Sophie Laird With Ben Shankland & Tom Henery – Café Spotlight

WAC favourite Sophie Laird is a brilliant Birmingham-based singer-songwriter originally from Glasgow.

Seen memorably at our venue with the euphoric Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra and in a contrastingly cosy setting with guitarist Ollie Canham – where she reduced grown men to tears with her affecting songs – Sophie, formerly Sophie Gilbert, now uses her middle name Laird as she continues to forge a strong personal identity as a compelling writer-performer.

After graduating from Royal Birmingham Conservatoire in 2025 with a BMus in Jazz Vocals, Sophie has been performing across Birmingham and the West Midlands in a variety of ensembles and settings. Recently, Sophie has been selected as one of the artists for the Spotlight On Birmingham project at Samson Studios, where she filmed and recorded her original music.

Sophie’s sound is rooted in her jazz background and love of Scottish folk music, as well as landmark auteurs such as Joni Mitchell, John Martyn and Adrienne Lenker. Sophie focuses on emotional, intimate storytelling in her writing, as well as an interactive and conversational ensemble dynamic.

Joined by pianist Ben Shankland and guitarist Tom Henery, Sophie brings an exciting programme of original material, as well as a unique take on jazz, folk and the classic songs that continue to influence and inspire her.

And, given the time of year, a few festive tunes are likely to feature!

Sophie told us last year: “I actually started playing classical sax then switched to jazz sax, and did some time at the junior school band of the Royal Conservatoire in Scotland, and then through that I got into jazz vocals. I’ve always been passionate about singing, but I really got into that a couple of years before I started applying for unis. And then I did a lot of work with NYJOS, the National Youth Jazz Orchestra of Scotland, before I came to uni, as a singer. That solidified what I wanted to do.”

BEN SHANKLAND
Winner of BBC Radio Scotland Young Jazz Musician of the Year and two-time Scottish Jazz Award nominee, Edinburgh-born pianist and composer Ben Shankland is swiftly gaining recognition on the UK jazz scene, despite his young age. Ben, studying at Brum Conservatoire interspersed with a stint at Jazz Institut Berlin, performed entirely solo for us in 2024 and continues to make major waves, The Scotsman praising his combination of ‘lyricism with drive and precision’.

TOM HENERY
Originally from Newcastle upon Tyne, Tom is a guitarist now based in Birmingham. Since graduating from Royal Birmingham Conservatoire in 2023 Tom has established himself performing in a range of projects spanning jazz, folk and fusion alongside the likes of Neil Yates and Lucy Mellenfield. His playing is heavily informed by greats such as Wes Montgomery and John Scofield, while also incorporating his influences from the folk tradition to create a unique sound.