Anna Stainton: our London Calling act takes the BBC Introducing quiz

23-year-old Anna, a former lead singer with pop group The Promise, is taking her first solo steps and treading in illustrious footprints, as you can read below

Where are you from?

I've lived in a few places around London. Currently, I'm based in Hampstead, which is also the first place I lived when I started university back in 2005, so it's quite nice to have come full circle!

I also spent a couple of years living in Bow, though, which I loved - parts of my family are from the East End so I always feel very at home there.

Names of band members and instruments played?

It's just me at present, on vox and keyboard, although I do rope in my sister Lisbee occasionally to do some backing vocals and make suggestions.

On the new single, Time, all the other instrumentation you hear is by the amazing Mike and Matt from Mood Bungalow, who are two incredibly talented guys.

How long have you been making music?

Pretty much since birth! My sister and I used to sing songs together in the back of the car when we were tiny, although I think back then enthusiasm probably outweighed musicality, at least on my part!

I started taking piano lessons aged seven, and wrote my first song at nine, but music has definitely always been a part of my life.

Style of music and influences?

I find it very hard to describe what style of music I write, but I'll give it a go... something like pop-folk-indie-acoustic?

Influences are slightly easier - I'd definitely list Regina Spektor, Sia and Zero 7, Joni Mitchell, Rachel Yamagata, Kate Bush and probably many more, but those will do for starters.

Best moment so far?

Definitely recording at Rockfield Studios in Wales. I got to record on the piano that Queen used on Bohemian Rhapsody, which was an amazing feeling. And playing the O2 Arena with The Promise to 30,000 people was cool.

But for me, it was incredible to just spend days totally immersed in music at Rockfield, and even better because it was my own!

I absolutely love recording - I'm a bit of a perfectionist so I love trying to get the best take possible for hours on end.

What's the inspiration behind Time, the song we featured in your London Calling spot?

Time really sums up how I feel about life sometimes, particularly when I've got a lot on - how on the one hand, I'm racing against the clock to get everything done, but on the other I feel like I'm waiting around for the exciting stuff to start happening.

And then of course there's the problem of making time for the most important people in your life, for the people you love, which is often pretty difficult particularly when like me, you tend to fill up your time with millions of activities and events.

It wasn't really a song I intended to write. It was one of those songs which pretty much wrote itself one night in the early hours of the morning, when I was playing around on my keyboard.

What song would you most like to cover?

Hmm, this is a question I've been asking myself for quite a while. There are a few - I hear songs on the radio and often think I'd love to play that and do something new and exciting with it.

Right now, there are probably three songs I'd love to work out great covers for - Beyonce's Broken Hearted Girl, Crowded House's Private Universe and Paula Cole's I Don't Want to Wait.

I do tend to listen to everything and anything!

Visit Anna Stainton's MySpace, above right, for more information.

Find more emerging artists like this in the London Calling feature in Gary Crowley's 94.9 radio show:

Gary Crowley on 94.9 - Saturday 6-8pm