1. Rachel Newton was a member of the Lost Words Spell Songs project and is a co-founder of The Bit Collective, a group campaigning for equality in folk music.
11 Facts About Rachel Newton
1. 2.
Rachel Newton spoke English at home and Gaelic to her grandfather.
3.
In 2005 Rachel Newton formed The Shee with friends Shona Mooney, Laura-Beth Salter, Amy Thatcher, Lillias Kinsman-Blake and Olivia Ross whom she had met while studying for the Folk and Traditional Music degree at Newcastle University.
4.
Rachel Newton won for "Best Music and Sound" at the 2009 Critics' Awards for Theatre in Scotland for her work with Rowantree Theatre Company.
5.
In 2012 Rachel Newton released her first solo album The Shadow Side.
6.
In 2014 Rachel Newton took part in a week-long retreat at Hatfield House, along with Martin Simpson, Nancy Kerr, Jim Moray, Bella Hardy, John Smith and Hannah James as well as Emily Askew, a specialist in early music.
7.
Rachel Newton won the 2016 Instrumentalist of the Year at the Scots Trad Music Awards and in the same year won Hands Up for Trad's Ignition Award, an award for artists who are innovating in Scottish traditional music.
8.
At the 2017 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards Rachel Newton won "Musician of the Year" and the Furrow Collective won "Best Group".
9.
In 2017 Rachel Newton announced that she was leaving Emily Portman's Coracle Band and the Emily Portman Trio.
10.
Rachel Newton announced in 2020 that her fifth solo album would be funded via Kickstarter.
11.
Rachel Newton is one of the founder members of the Bit Collective, a group addressing issues relating to equality in the Scottish traditional arts scene.