Brocarde, 41, from Oxford, a singer who uses only her performance name, identifies with certain aspects of witchcraft, such as believing she has the ability to foresee events and having strong instincts about people’s personalities.
After travelling to Romania earlier this year to meet a renowned witch and stay with a coven, she said she has since incorporated witchcraft rituals into her daily life, such as bathing in charcoal, and she has used a cauldron.
While in Romania, she said witches cast a protection spell on her, as she had been frightened by her ghost ex-husband – the spirit of a Victorian soldier named Edwardo – but since returning home, she no longer feels afraid.
She claims Edwardo used to have a “harrowed-looking face and bad energy” but more recently he has looked as if he “was almost smiling” – she now believes he could be her “guardian angel” who set her on a path to explore witchcraft.
Brocarde believes accepting her powers has helped her stay calm during paranormal encounters, though she remains hesitant to fully label herself a witch thanks to its negative connotations.
Brocarde told PA Real Life: “I just feel like I don’t necessarily need to put a label on it, because I do think there are a lot of people who don’t understand it.
“I’ve used a cauldron, I’ve done those kinds of rituals, but I feel like when you’re doing a ritual to connect with the dead, a lot of the tokens will be possessions of the dead because it’s about channelling that person’s energy, which definitely relates to witchcraft.
“I haven’t cast a spell yet but it’s so tempting, you know when people annoy you, but I do believe in natural karma and if you’re an idiot it’ll catch up with you.”
She added: “I think it scares people, and knowing that you can potentially scare strangers before they’ve even met you is slightly weird.
“So many people still think of witches being women with pointy hats, like people dress up as for Halloween, but that’s just not true and we are more than that.”
Brocarde claims she can communicate with ghosts and believes her “first ghost sighting” in 2021 opened her eyes to “this whole world of witchcraft”.
In 2021, she said she encountered the spirit of Edwardo, a Victorian soldier, who professed his love for her.
The two were married the following year but divorced in 2023 after she claimed he became possessive.
Brocarde identifies with other aspects of being a witch, such as the ability to foresee events and having strong instincts about people’s personalities.
She said: “It’s mostly being in tune with people – I’ve had encounters where I meet someone and I will be able to see the end of the relationship before the beginning.
“Some people have the theory that because you can see the end of a relationship, you’re manifesting it.
“And that’s, again, a big part of the witchcraft thing, there’s a lot of manifestation and positive affirmation.
“I say it’s an enhanced understanding of yourself and the world around you, and everything goes back to nature and connecting with the Earth and connecting with who we really are.”
In April 2024, Brocarde said she travelled to Romania to further explore witchcraft and her powers, staying with a coven and meeting Mihaela Minca, one of Romania’s most renowned witches.
She described the experience as “enlightening” because she was finally surrounded by people with “similar gifts” and said the coven could “sense (her) powers straight away”.
She said the coven cast a spell on her for protection against her ex-husband Edwardo, and since returning from Romania, her encounters with him have been more positive.
Previously, she had found him “very intense and scary”.
“He used to have a harrowed-looking face and bad energy, but the last time I saw him, he was almost smiling,” Brocarde explained.
“So now I think he might be some sort of guardian angel to make me realise what path I need to be on.
“So I always think things happen for a reason and maybe my ghost encounter had to be that dramatic to change my belief system and meet those witches.”
Writing music has also helped her process these experiences.
“When I first met Edwardo, I wrote a song about it because it was such a weird thing, and then when we divorced I wrote about it again,” she said.
“Obviously not everyone has relationships with ghosts, but the concept of that is relatable to any relationship really, like everyone goes through struggles and things like that.
“So I feel like it’s made me a more worldly artist and meeting with all these people opened up this whole world, which is creatively very inspiring.”
Since her return from Romania, Brocarde has adopted rituals such as bathing in charcoal and using tokens when contacting the dead.
Who she contacts depends on where she is and she typically waits to see who “wants to present themselves”.
She added: “Sometimes it’s very quick, I’ll just quickly see a ghost and there won’t be time to get their name or anything like that.
“But other times they stick around for longer and want to communicate more.”
She believes that incorporating elements of witchcraft into her daily life has helped her remain calm when seeing ghosts.
“I’ve had times in the past where I’ve had paranormal activity that scared me, but trying to assert your boundaries and removing yourself from situations if they become too scary is important,” she said.
“My world changed when I started to accept my powers and witchcraft side.
“I can manage it and try to control it so I’m not scared all the time, or I’m not fearful and that’s been quite empowering.”
Brocarde is also looking forward to celebrating Halloween, despite not having any concrete plans yet.
She explained: “I love Halloween, and it’s like a lifestyle thing for me, so it’s like everyone gets on my page when Halloween comes around.”
To find out more about Brocarde’s music, visit brocarde.com
