Musician's 'wild 10 days' co-writing Lily Allen album

The cover of Lily Allen's new album West End Girl features artwork by Nieves González

A singer-songwriter from Wales said she spent "the wildest 10 days" co-writing six songs on Lily Allen's new album.

Violet Skies, from Chepstow, Monmouthshire, said that "in a crazy turn of events", she co-wrote songs including Madeline on the break-up album, which documents the end of Allen's four-year marriage to actor David Harbour.

Skies said: "It was truly a magical experience making this music with Lily. It felt like a fever dream."

Skies has previously written songs for Diana Ross, Mabel and Zara Larsson.

Allen released West End Girl, her first album in seven years, on 24 October.

It was written and recorded in Los Angeles over 10 days.

Skies, whose real name is Hannah Berney, said: "We wrote six songs in four days last December and hearing it now resonating with people out in the world is something I never expected. It's surpassed all my expectations.

She added that people had been "calling my mam and dad, which is really lovely".

Violet Skies performed on the BBC Introducing stage at Glastonbury in 2014

Skies said on Instagram that she co-wrote the songs with Allen "and the best bloody crew of pals".

"Lily gave us her absolute all and more - very few artists are so open, talented, skilled, honest, self-aware, self-effacing and funny.

"She was so open, so collaborative and turned up with all the titles written out in advance - a rare experience and truly a testament to her vision and artistry."

She thanked co-executive producers, Blue May and Kito "for steering the ship and bringing us all together for the wildest 10 days", adding they had reached out to her a few weeks before saying Allen was ready to write.

"Making this album with friends I've known for years is a massive part of the reason I'm so proud of these songs. Please listen top to bottom," she added.

Skies said she had been out in Los Angeles "for a good few years now and I miss home a lot but making a very British album definitely cured some of my homesickness".

Skies, who adopted her great-grandmother's name, said she co-wrote Madeline, Sleepwalking, Let You W/in, which she described as "my fave", as well as Dallas Major, Relapse and Beg For Me.

Let You W/in is one of the final two tracks on the album, where Allen accepts the need to move on.

Lily Allen details the breakdown of her marriage on her new album West End Girl

In an interview about the album with the Sunday Times, Allen said: "Nobody knew what was going on in my life. So I got into the studio, cried for two hours and then said 'let's make some music'."

Allen told Perfect Magazine some of her songs had been written "in character", explaining that the lyrics "could be considered autofiction", a genre combining autobiography and fiction.

She also said she made the album with her friend and the musical director on her last tour, Blue May, who "put together a really strong team of different people - writers, producers, players - that would come and go from his studio in LA".

Skies, who appeared on ITV's The Voice in 2012, has released a number of albums and EPs, describing her music as "pop with teeth" and co-producing all of her music.

In 2015, she was supported by the BBC Cymru and Arts Council of Wales new music project Horizons/Gorwelion.

Skies also wrote a track, Meet Me in Paris for Netflix film, The Wrong Paris, released in September and is co-founder of the sheWrites writing camp programme.