 2025 twist. How do you approach blending nostalgia with modern pop influences in your songwriting and production?

In terms of blending the nod to the naughties with a fresh sound that Leaving Alone has, I think that took shape deep into the writing process. When we first started the track we were aiming for something sleazy and groovy based on James’ first demo, as the track came together and I'd finished the lyrics we made a reference track playlist that included a lot of Destiny’s Child tracks. This really shaped for me the vocal performance I wanted to aim for and the way the track would come together harmonically, blending this with James’ polished and fresh production style to create something new and not just mimic a beloved track.

With a strong partnership with James Allen and deep roots in the Scottish music scene, how important is collaboration to your creative process, and what’s it like working so closely with a best friend?

Working with James is so effortless and I think that’s rare to come by, he really is the yin to my musical yang. I think we have such a deep respect for each other personally and that allows us to creatively challenge each other in a way that feels really safe. Our collaboration style is rooted in so much support and admiration of each other and when we work together our chemistry just pours into the music that I think takes things to a level that neither of us could do alone. We are both always open to collaborating with others and expanding perspectives but we definitely have a good thing going in terms of work flow right now with just us two and I’m excited to show more of what our sounds has matured into.