‘Miracle’ feels deeply personal while still having a sense of lightness to it. What was the moment that sparked the song, and did you know straight away that you had something special?
I was in the studio with Tij who co-wrote, produced, mixed and mastered the song and I remember he sang the first line and I was like yep I love that. That’s when the idea was born, and we finished the song that day. We both loved the song from the get go, so it was super fun and exciting turning it into what it is now.
There’s a beautiful contrast between vulnerability and hope in ‘Miracle’. What were you trying to capture emotionally when you were writing it?
We really wanted to paint the picture of when you meet someone and the sparks are flying. We wanted to capture all the thoughts and feelings that exist within that experience. All the hope, the excitement, the youthfulness and the unknowns of it all.
When you look back at the person you were when you wrote ‘Miracle’, what do you think the song reveals about that period of your life?
I think the song reflects my inner dreamer. I am one to daydream and romanticise life and the people in it, and this song is a great depiction of that. I was kind of living vicariously through the song as we wrote it and was loving living in that world.
‘Miracle’ is also the title of your upcoming third EP. Did the title come first, or did the collection of songs naturally lead you towards calling the EP ‘Miracle’?
We had written the whole thing and I was pondering on the title for a little while and I landed on Miracle. It felt like a super special title for the EP because at the time I was really playing with the idea that miracles are everywhere and all it takes is being open to receiving them to experience them. I feel like the whole EP speaks to the journey of getting to that point. There’s yearning, there’s longing, there’s play, there’s romanticism, and of course there are miracles!
Across your previous releases and this new EP, how do you feel your approach to songwriting has changed? Are you writing about different things now, or seeing familiar experiences differently?
I think my approach to songwriting through my more recent releases has been a little more intentional but I’ve always liked to give myself space to experiment with sounds and be true to what I’m feeling at the time. I think now more than ever, though I like to write quite introspectively, I’ve allowed myself to tap into my inner child and have a little more fun with it. I write what feels relevant for me, there were some overlapping themes, and there were also many new experiences and understandings of life to draw from.
Your music has a strong storytelling quality. When you’re writing, how much of the story is drawn directly from your own life, and how much comes from observation, imagination or moments you’ve picked up along the way?
A lot of it is usually drawn from my own life but on this EP I really opened up to exploring stories of mine and Tij’s imagination and observation, treating it more like a stream of consciousness. I find it super interesting to see once the song is written, how my subconscious was speaking through the storytelling.
Was there a song on the EP that challenged you more than the others to write or record? What made it difficult?
Turning on the dial was probably the most challenging to record. The writing came quite easily but there was some trial and error figuring out the sound for it because it felt a little separate from the rest of the songs, but I really wanted it on there because of it’s storyline and how relevant the song felt for me at the time. After some chopping and changing we landed on what we have now and I’m super glad it’s on there.
What did you discover about yourself as an artist while making this EP that you didn’t expect to?
There were points throughout making the EP where I doubted my abilities as a writer, but I really worked through that and came back to the reason I love it so much, which is because it feels like a release of some sort when I write, and it creates a space for me to express how I feel. I learnt that for me it’s more about feeling into it, rather than being super logical and technical with everything.
You’ll soon be taking ‘Miracle’ and the new songs into a run of live shows. Do your songs change for you once you start performing them in front of people?
I think with some of the songs you can feel the audience really connecting with them and those always make the songs feel a little more special to me. It is so touching to see how people connect with the music.
After three EPs, what still excites you about making music, and what would you love to explore next that you haven’t had the chance to yet?
I find it super fun diving into new ways of expressing the goings on in my mind and in my life. Listening to other music honestly makes me excited, because I hear things I love and I feel so inspired. I love working with people, especially Tij and leaning in all sorts of directions creatively with him. I think next up I’d like to explore some of the music of my heritage and culture, and weave that in.
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