Wet Leg’s Rhian Teasdale says she got “kicked out” of GCSE music

[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https://www.nme.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/NMEAR_NME-GLASTO-2025-WET-LEG-LIVE-ANDY-FORD-6@2000×1270.jpg”]

NewsMusic News

Wet Leg’s Rhian Teasdale says she got “kicked out” of GCSE music

She also explained that it doesn’t take a “virtuoso guitarist to enjoy playing music”

Wet Leg‘s Rhian Teasdale has revealed that she got “kicked out” of her GCSE music course when she was in school.

  • READ MORE: Wet Leg on contributing to War Child’s ‘Help(2)’ album: “It is literally the least anyone could do”

Despite being a successful frontwoman now, according to Teasdale that wasn’t always the case, she revealed in new interview.

Advertisement

She told The Cut: “It’s been a bit of a journey demystifying music-making for myself. I’m not from a musical household, and I even got kicked out of my GCSE music course because I was too far behind the rest of the class, which is kind of hilarious.”

She added: “There are so many loser gatekeepers who want you to believe that you need 20-plus chords in a song for it to be worthy. In reality there are so many bangin’ songs that literally are just two chords.”

Wet Leg live at Glastonbury. Credit: Andy Ford for NME

Despite that, she explained that it doesn’t take a genius to play music.

“The first song I ever tried to play on guitar was ‘Molly’s Chambers’ by Kings Of Leon – back when the band was super-trashy and fun. It was a real epiphany to learn that you don’t have to be a virtuoso guitarist to enjoy playing music with your friends,” said Teasdale.

Recommended

Following her exit from GCSE music, Teasdale previously shared with NME in 2022 that she had “always wanted to do music for a living, but it was making me really sad.”

She added: “Then I found this job [as a stylist] that I was doing before [we got signed] and I realised my day-to-day happiness had gone way up.”

Teasdale also previously shared with NME in 2025 that even after playing huge headline shows and booking mammoth festival slots over the years, she is still caught off guard by the band’s success, and initially doubted whether the first wave of success was set to last or not.

“It’s just crazy to see your band’s name next to legitimate artists who’ve been in the industry for a long time and who’ve maybe inspired you to make music,” she explained.

Advertisement

“We were very much prepared for, ‘The first album was just this mad, freak incident.’ We weren’t really expecting that for album two, so it’s just really nice.”

At the end of last year their second LP, ‘Moisturizer’ was named as the 22nd best album of 2025 by NME.

In a four-star review of the record, NME wrote: “After the whirlwind that was Wet Leg’s debut album, it would have been easy for the band to capitulate under the pressure or just play it safe and remake that record.

Back in November 2025, the band teased that their third studio album is already finished.

Elsewhere, Wet Leg recently shared a new remix by HorsegiirL of their single ‘CPR’.

  • Related Topics
  • Indie
  • Wet Leg

You May Also Like

Advertisement

TRENDING

Step right up! Haute & Freddy’s pop circus of wild imagination awaits

Robyn live in London: a pop superstar on supreme form

‘The Invite’ review: RSVP yes to this wickedly relatable dinner-date drama

Nia Smith is closing old cycles and setting a new wheel in motion

Soundtrack Of My Life: Ed Gamble

Advertisement

More Stories

Music News

Morrissey says “diversity is a lie” as he hits out at BBC for not playing single

Music News

Oasis reportedly set for huge 2027 UK and European tour – including Knebworth and massive Manchester residency

Live Reviews

Wolf Alice live in London: Britain’s finest come home in style

Music News

Watch Wolf Alice cover Nirvana’s ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ at massive London homecoming Finsbury Park show

Music News

Watch Mumford & Sons bring out surprise guests Shania Twain and Hozier at BST Hyde Park

Music News

Watch Snow Patrol surprise fans at Crystal Palace Park gig with Kylie Minogue for live debut of collab ‘These Alarms’

Wet Leg‘s Rhian Teasdale has revealed that she got “kicked out” of her GCSE music course when she was in school.

  • READ MORE: Wet Leg on contributing to War Child’s ‘Help(2)’ album: “It is literally the least anyone could do”

Despite being a successful frontwoman now, according to Teasdale that wasn’t always the case, she revealed in new interview.

Advertisement

She told The Cut: “It’s been a bit of a journey demystifying music-making for myself. I’m not from a musical household, and I even got kicked out of my GCSE music course because I was too far behind the rest of the class, which is kind of hilarious.”

She added: “There are so many loser gatekeepers who want you to believe that you need 20-plus chords in a song for it to be worthy. In reality there are so many bangin’ songs that literally are just two chords.”

Wet Leg live at Glastonbury. Credit: Andy Ford for NME

Despite that, she explained that it doesn’t take a genius to play music.

“The first song I ever tried to play on guitar was ‘Molly’s Chambers’ by Kings Of Leon – back when the band was super-trashy and fun. It was a real epiphany to learn that you don’t have to be a virtuoso guitarist to enjoy playing music with your friends,” said Teasdale.

Recommended

Following her exit from GCSE music, Teasdale previously shared with NME in 2022 that she had “always wanted to do music for a living, but it was making me really sad.”

She added: “Then I found this job [as a stylist] that I was doing before [we got signed] and I realised my day-to-day happiness had gone way up.”

Teasdale also previously shared with NME in 2025 that even after playing huge headline shows and booking mammoth festival slots over the years, she is still caught off guard by the band’s success, and initially doubted whether the first wave of success was set to last or not.

“It’s just crazy to see your band’s name next to legitimate artists who’ve been in the industry for a long time and who’ve maybe inspired you to make music,” she explained.

Advertisement

“We were very much prepared for, ‘The first album was just this mad, freak incident.’ We weren’t really expecting that for album two, so it’s just really nice.”

At the end of last year their second LP, ‘Moisturizer’ was named as the 22nd best album of 2025 by NME.

In a four-star review of the record, NME wrote: “After the whirlwind that was Wet Leg’s debut album, it would have been easy for the band to capitulate under the pressure or just play it safe and remake that record.

Back in November 2025, the band teased that their third studio album is already finished.

Elsewhere, Wet Leg recently shared a new remix by HorsegiirL of their single ‘CPR’.

Back in November 2025, the band teased that their third studio album is already finished.

Elsewhere, Wet Leg recently shared a new remix by HorsegiirL of their single ‘CPR’.

[analyse_source url=”https://www.nme.com/news/music/wet-legs-rhian-teasdale-says-she-got-kicked-out-of-gcse-music-3955524″]


Analyse


Post not analysed yet. Do the magic.