Tara McDonald has collaborated with some of the biggest producers worldwide. She co-wrote and featured on Axwell’s ‘Feel The Vibe’, Todd Terry’s ‘Get Down’ and David Guetta’s ‘Delirious’. She also featured on Armand Van Helden’s worldwide smash ‘My My My’. Tara will be releasing her EP later this year on Play Two/Warner.

We were thrilled to hook up with Tara to talk about her dedication to veganism, and why she is so passionate about looking after the animals and sharing the ethical message with her work.







Hey Tara! We hear you have recently embraced the vegan lifestyle. How is it going?

You’re not wrong! I’ve been vegan for about 9 months now and can honestly say I’m loving it. It seems stupid that it took me so long to make the switch, as I was so curious about veganism and mainly only cooked vegan food at home after discovering Deliciously Ella’s simple and tasty recipes (as I was a terrible cook before, but everything I made from her recipes tasted A-mazing!). I’m actually a pretty decent cook now and I’m really enjoying creating new dishes.

It took me a long time to really understand and commit to the lifestyle as I thought it would be really difficult, especially when touring. But I’m happy to say I’ve actually found it so easy. Since becoming vegan I have noticed a lot of positive changes, some that you’d expect and others that have really surprised me. It’s easier to keep weight off, my nails are super strong as they always broke before and mentally I feel so much calmer than before. My boyfriend had terrible eczema and since he’s become vegan it’s completely disappeared! I feel like my deeds and actions are now aligned with my core values. If I had educated myself sooner about what goes on behind the closed doors of the animal industry I would have been vegan a long, long time ago. Now looking back, I wish I had done this sooner!

What made you decide to go vegan?

To be honest there were a few things that happened around the same time that made me question how I was living and helped point me in the right direction towards veganism.

My attitude towards animals really changed when I had a dog. I have a little mini schnauzer called Annie who’s the love of my life! Getting to know her personality, things that make her happy or scared made me relate to animals in a completely different way. She’s like a little person. Then learning that pigs are way more intelligent than dogs really shocked me! I had no interest in eating meat ever again. So, I became vegetarian. When I was performing in Sri Lanka, I luckily had some time off to discover the country and spent an afternoon in a Buddhist temple with a monk who asked me if I ate meat (which I didn’t as I was already vegetarian) and he said, “Good! You’re not a murderer”. Which just reinforced everything really.

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The final nail in the coffin was watching What The Health, Cowspiracy, Forks over Knives on Netflix. Suddenly seeing how eating animal products destroys your health, the environment and what actually happens to the animals made me immediately say “That’s it, I’m done!”. I haven’t watched Earthlings yet. I don’t think I can take it. But I know it’s there as a tool if ever I feel I need to crack the emergency glass!

I had lots of questions and was using google constantly: “Why don’t vegans wear wool? Why don’t vegans eat honey? Why don’t vegans eat eggs?”, etc. I watched lots of videos on YouTube (especially a channel called Bite Sized Vegan, which is really informative) and then other clips taken from slaughterhouses. I would sit and cry as I watched all this horrendous footage to see what I had been paying for in the past! Shocked is an understatement and I also felt so guilty! Once I started to understand what is really happening then there’s no way I could even consider going back to eating cheese or eggs. Vegan for life! #VeganForLife

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We love that you’re promoting the benefits of going vegan on your social media platforms. Have your fans shown an interest in going vegan?

I want to do a lot more in the future as I’m gaining more knowledge and more confidence to speak up for the animals. Some of my new vegan friends warned me off posting strong or disturbing images of animal cruelty on social media as I’d lose “friends”. But a lot of my friends – on Facebook in particular – were like myself in the past: completely ignorant of what’s going on especially in the diary and egg industry. I literally didn’t know that they minced up male chicks in the first 15 mins of hatching until I became vegan! I have posted a few things online and what’s amazing is that quite a few of my friends have now also gone vegan and are bringing up their kids vegan too, which is awesome. I feel like I’m sowing “vegan seeds” which will hopefully sprout one day.

I’m re-educating myself. I was so focused on my career and caught up in my own life. I didn’t stop to think about the treatment of animals. I thought being vegetarian was good enough. But when you know better, you do better. There’s no way I would ever go back to eating animal products. When I see meat on someone’s plate now it doesn’t even seem like its food anymore, something in my head has switched. Its like I want to shout out: “Hey! Don’t eat that, there’s a dead body on your plate!”







Any vegan addictions?

So many! There’s things I really like that I hated before I was vegan. For example, I never used to like mayo, but then I found the brand Follow Your Heart and their Vegenaise is so amazing.

I love the classic and the spicy Sriracha version! Also, their Pepper Jack cheese is awesome! I’m obsessed with Oatly “Wow No Cow” chocolate milk! I have to buy it in bulk. My favourite milk in coffee is Provamel organic coconut and rice milk, it tastes so good, It’s like having a fancy coffee at home. I also love Marigold Engevita with Added B12 Nutritional Yeast Flakes. I put this on almost everything! It’s amazing as it tastes so cheesy. I put it in salads, on top of pasta and I even use it in sauces as well. I made a fabulous mac and cheese yesterday and used nearly half a tub and worked so well!

As a girly girl, I have had to find new brands for makeup, hair and even clothing. But I’ve rediscovered a big love for good old Body Shop. They have so many vegan things and their BB cream is so good! I’m obsessed with Kat Von D too for cosmetics and my makeup artist Fanny Maurer in Paris is also an animal activist and she only uses vegan cruelty free products. Through her, I’ve found lots of new exciting new makeup brands. She’s actually the top makeup artist with Clarins in France and she’s inspired them to sell make up brushes that are 100% vegan.

Will you come and walk with us on the animal rights march in London this year? You should get on the mic! Vegan street party realness!

I would love to! Every time there’s been a march so far, I’ve been working. In Paris, there was a Vegan Pride and I had a photoshoot that day and was gutted to miss it. I’ve signed up to volunteer with Anonymous for the Voiceless in the UK, so I’m really excited to get involved in activism. It’s hard balancing it along with promoting my current single and finishing my album. My makeup artist said I’m an activist without realising it as I always talk about equal rights for the LGBTQ community, feminism and now veganism and animal rights in my interviews. I can’t help myself as I’m really passionate about it and the vegan lifestyle has made me feel so good that it’s only natural that I want to share it with people.

You get to travel the world with your work. Any vegan hotspots you can share with us?

You know what, I started out my new vegan life in Paris, I didn’t know where the hell to eat. But then I found a website and app called HappyCow which lists all vegan and vegetarian restaurants and stores around the world. This literally stopped me from starving and I found so many cool places – lots of great healthy food and also lots of vegan junk! I was grateful to HappyCow that I’ve actually become an ambassador for the website. It’s not a showbiz thing, anyone can be an ambassador and you’re responsible for your local area making sure all vegan and veggie friendly places are listed on the site and to keep them updated. It’s just a really nice way to give back to the community and find some great places to eat. It’s a win-win!

Vegan Antics in Gravesend is the best 100% vegan bakery in Kent, I am obsessed with their “sausage rolls” and their “oreo brownies”. Wheats The Problem in Sittingbourne is a 100% vegan supermarkert. I stock up on all my faves there.

Super Vegan (Paris, 17) – incredible hamburgers and kebabs – but like filling dirty burgers! 100% vegan.

Happiz pizza (Paris, 16) – it’s a vegetarian restaurant so no meat and they have vegan cheese and faux meats.

Hank Restaurant (Paris, 3)) – they have 2 restaurants pizza and burgers both in the Marais, 100% vegan!

Le Potager du Marais (Paris, 4) – this makes vegan versions of French classics – very romantic and it’s actually my new fav place to go. Book in advance! 100% vegan.

Végé Saveurs (Paris, 11) – the best Chinese ever! Everything is vegan and there’s so much choice. For Paris, it’s cheap too. They have mock meats that will fool your non-vegan friends.

Vietnam in Paris (Paris, 2) – Thai and Asian food. 100% vegan and 100% amazing!

In London, my favourite pizzeria is: Picky Wops (North End Rd, Fulham). They have a new one which has just opened in Peckham. 100% Vegan.

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I live in Kent and we have quite a big vegan explosion down here. I have many favourite places. One in particular is a pub restaurant called Drakes in Maidstone, it’s run by vegan chef Stephanie Hinton of Ponga Foods. Her kitchen is 100% vegan, gluten free, no processed sugar or palm oil, her food is delicious and if you go there you must get the cheese board. She makes the best vegan cheese I’ve ever tasted in my life!

Another place to go to, which is a real dream destination for animal lovers, is the Animal Retreat and Rescue in Ashford, Kent. A lot of the animals there have been rescued from slaughter. I’ve volunteered there a couple of times, mostly spending the days shoveling shit! But somehow, now I’m vegan, I really enjoy it – it’s like a day out! They have a vegan café at the weekends where its open to the public. The sanctuary is massive – there are over 150 pigs alone. It’s dog friendly too and all of the staff are vegan and super nice.







Which celebrity vegan would be your dream dinner date and why?

Jared Leto and James Aspey! Now that’s what I call a 3 ways! I’ve had a crush on Jared since he was in Requiem for a Dream. We were actually staying at the same hotel in Miami once and I was too shy to go over and say “Hi”. I was too busy hyperventilating. The vegan activist James Aspey would be my other choice as when I first started my vegan journey, his YouTube videos really helped me. There was one video about eating with non-vegans which got me through a tough situation. He seems so inclusive and kind. I love him as he makes veganism really accessible to people. Perhaps this will sound crazy but I was actually scared to go into vegan restaurants at the beginning as I felt like I would be judged, which I find funny now, but I had this weird preconceived notion about the vegan community. I didn’t really know any vegans so I had this weird idea in my head that I wouldn’t fit in. Of course now I see that’s totally ridic.

You hosted a radio show called I Like This Beat. We think you should rebrand it, calling it I Like This Beet. *coughs*

Perfect! I miss making my own radio show – it was a real passion project of mine. Actually, this would be an awesome podcast name for veegs!

Are you able to promote veganism through your music?

My new single ‘Taxxxi‘ is a feel good 80’s inspired pop song. I’ve dubbed it 50 Shades of Taxxxi. The song doesn’t promote animal rights: it’s about following your own animal instincts and giving into the wildest moments without hesitation. However, in the opening shots I’m seen with a phone and the cover advertises the charity Sea Shepherd. They are my modern-day heroes that patrol the seas. As they are a non-profit charity they do not waste any money in advertising, so it was important to me to include them in the clip. Also, I made it very clear to my production team that I was vegan and only wanted to wear cruelty free/vegan makeup/clothing. When the stylist showed up, he clearly hadn’t read the memo and brought lots of real fur coats! Horrible! Obviously, there was no way I would wear them. Even when I ate meat, I would have never have worn fur.

The male model I booked in the clip (he was the best looking of the bunch, with lots of tattoos) was also at the costume fitting and he looked in disgust at the fur coats – and that’s when I discovered he was also vegan! This was amazing as he works in fashion, he was able to connect me to my new vegan “glam squad” and also introduced me to some fashion brands that are vegan-friendly too.

My new record label Play Two/Warner music have been really cool too, as a lot of labels ask you not to speak out about social issues in interviews, and mine have kind of embraced the fact that it’s part of who I am now. In fact, they even sent me a lovely hamper for Christmas from PHB. I had never heard of the company before and discovered this incredible range of ethical, organic, vegan, cruelty free make up and face creams that I’m loving.

I’m also writing a pop song for the voiceless (the animals and the Earth) which I’m hoping to include in my album this year. Eric, the head of HappyCow, gave me the idea. I asked him what I could do to provide more for the community and he said, “You’re a singer! You’ve got to write a song!”. So, I promised him I would. It’s a challenge making such a heavy topic into a mainstream, pop record – but I love a good challenge!

Quinoa. Love it or loathe it?

I used to loathe it, but think I wasn’t cooking it right! Then I found this recipe and it completely changed my idea of quinoa over night! Honestly its sooooo good, you have to try it! I sometimes add fresh lemon balm from my garden in the mix and it works really well too.

My Quinoa and butter bean stew.

What’s the best thing about being a vegan?

I feel really proud to be part of this community. I’m learning more about the world and becoming more mindful of where I spend my money and my impact on the environment. Going to my first vegan festival was incredible as a new vegan. I thought it was important to listen to as many speeches as possible and I really learnt so much from Animal Aid. I had no idea that cleaning products are often tested on animals, wtf! So, I’m really careful to make sure I have the leaping bunny on my household cleaning products. Equally important was listening to the volunteer’s stories from Sea Shepherd. They are everyday people on the front line and are really making a difference. This is really inspiring to me, I want to use my voice for the voiceless to simultaneously promote ethical and cruelty free living. It’s a moral obligation, it’s my duty and my passion!

● Tara McDonald’s new single ‘Taxxxi’ is out now. Follow Tara: YouTube | Facebook | Instagram

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