‘We have this funny mantra in my family: “visualise and materialise,”’ says the soulful jazz singer Kitti. ‘My auntie always says it. You have to picture something and believe in magic a bit and make it appear. I mean, we’ve all got to try, eh?’ To be fair, in the week when we chat over Zoom, there is a concrete example of the magic actually coming up with the goods. Teenage Kitti used to write in her diary about things that she wished would happen. ‘I would write these long lists. I put that I wanted to sing at the Usher Hall one day. Tomorrow I actually will, supporting Hue And Cry,’ she says, raising two slightly incredulous dark eyebrows. ‘That’s very exciting. Call me delusional, but sometimes you’ve just got to get in that space. And it does work!’

The Paisley-born, Glasgow-based singer-songwriter (real name Katie Doyle) performed as Katie Doyle Quintet for three years before changing her stage name to Kitty, then dropping the y after that caused confusion with a Norwegian screamo band. Momentum has been building since Kitti won Best Female Breakthrough at the Scottish Music Awards in 2020 and Best Vocalist at the Scottish Jazz Awards in 2022. She supported Rod Stewart last year and Van Morrison the year before that. After growing her fanbase with a weekly, late-night Kickin’ It With Kitti slot at Glasgow’s sadly missed Blue Arrow Jazz Club, plus storming performances at the major jazz festivals in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee, Kitti releases her debut album this month.

Somethin’ In The Water features bright, brassy horns and a soaring, big-band sound on lead single ‘Maybe’, and the sighing strings and sultry lounge vibes of second single ‘Everything You Wanted’. One of her oldest compositions, the latter was written when Kitti was 14 and is all about that dreamer’s mindset of manifesting. ‘Dream of it as if it’s true/ Live like it is really happening/ Close your eyes and make it happen/ This is everything you wanted’ she coos, over a lush arrangement of flute, tenor sax, trombone, trumpet, violin, viola and cello.

Sounding like an old soul at 28 years old, her voice ripples up and down the octaves, calling to mind Judy Garland or Ella Fitzgerald in places, with the rich sass of Chaka Khan or Aretha Franklin. Flashes of Erykah Badu come through in some of her noodlings too. Yet, like many jazz and soul artists before her, beneath the album’s swooning, old-timey stylings and slickly polished, radio-friendly arrangements, Kitti’s lyrics often tackle dark matters such as mental turmoil and physical pain.

Though she didn’t fully realise it while writing ‘Must Be Somethin’’, the song was about the frustration of living with suspected endometriosis. Now she looks back on it as a kind of timestamp for that phase in her life, helping her understand it better in hindsight. Meanwhile, ‘Wonderland’ was written about experiencing a disorienting borderline personality disorder episode. ‘I’m really proud of “Wonderland”. BPD is a horrible illness and the song is about the wave of emotions that hit me during a meltdown. I often write songs very quickly. Writing is a great way of getting rid of whatever’s bothering me. I remember my mum saying it was a bad idea to write about my mental health, but I think it’s important to talk about. There is still so much stigma and misunderstanding around both conditions.’

She’s a huge fan of the honesty of singer Chappell Roan, for example, who cancelled festival appearances this year to focus on her mental health. ‘The world needed an artist like her. We’re not robots. I’ve been sober for three years now for my mental health and because of the clarity it gives me as a songwriter; I should have done it years ago.’

If songwriting brings catharsis and release, performing live feels like something that holds Kitti together. ‘I don’t know what I’d do without it. When I’m onstage singing, I have a purpose. Sure, the anxiety still kicks in backstage; I shit myself every time,’ she laughs. ‘But I’ll do my vocal warm-ups and put my stage make-up on which helps. I split myself into two people: the quiet introvert and the singer who loves being onstage. I’ve gained confidence over time and am getting better at gelling those two people together.’

Making music became a safety blanket early on. Growing up, Kitti hated school and remembers it as a tough period. Although she was shy, she’d come out of her shell at home with music. ‘My brother and I loved pushing back the table at my nonna’s and dancing to Louis Prima.’ When she was given an upright piano for her 13th birthday, it became her favourite toy. ‘I was so happy in my solitude, playing away for hours, experimenting. I’ve not been trained; my techniques are ones I’ve just come up with myself.’

She cringes when she remembers some of the vocal renditions that emerged along the way. ‘Ten years ago, some stuff sounded like a bad impersonation of Florence And The Machine. I think that’s what you do; you try on other people’s styles until you hit on something that’s authentic to you.’ Perhaps the combination of her age, struggles with mental health and dark hair have drawn comparisons to another new-jazz singer: Amy Winehouse. Personally, Kitti doesn’t get it. ‘I can’t hear it myself. I’ve been compared to Macy Gray, that’s so cool; she is incredible. Or Corinne Bailey Rae, I’ll take that; I love her.’

Her album will be accompanied by a film which, if all goes well, should be screened early next year. Kitti is waiting for surgery for abdominal pain and hopes it won’t affect her work too much. ‘We had so much fun filming in this mountain village in Italy and I got in the Mediterranean near Naples in this floaty red dress. We were going for a La Dolce Vita kinda feel and filmed on Super 8. I can’t wait for people to see it. Photos and film are an important part of what I do. I’m not a fan of the pretty-pretty thing though; I can’t take that side of stuff seriously at all.’

The artwork for Somethin’ In The Water is a black and white photo of Kitti swigging from a bottle with her name on it, water dribbling down her chin. ‘When my dad saw the photo, immediately he goes “you’re no’ using that!” But I wanted something eye-catching that would stand out. If I look different or even ugly, I don’t really care. I’d rather have a bit of a laugh with it.’

As for ambitions yet to be manifested, playing New York’s Carnegie Hall is up there, following in the footsteps of singers she loves such as Marlena Shaw, Frank Sinatra and Blossom Dearie. ‘I’ll be on my own with a guitarist tomorrow at the Usher Hall, keeping it very stripped back and intimate, but I love having a big band of talented musicians around me too, bringing it all to life. I just want to keep playing to audiences and letting the music hit them the way it has ever since I was a kid and I got obsessed with jazz.’

Somethin’ In The Water is released by Rebecca’s Records on Friday 15 November; Kitti plays Gardyne Theatre as part of Dundee Jazz Festival, Wednesday 20 November; Drygate Brewing Co., Glasgow, Wednesday 22 January and Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Thursday 23 January.