My DPS article

Lauren started making YouTube videos early in 2014 for her own amusement. These video’s were how to play the ukulele but she never thought that it would gain a following of wanna-be play ukulele players. Her How to play tutorials and covers of popular songs gained hundreds of thousands of views. She is  now starting to include other instruments into her arsenal of music with her latest cover of Taylor swift on her signature red guitar receiving almost a million hits.

Today we are sitting down with Lauren or Music woman Lauren (by her YouTube persona) and asking her about her signature instrument the ukulele.

 Why do you start playing?

Why did I start playing?, At 15 I'd been playing a variety of instruments for a while; saxophone, clarinet and piano and I had dabbled in a few others, but I had never ventured into the strings section of the instrumental world. As a singer, I thought it would be great to be able to play an instrument that I could practice singing with and also play independently. Whilst the obvious choice was the guitar, I decided to steer clear of the cliche choice for now  and go for something a little different, something that would stand apart from the rest. That something was a ukulele. After a month or so of saving my wages, I bought myself my first ukulele. Nothing special, just a cheap, beginners Uke. At first, it felt strange not having to press keys or blow into the instrument I was playing, but after a rocky period in the first month I got the ball rolling and fell in love with the quaint and gorgeous instrument that is the Ukulele.

What would you say are the top 4 chords you need to play a song on the ukulele?

Lauren told us that the top 4 most important chords were C, F, G and A minor. She stated to us that with these 4 chords you could easily play almost any song as most songs it turned out were wrote around these 4 chords.

We asked Lauren for the top 3 tips for any person just learning this funky little instrument, she told us.

"There are quite a few of these “Top  3 Tips” out there. I’ll try to add something to that with my own personal Top 3 Tips for beginning ukulele players. When I bought my first ukulele I was completely unprepared,  I’ll try to give you some really useful tips that will give you a jump start when you begin playing the ukulele."

1. Get a decent ukulele.

This is the most important one of all when you are serious about wanting to learn how to play the ukulele. There are a few good ukuleles in the £100 range, but you can be sure that an ukulele under £50 is not fantastic. The main issue you will have is that it won’t be able to stay in tune. I speak from experience here. I bought a £45 “Harley Benton” soprano once and it couldn’t keep the E string in tune for even one strum. So be warned!

2. Have fun!

The ukulele is a fun instrument. Some may call the ukulele a toy, so what?, Toys are fun to play with!, It’s a true instrument and you can do wonderful things with it. Don’t make the mistake by thinking that it is an easy instrument, you will need to practice a lot to master it, but even when you only know the basics it is already so much fun! Enjoy playing it and without knowing, you will improve each and every day.

3. First things first, the basics

When looking on YouTube and other websites you will quickly learn that amazing things can be done with the ukulele, but like every skill in life you’ll need to learn the basics first. Don’t try to play some big fancy tab when you are just starting out, learn your chords instead. Start with the majors, minors and then go on with bar chords.

I think it was Marc Bolan who said

'The day you stop practising [your instrument] is the day you will stop playing music, and the day you will stop loving music'"

You can find lessons on how to play the ukulele by visiting Lauren's YouTube channel Music Woman Lauren where you can find her ukulele lessons where you can learn anything from the Beetles to Red Hot Chilli Peppers or her covers of popular songs which make you jealous from how talented she is.