In her own words, Hannah Cook “does a little bit of everything, which sometimes makes it harder for people, but personally, I think it’s my superpower”. She started her career as a hairdresser when she was 17 but had to quit because of an accident. She held in a sneeze as she was doing her mum’s hair in the kitchen while everyone was having breakfast and tore all her intercostal muscles between her ninth and twelfth ribs ~ a short-lived career, but she’s always played with make-up, hair, fashion and skincare.
Being blessed with both a strong creative streak and business acumen, she followed the latter at her mum’s prompting and embarked on a portfolio journey that included sales and marketing in agencies and a spell in theatre, singing in West End shows and training under Head of Voice at The Royal Shakespeare Company. The authenticity of voice is a particular passion. She’s a vocal coach and teaches neurodivergent kids to sing in her community. “Finding your own voice as a person and as a brand is so crucial.”
While working with a health and beauty agency, she met Joy Isaacs and instantly hit it off, relishing Joy’s passion for skincare and her candidness. Hannah also produced and hosted a podcast that grew and grew and ended up being streamed in 27 countries. Through all this, she fell in love with the beauty industry again… Today, she ‘lives in beauty’ and is Co-Chair for DEI at the British Beauty Council (at 36!).
She has engaged with hundreds of beauty brands, from aesthetics to menopause to supplements to hair, skin and how the gut connects with mental health. But ARgENTUM just ‘jumped out’ for her. She had been aware of the brand and loved its look and feel, with all its magic, mystery, and attention to detail. “I felt like I was dropping into Alice in Wonderland ~ it was like The Mad Hatter’s Paradise.”
Around this time, Hannah started her Reiki journey, which includes Angel Card readings, so it felt very timely when she was invited to the ARgENTUM store in Notting Hill for a Fragrance Reading. The warm welcome knocked her out: “I didn’t know what I’d walked into, but I felt like I just wanted to stay there! I think I was there for about three hours and left absolutely mind-blown. And even though, in many ways, ARgENTUM is still in start-up mode, some of the things they do creatively are on another level.”
In her Fragrance Reading, the BECOME card kept cropping up and also significant was CAREGIVER, which is appropriate as Hannah is the eldest of six kids and helped her mum look after the family when her dad left when she was 10. So being invited to curate the LOVER soundtrack was an honour and a bit of a surprise as it wasn’t the Archetype that particularly resonated with her. However, she has risen to the challenge by not taking the obvious romantic route but rather one of self-love, self-empowerment, love of life, and life’s journey with all its ups and downs and lessons. “It’s not a highbrow soundtrack, I’m afraid. It’s very glittery. I choose to surround myself with things that lift my frequency. Spice Girl Era Girl Power vibe!”
Dancing in the moonlight - Toploader
This is all about the love of life. You know that saying ‘dance in the rain as if no one is watching’ ~ that is absolutely what this song is all about for me. It’s about loving your eccentricities, loving your differences, and loving life because of it.
Take you dancing ~ Jason Derulo
This is one you have to listen to ~ it’s a bit saucy and a little spicy. There are grown-up lyrics in there, but it’s not so much the words as the music ~ you can’t help but feel it in your body. For me, this one is about letting go of your inhibitions!
Shake it off - Taylor Swift
This kind of does what it says on the tin. This is about owning it ~ the determination to walk your own path irrespective of others’ opinions. This is a very personal choice. I’ve always been a bit Marmite in my life ~ people either absolutely love me or cannot stand me ~ and this has been a challenge for me, particularly in male-dominated workplaces. Even recently, I’ve been told to ‘be seen and not heard’. I’ve had people comment on my weight and how I look. I’ve literally had to ‘shake it off’. I had to remind myself of who I am and my values and stand up for what I believe in. Being a passionate woman in a male-dominated industry has not worked in my favour, but I’ve stood my ground.
Power - Little Mix (featuring Stormzy)
I was a massive Spice Girls fan as a child. I sobbed the day Geri left. She broke my heart. I went to the Spice Girls Reunion tour in Bristol, stood in the pouring rain and got pneumonia. It was worth it! I didn’t include a Spice Girls song here, as that’s my childhood, not my adulthood. Power is the adult version of my Spice Girls. You’ve got the power! This is the song I play before going into a meeting if I feel a bit inferior. It supercharges me and reminds me that I have value and worth. And I love that Stormzy comes across as a feminist here, talking about the power of women.
Life is a highway - Rascal Flatts
It's a country song that talks about the peaks and troughs of life ~ life is a highway, and I’m going to ride it all night long. This is about learning to love the journey of life ~ go with the flow and accept that everything is temporary.
Kings & Queens - Ava Max
This is very personal for me. I broke up with my husband a few months before Lockdown, and I moved into my own home with my two-year-old son one week before. It was a really difficult break-up. I was completely isolated and alone, going through a divorce, plus starting a new job and raising a two-year-old. I was terrified. I sat down and thought, ‘you have two options ~ either you crumble, or you fight and come out better.’ I decided to fight, and this song gave me that fight. For me, it was about finding my fire, and with regard to the LOVER ~ I fought not so much for myself as for my son. This song is like your inner cheerleader saying: You can do it!
Amazed - Lonestar
Another Country song ~ this one is about adoration ~ about being able to see the beauty in others even if you can’t see it in yourself. This is also a love song to a partner, but more than that, it’s about seeing the beauty in others.
Castle on the hill - Ed Sheeran
A bit like ‘Life is a highway’, this song talks about ‘I’m on my way’ and reminiscing about being a child. The music is really upbeat; whenever I hear it, I feel joy, which is a by-product of love. It’s about friendship, community, and companionship, all of which I think are the most important things in life. You can absolutely fight for yourself and give yourself love, but one of the things that brings the most joy is finding your people. It doesn’t have to be loads of people; it can be just one person or an animal. At the moment, this is very relevant for me as my seven-year-old son is neuro-divergent, and he’s really struggling at his new school at the thought of making friends. This is terrifying for him, and I struggle to empathise with that as I love making friends. I am the human version of a golden labrador, but he’s not a labrador; he’s a cat ~ with the heart of a labrador. My friends and community help me deal with this ~ they are so important, as well as family. The friends that are with you from day dot and all the way through are the family you choose. Your life companions.
I’m still standing - Elton John
This is very much an affirmation song ~ the stronger side of self-love: perseverance. It’s also about empathy ~ which I’m a massive advocate of ~ and resilience, and a reminder that life keeps moving forwards and everything is temporary. And it’s a really good song!
Fight song - Rachel Platten
‘This is my fight song, take back my light song, prove I’m alright song.’ It does what it says on the tin. It talks about a small boat on the ocean with a big wave. When I think about self-love, this is it. It’s about being kind to yourself. I think we’re always really critical of ourselves. I am hugely resilient, but sometimes it’s ok to have a day when you’re not and be 60% or even 10% and mope and wail and eat chocolate. Then I listen to this song and the next day, I get up and start again, and it’s like ‘She’s back!’
Never let go - Bryan Adams
This song is all about protecting others. It’s about doing the right thing (look at the lyrics; they’re great) and not always having it seen. Going through life with integrity and authenticity, caring for others ~ I think that’s one of the biggest forms of love. The world would be a better place if everyone thought and acted like that. I have had teams wanting to cut out each other’s throats, and I’ve said to them, imagine if we all started fighting for each other instead of ourselves. What motivates me as a caregiver is love. This song embodies the giving of love.
2002 - Anne-Marie
This one is about romantic love ~ it’s a little bit cheeky. It’s about the excitement of love, that honeymoon period ~ that youthful excitement and energy that comes, and it doesn’t matter how old you are or how many relationships you’ve had. You can’t beat that first electric connection you have with someone else, whether it’s friendship, romantic or whatever. Humans are literally designed to connect, and that’s what I always say about voice. With the resonance of the voice, you can physically move someone because your voice creates a vibration through all the particles, and it touches someone else. So this song is about connection and the excitement of connection.
Smooth - Santana
This one has nothing to do with the words ~ well, you know, Santana’s diction is not the best. It’s actually the feeling of this song ~ you just feel it, and your body just wants to glide, and you can lose yourself for a short time. It’s electric, and it energises me. It’s the fluidity, and that’s why I love that it’s called Smooth. I think if I had to turn the LOVER into a sound, it would be this music. It’s deep, it’s strong, it’s powerful, yet somehow it glides. It encapsulates all that is within the LOVER.
Listen to the LOVER Soundtrack, curated by Hannah Cook:
