The first song I fell in love with
I used to have a cassette player with these fuzzy foam headphones, and only two cassettes: Hero by Enrique Iglesias and How Do I Live by LeAnn Rimes. I would play them over and over.
The first single I downloaded
Michaela Strachan by Scouting for Girls. I thought it was fascinating that they’d written a song about her, even though I wasn’t quite sure who she was until I saw her on telly.
The song I do at karaoke
My initiation at Arsenal was to sing Stand By Me by Ben E King. Nowadays, I’d probably go for a Justin Bieber number, maybe One Less Lonely Girl.
The song I know every lyric to
Every song on the Bridget Jones soundtrack, because my mum played it so much in the car when I was younger.
The best song to play at a party
I like older music, so my favourite parties are 50th birthdays or wedding anniversaries where you get all the generations together, and they play things like Never Too Much by Luther Vandross.
The song I can no longer listen to
Where Are Ü Now by Jack Ü featuring Justin Bieber was played so much in the [Arsenal] changing room, that when it comes on now, I have to turn it straight off.
My favourite football song
Three Lions by Baddiel & Skinner & Lightning Seeds, because of the 2022 Euros. Being able to sing “It’s coming home” was an amazing feeling. These days, The Angel (North London Forever) by Louis Dunford gives me goose bumps.
The song I secretly like
Return to Sender by Elvis Presley was always playing in my headphones on the way to football practice.
The song that changed my life
My granny is big into gigs, and has taken me to see Paul Simon, Florence + the Machine and Teddy Swims. When we saw Norah Jones, the crowd was a bit older – hardly anyone had their phones out. When she sang Come Away With Me, I thought: “This is what music is about.”
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The song that gets me up in the morning
I’ve been listening to Inner Smile by Texas. We’ve had a lot of Michael Jackson on in the training ground, because of the movie. I think the song that really wakes me up is Billie (Loving Arms) by Fred Again.
The song that makes me cry
Years ago, I cried in the middle of a New Year Eve party when Dancing on My Own by Robyn came on. Even though it’s a great tune, I think it just still got a bit much for me. I was 16, I rang my mum and said: “Can you come pick me up?”
The song I’d like played at my funeral
I don’t want people to cry. I want them to have a good time. So I’ll have Believe by Cher or I’ll Be Around by the Spinners.
England women’s next World Cup qualifying game is against Greece on 9 October. Leah Williamson is an ambassador for Cadbury.
