I’m based in Redfern, Sydney. I moved here to immerse myself in the music scene which I have done, but tbh I spend most of my time on my laptop or in my bedroom. I get out by DJing on the weekends when I’m not performing and try to drop into Oxford Arts Factory once a week to see something live.
The first song I wrote was a radio jingle when I was ten. After that, I was in the country music club performing at country music festivals whilst playing the drums in the school concert band. I returned to making music whilst selling handbags out of the back of my car. I was listening to a Bertie Blackman CD over and over and then started writing songs on Garage Band, literally recording percussion and drums using kitchen utensils and singing into a fan for vocal effects (until I found out how to use the software properly). I posted an ad on Gumtree and met Ben and we started Bec and Ben. After that, I taught myself guitar and started writing material which I put out as RACKETT.
Recently I’ve returned from my first headline tour of Japan. I put out 2 new songs; Machinations and Oxytoxic. Toured them in Melbourne and Sydney. I’ve been working with photographers and designers to create visual representations fo my new music, learning how to edit better and DJ ing. My day to day routine since coming out as a solo pop act is more on the admin side. I dedicate a lot of my day to researching venues, playlists, artists and communities to build on my music.
The word Oxytoxic is something I made up based on the love chemical produced by the body; Oxytocin. My obsession with love is toxic = Oxytoxic. The sound design and production is by Dave Hammer, my producer and co-writer. We wanted to create something to dance to and the lyrics are both fierce and vulnerable at the same time. We made something that sonically reflects the intensity of my toxic obsession.
Dave and I worked closely together on a collection of tracks to make a cohesive and informative sound to my new music. We had references but we also wanted to create something original that hadn’t been heard before. I listened to a lot of pop like Charli XCX, Kim Petras, Dorian Electra to get my head around how far artists are pushing the pop music template. We shared lyric ideas and personal experiences to form a collaborative relationship. I’m really happy with what we’ve created.
I produced and co-wrote with Dave Hammer (Lime Cordiale) and we recorded at a studio in Petersham after we’d settled on demos.
The approach to everything I do visually is, for the most part, DIY. As a millennial artist without much budget, I’ve had to learn graphic design, editing, photoshop etc. Prior to the video, I made a little green screen music video for a Christmas song I put out for fun and thought ‘how much harder can this be to make a proper video using the same technique’. Well, it was a lot harder. Lucky I have tech friends that helped me clean it up. I produced it, directed and edited it myself, simply the budget does not exist right now for what I wanted to create. Having said this I curated a cast that didn’t need more than for them to turn up really. I’m a real Tim and Eric fan so I found a middle ground between ultra lo-fi comedy cuts and simplicity that didn’t over shadow the talent.
On my journey towards pop, I’ve lost a lot of the die-hard rock fans. I’ve had to look in places to find people that are listening to pop and embody pop culture. On my first tour of Australia with the new sound I wanted to play in new places, that’s when I landed a show at Pride Of Our Footscray (an LGBTQIA community bar in Melbourne). I met Joslyn Bosoms, the host. I fell in love with her charm, fabulousness and creativity, she was liberated and the people in the venue were open-minded. Her commitment to entertaining people resonated with me. After that, I started inviting queens to perform with me on stage, I want my shows to be inclusive and a celebration of unique individuality. That leads me to the cast; Copper Feel, Bae L’amour, Krayola, Cerulean, Joslyn Bosoms, Alf Alpha, Dazza and Keif. I found them on instagram, pithed them my idea and they executed it in less than 2 takes each.
Alice Longyu, Dante Knows, 070 Shake, Denzel Curry, Clypso, The Presets, Mood Killer, Dorian Electra, L Devine, Pablo Vittar, Charli XCX, Cub Sport, Tkay Maidza, Ash Nikko. It’s all here if you want it > https://open.spotify.com/
I like to DJ. It’s the best job really. Getting paid to listen to music and connect with people through the nostalgia of 90s pop music and slip in a few things they might not have heard. I also like to binge watch RuPaul’s Drag Race.
I released the new music video for Oxytoxic this week. Throughout the rest of the year, I’ll be releasing more music, finding my home fanbase and writing and collaborating as much as I can. I’d like to tour again outside Australia, but for now I’m exploring my local community.
Favourite place to eat it ‘Butter’ in Surry Hills, Sydney. They sell fried food and sneakers and I like to go there when I’m hungover, so like, every Sunday.
