About: Zara | Chasing Leaves: -

I'm Zara, stage name: "Chasing Leaves", and I am a young award winning *professional singer, songwriter, multi-instrumental musician and recording artist, based in Poole, Dorset, UK.

*Professional: After twelve years of music lessons, studying music theory & technical learning, countless hours of practice, well over a hundred live performances (culminating in the release of my debut album of original songs), as of September 2026 I took the decision to transition from being a student of music, to becoming a self-employed full-time professional singer, songwriter, musician, and performing artist (note: this all sounds a bit fancy and cool but the reality, just achieving the UK minimum wage may take many months, or even years).

Currently, my work life has three distinct aspects: -

Studio Time: This is where I write lyrics, compose music, record & mix songs and practice and rehearse. The studio is also a place for further experimentation & progression with regard to my vocals, instrument playing abilities, and musical diversity.

Note: During recording, I do all of the vocals (main & backing), and I play all all of the instruments myself e.g. Acoustic, Bass and Electric guitars, Piano and Synthesizer, and I also use Virtual Studio Technology instruments (VST's), for Drums, Woodwind, Brass, Strings, etc. (I never use pre-made loops and/or, AI generated music).

Performing Live: This is the most fun, and it is also how I will generate most of my income for the foreseeable future (obviously, I would like to earn a significant percentage of my income from streams/sales of my original songs, but this will probably take a few more years to achieve).

Social Media: In this modern era, a strong 'Social Media' presence is essential for any singer/musician with career ambitions. However, creating content to post is very time consuming, and requires a lot of learning and expenditure. Fair to say that this aspect of attempting to become a successful musician, is definitely not my favourite!

An Average week: -

I will spend at least thirty-five hours in the studio (daytime Monday to Friday). Most of this studio time is spent doing things directly related music, but I will also be doing Social Media related work too. Live performance time is very variable but these hours are additional to the weekday thirty-five hours.

It's probably safe to state that an average working week for me, is at least fifty hours (this will get longer as I become successful). However, to ensure that I have enough time available to both be creative e.g. write new original songs, and so that I can experience some life outside of music, my parents spend a further twenty to thirty hours a week supporting me e.g. music industry research, career & financial planning, artwork for posters and Social Media, transportation, etc, etc.

Outside of Work: In my spare time, I like to be creative and make things like jewellery, clothing and handbags, and I also like to get out hiking and doing water sports with friends (I have even started doing the local Parkrun this year... "I never thought that I would do this"!). I'm also learning to drive and hope to get my license soon.

My Wish List for 2026: -

Firstly, I have just turned eighteen (August), so I have ticked off some career goals e.g. becoming a self-employed professional and setting up my business account. For the remaining of this year, the focus will be on incrementally improving this business venture. However, it's also time to get out more and explore new social opportunities e.g. get out to pubs and clubs now that I have an appropriate ID Card, and to meet more people (it is a bit strange as I have been performing in pubs and clubs for three years but until now, I have never been able to buy a beer!). Anyway, it's time to get my glad rags on and to go dancing!

With regard to the bigger picture, I don't really know what my future truly holds (who does?)... "all I can do is work hard, play hard, seek out opportunities, and try my very best to enjoy every aspect of my personal journey"! Yes, I do aspire to become an International Superstar with a life full of glitz and glamour but for now, it's just a matter of one step at a time.

Why Chasing Leaves?

Like most young kids, I really enjoyed larking about with my friends and on a windy day in Autumn, running around the playground 'chasing leaves' was brilliant fun. On the face of it this may appear to be a pointless form of entertainment but in reality, it's an inclusive activity that's dynamic, energetic, exciting, noisy, *relatively harmless, and it makes young kids happy... so how can you knock it?

*relatively harmless - Ok, so there will be a few falls, scuffs, bruises, crying, and the occasional holes in trousers.

Personally, I want to capture some of the spirit of chasing leaves into my music, but adapt it to captivate a broader audience e.g. the young, the old, and everyone in-between.