TRULY, MADLY, DEEPLY DODIE

It’s a big day for Dodie. The 26-year-old singer-songwriter’s debut album, Build A Problem, has been released into the world, just hours before our Zoom call. It’s been a long time coming, thanks to a toxic combo of Covid and Brexit – “I have no idea what my life is if it isn’t waiting for an album to come out in a pandemic, because that’s what my reality’s been for the last year” – but for fans, it’s been more than worth the wait. The internet is alight as people around the globe live tweet their reactions and a sleepy-looking Dodie, all tousled hair and smiles, tells me her phone is “blowing up” with notifications and messages from friends in far-flung places. “I have a million feelings at the moment,” she says. If she’s overwhelmed by the magnitude of the moment though, it doesn’t show. Dorothy Miranda Clark is chill, calm, happy

For millions of “Doddlers”, the album is everything they’ve been waiting for, and critics, too, have been piling the praise on this exceptional record, described as “a beautiful reflection of the dark things I feel”. It’s an astonishing and accomplished debut which, at time of writing, is sitting at number three in the UK album chart. And yet, still, there’s a reluctance to step into the limelight, as if she doesn’t feel she deserves it. “Everyone’s been so nice,” Dodie tells me. “There was this New York Times article that just painted me in the best light… I really needed that. I think I might pin it on, she feels valid as an artist. “I feel so legit, in the best way. I’m so proud of myself. I love this album, I love the music that’s on there, and I think, yeah, I’ve collected enough evidence to prove to my brain that I am a musician. A good one, too.”