Are you an early riser? Not exactly. I’m up around 11am to my alarm. Without it I’d sleep into the afternoon. Our Hammersmith family home feels empty as I make a coffee. My brother’s doing homework, Mum’s out, and Dad’s down at his allotment.
A day at home? I’ll watch a Studio Ghibli film, or read my book with a record playing – think Erykah Badu or Minnie Riperton, anything down-tempo and warm. When I smell the fresh mint and sage Dad has picked at the allotment, it’s time for Mexican food. We don’t really do Sunday-roast vibes.
If you go out? My friend Oscar and I have a routine: brunch at Café Boheme in Soho before, a trip to Reckless Records, then to some cute bookshops with a frozen yogurt on the way. We just walk and walk, ending up at one of my favourite pubs.
Have Sundays changed? Definitely. I don’t really have weekends any more with so much happening. I might be working up concepts for videos, planning for the album release, or on photoshoots. I definitely miss the pre-Covid, chilled days spent meandering. I need to carve out time to recharge and reset.
Sunday evening? It’s after dark that I feel most inspired, I’m a nocturnal creature. I’ll write poetry or streams of consciousness, play instruments, or teach myself to DJ by doing a silent solo set. My attic room is my safe space to create until the early hours, although I’ve learned now to tiptoe around.
Before bed? I’m journalling, checking in with myself. I write about the week and how it felt, my hopes and plans. I do it every evening, and have done since I was 13. I look back through as I write. Amazing things have happened for me this year. I take time to appreciate them.
Arlo Parks’s debut album, Collapsed In Sunbeams, is released on 29 January on Transgressive Records
