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BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) Ltd is bringing a delegation of British music businesses to BIGSOUND this year. What made 2026 the right time to strengthen the connection between the UK and Australia?

The UK and Australia share deep cultural roots, and we are always looking to strengthen this valued connection. Music exports are hugely important to the UK as the world’s second largest music exporter after the U.S., and Australia has always been a commercially and culturally importantly market for us.

Australia in the UK’s 4th biggest market for recorded music exports so it’s significant for our BPI label members. The BPI had been present at other Australian events previously, but we thought it really was time to add to this presence by exploring what BigSound had to offer the UK delegation, as we’d heard great things.

How has your experience at BIGSOUND been so far, and what has stood out to you?

All of the BPI’s UK delegates were impressed with the sheer variety of both music and B2B opportunities available to them at BigSound. Our Breakfast with the Brits event was a real hit, a standout moment where we had a packed room of people networking and making instant connections right at the start of the event.

Having spent time meeting Australian artists and music businesses, what has impressed you most about the Australian music industry?

I think Brits and Aussies have the same can-do attitude along with a similar work ethic and sense of humour. It’s been great connecting and reconnecting with lots of different parts of the business in a really laid back, informal, fun atmosphere.

Queensland has an extraordinary music community. What opportunities do you see for Queensland artists and music businesses looking towards the UK?

The UK has a really strong connection to Australia and London has a huge community of Australians and of course all across the UK Aussies are liked. A great Australian artists have been coming to the UK for years to perform so there’s a great track record for new talent to follow.

What do British artists and music businesses sometimes misunderstand about trying to break into the Australian market?

The first thing is just how big Australia is! Roughly half the population of the UK but with 31 times the space! So touring artists especially find the sheer distance between some cities unfathomable!

Have you discovered any Australian artists at BIGSOUND 2026 that you think international audiences should be paying attention to?

There were quite a few. Catpiss, Sweatbaby, and Tusekah were all really interesting and I think have great potential although all the Brits I was with have about another 20–30 acts they were all pretty excited about.

The UK is one of Australia’s most important international music connections. What do you think makes the relationship between the two music industries so strong?

I think it’s the shared work ethic and sense of humour, but obviously our roots go deep and there are shared values and a common language.

BIGSOUND is built around creating connections that continue beyond the festival. What kinds of relationships are you hoping the UK delegation can build while you are here?

Personally for the BPI we are looking at potentially bringing over some UK artists in 2027 and it would be remiss of me not to mention that we are planning a multi year strategy in the lead up to the Olympics.

With streaming, AI and changing patterns of music discovery reshaping the industry, what do you think will have the biggest impact on independent artists over the next few years?

Change, however challenging, also creates opportunity, not least in a global digital industry that now makes it really exciting and possible for an artist from one part of the world looking to connect with other territories and build a global fanbase through their music. We have all read a lot about AI and the risks it represents, but it also offers a lot of potential benefits for industry growth if an effective licensed market can be developed.

If you met an Australian artist at BIGSOUND who genuinely wanted to build a career in the UK, what would you tell them to do first?

I would say research like crazy before you head over to the UK. For a small set of nations we have massively varied music scenes, often set in particular geographic areas, so make sure you know where you are likely to find your scene.

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Psycho feels like one of your most vulnerable releases yet. What made you want to confront these parts of yourself through music?

I wrote Psycho in a deep spot of reflection, trying to find the root cause of why I sometimes I would speak to my people the way I would. Turns out your mind and body holds onto past trauma and life moments, and sometimes it comes out ways we not proud of.

The song explores how pain, anger, fear and insecurity can affect the people around us. Was there a particular moment or realisation that sparked the writing of Psycho?

Overtime it was a consistent theme of me not being told what I needed to change… and finally taking responsibility to change it.

There’s a strong contrast between the silky R&B production and the heavier subject matter. How did you approach creating that balance sonically?

I love it when you get a production and arrangement that is so good, it forces you dig deep into your toolkit and put everything into a song. This was one of those moments.

You worked with Melbourne producer R.F.P on Psycho. What did he bring to the track that helped shape it into the final version?

He’s a legend, working out of Naarm, Melbourne and I’ve been working with Rory for a couple of years. His production forced me dive deeper, and match his sonics and arrangement with truthful, honest storytelling.

You also co-produced and co-directed the music video with Richie Coburn. How did the visual concept develop alongside the song?

Richie Coburn has been a huge asset to have alongside me bringing my ideas to life. Working previously on ‘Blood in the Water’ and The Gift with Hilltop Hoods, we wanted to create a new age visualizer that accompanied the track nicely, I think we achieved that.

Psycho follows your debut single Blood in the Water. What did making that first release teach you that you carried into this new chapter?

Continue to be authentic and honest in your story telling. Theres so such growth to be had when I am authentically me, and stay aligned to my truth and values. Psycho is a representation of me staying to my commitment to honesty.

You’ve worked across hip hop, R&B and soul, while also collaborating with artists including Urthboy, A.B. Original, Birdz and Frank Leone. How have those experiences influenced the artist you’re becoming in your own right?

They’ve all shown me how to stay true to self and speak about what matters in the right way.

You came from a professional AFL background before moving further into music and creative work. What did your time in football teach you that you now carry into your creative life?

It taught me how to apply myself and prepare really well, and stay prepared. Alot of times as an independent artist, you never when your next opportunity is, so you need stay prepared, and that’s what I try to do each day. Work on my craft and stay ready.

Your music often connects personal experiences with culture, identity and socially conscious storytelling. How important is it for you to keep those elements present as your sound develops?

I feel as a First nations artist, we tend to feel like we’ve inherited a responsibility to truth telling through our art. That will always remain, and as my sound evolves, and gets to a place where it can live forever through the audience, the one thing that will remain is my authenticity and truth.

You’re working towards your debut album. What can you tell us about where Psycho fits into the bigger picture, and what you’re building towards with the album?

Psycho is integral part of the process towards a larger body of work. As i mentioned previously, it is most honest, reflective and piece off work, and since psycho was born, everything that has come after has elevated and pushed me to match that honesty, with no regard for self presevation. Resulting my growth as a writer, and artist.

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What was going on creatively or personally when TRANCE first began taking shape, and what did you want the album to become?

When TRANCE first started taking shape, I was at a point where I wanted to make something that felt bigger and more complete than anything I had done before. I had a lot of different thoughts and emotions going on, and music was where I could put all of that. I did not want it to feel like just a collection of songs. I wanted it to feel like its own world that you could enter and stay in from beginning to end.

Much of the album was recorded inside your Tesla late at night. What was it about being in that space, alone and away from a traditional studio, that suited the music you were making?

There was something about being alone in the car late at night that made everything feel more focused. It was quiet, private, and I did not really have anything distracting me. I could just sit there with the music and let ideas come naturally. It also fit the feeling of TRANCE because a lot of the album is about being inside your own head and getting lost in a certain mood. Recording that way made the songs feel more personal.

With 20 tracks intended to feel like one continuous journey, how did you decide what belonged on the album and how each track should lead into the next?

A lot of it came down to whether a song felt like it belonged in the same world. Even if two tracks sounded different, they still needed to carry the same atmosphere or emotion. I paid a lot of attention to sequencing too. I wanted the energy to rise and fall naturally instead of feeling like twenty random songs placed next to each other. Sometimes the ending of one track would help me decide what needed to come immediately after it.

You handled the writing, production, arrangement and creative direction yourself. Was that complete creative control liberating, challenging, or a bit of both?

Definitely both. It was liberating because I could follow every idea exactly where I wanted it to go without having to compromise the vision. At the same time, it meant every decision came back to me. There was nobody else to blame if something was not working. It could get overwhelming, but I think that also made the finished album feel much more personal because almost every part of it came directly from my own decisions.

You’ve said you often started with a mood or feeling before building the vocals and production around it. How do you know when that initial feeling has become a finished song?

Usually I know when I can listen back and the song gives me the same feeling that made me start it in the first place. I do not really think of a song as finished because every technical detail is perfect. It is more about whether the emotion is there. Once adding more starts feeling like it would take away from the mood instead of making it stronger, that is usually when I know I should leave it alone.

The action figure in the visual identity represents the polished, artificial version of yourself presented to the outside world. How much of that idea reflects the person behind the music?

A lot of it does. Everybody has a version of themselves that people see from the outside, especially now with social media and how much of your life can become an image. The action figure represents that version of me that looks put together and controlled, while the actual music shows a lot more of what is happening underneath that. I liked the contrast because TRANCE is very internal, while the figure is almost like this manufactured exterior.

You’ve described your own artistic growth as the biggest influence on TRANCE rather than a particular artist or sound. What changed most in the way you approach making music?

I became more confident in trusting my own instincts. Earlier on, I think I was more focused on whether something sounded correct or whether it fit into a certain type of music. With TRANCE, I cared more about whether it felt right to me. I also started thinking about the full project instead of only individual songs. Production, sequencing, artwork, atmosphere, vocals, all of it became part of the same idea.

Across 20 tracks, was there a moment during the process where you surprised yourself with where the album was heading?

Yeah, especially when I started listening to multiple finished tracks back to back. At first I was making songs and following whatever ideas I had, but eventually I realized there was a much clearer world forming between them than I originally planned. That was probably when TRANCE stopped feeling like a group of songs I was working on and started feeling like an actual album.

TRANCE is centred around getting lost in thoughts, emotions and surroundings. What do you personally find yourself getting lost in most when you listen back to the album now?

Probably the memories connected to each song. I can remember where I was mentally when I made certain tracks, what I was thinking about, and even little moments surrounding the recording process. Listening now is almost like going back into that period of my life. Sometimes I am listening to the production, but other times one sound or lyric will immediately remind me of exactly where my head was when I made it.

You’ve said TRANCE represents how far you’ve come, but also how much further you want to go. What’s the next thing you want to challenge yourself to create?

I want to keep building projects that feel like complete worlds, but push the ideas even further. I do not want to make TRANCE again with a different title. I want the next project to have its own identity and make me approach writing, production, and visuals in ways I have not already done. The biggest challenge for me now is figuring out how to keep evolving without losing what makes the music feel like me.

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