A Q&A WITH VERSEARY
Our gal Ashlee had an e-chat with Verseary for a quick Q&A about her upcoming double single A Fools Gold.
Our gal Ashlee had an e-chat with Verseary for a quick Q&A about her upcoming double single A Fools Gold.
Firstly, I just want to say that it was great working with you on this project and congratulations on the release! What was some of the inspiration behind ‘A Fools Gold’?
It's a single with an extra song. The new song is called Losing Game.
It's called “A Fool’s Gold” as a lot of people were moving from Melbourne to regional areas of Victoria to escape the Covid restrictions.
Essentially, the grass is not being greener on the other side. It’s also another term for pyrite which is fake gold. Victoria has many gold rush towns. Where I grew up and stayed last year was one of them.
During our recording sessions we had a few struggles. Do you want to talk about that a little bit?
We recorded in a busy rehearsal space and each room I had hired ended up next to the larger rooms that were occupied by a couple of Melbourne metal groups.
You do what you can on a budget, and It was wonderful that the place was booked out and everyone’s able to rehearse again.
It was quite the competition when it came to recording vocals, but we got there in the end.
You did an amazing job mixing and mastering the songs and I was happy to work with an up-and-coming female engineer.
I really like the differences between the two songs and the dynamic it creates on the double single, with one being more mellow, and the other being heavier. Can you tell me about the meanings behind ‘Losing Game’ and ‘Sad, Bad and Blue’?
There are 2 different stories and they were written at different times throughout the lock down.
Losing Game is about having to move from somewhere you called home back to where you grew up and not knowing what lays ahead, especially post Covid.
The second song, Sad, Bad and Blue is about miscommunication and how some choose not to change their ways especially when you cared and tried to be a friend.
What are some of your favourite Aussie artists right now?
I’ve been listening to Jess Locke’s new album “Don’t ask yourself why” it’s fantastic!
What can fans expect to see next for Verseary?
Some live shows coming up and I’m looking to record and E.P or Album in a few months.
A Fools Gold will be available on the 30th of April via Bandcamp.
FOLLOW VERSEARY
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INTERVIEW: BEKS ON HER NEW SINGLE AND PROJECT
Alt-pop queen, Beks (FKA RACKETT) chats to the BackBeat about her latest single and video ‘Stars In My Eyes’.
Alt-pop queen, Beks (FKA RACKETT) chats to the BackBeat about her latest single and video ‘Stars In My Eyes’.
Can you give us an outline of your transition from ‘RACKETT’ to ‘Beks’? What were your intentions behind the new name and project?
Beks is an extension of myself personally. I changed my name to strip back the layers and to better represent my solo work moving forward. I’ve been on a journey of self-discovery through music, writing with producers and artists from all around the world. I’ve been writing so much music that has informed me more about who I am as an independent songwriter and what I can create with confidence in myself. I’ve chosen to adopt my new artist name Beks to signify a new era for me as a songwriter. A new beginning, one that will carry my new work cohesively into the future. Since September 2020, I’ve been working daily with songwriters and producers in studios within Sydney and also in the UK via zoom. I’ve set out to create a mixtape which features co-writes and production by Taka Perry, Jim Eliot (Ladyhawke, EAST), Xira, Cam Nacson, Tasker, Lucy Neville, Nina Jirachi, Kim Moyes (The Presets), Airports and more. This mixtape has developed my sound, leaning further into pop than ever before
You’ve recently released your single ‘Stars In My Eyes’ alongside a music video which features you portraying three different characters. I’m assuming these characters are representations of yourself, could you tell me a little bit about each of them?
Yes, these are the different parts of my personality. The light, ethereal type angel is the naive dreamer, the glamorous mermaid is the sensual part of my personality expressing my sexuality and the fearless daredevil represents the risk-taker and the showwoman inside me. The angel is set in a rundown fairgrounds ride yard amongst dandelions, the mermaid sits on a led lit coral sprout and the daredevil rises on a forklift, balancing on the beams 3 meters in the air without a harness in heels.
As a songwriter, you seem to pull a lot of inspiration from your personal experiences as well as your development as an artist and a person. What else inspires your writing?
Yes, that's true, most of what I write is directly based on my experiences and the emotions I need to express. But since I've been co-writing so much, I haven't had a lot of time for socialising and dating so I've drawn from my co-writers' experience. I recently wrote two new songs with Clara Fable for my mixtape and these stories were based on her personal experience, I'd kinda run all the option out of my own heartbreak by then. I also wrote a song with Korkey Buchek for my mixtape called 'Fermented Mandarin' which is about my fancy friends' obsession with skin contact wine and another one with Taka Perry and Luke McChesney called 'Reject Party' about getting kicked out of my house recently. It's refreshing to find new topics that aren't always about a singular romantic fail.
What has been your COVID-19 experience? Did you find it a time for rest and reflection or an opportunity to crack down on songwriting and creating?
Covid was a really busy time for me actually. In April 2020, I conceptualised, produced and directed 'Loud n Queer TV' with Heaps Gay and Create or Die. It was an idea I had for a live stream show from my room which I pitched to Heaps Gay and Create or Die who jumped onboard. We co-created three seasons which aired on Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gray, focused on delivering an hour-long variety show with performances by artists from the LGBTQIA+ community. We've been nominated for an FBI SMAC Award which is pretty cool. After we completed three seasons, I jumped back into my music full time, writing with producers and artists in Australia and in the UK via zoom to create my debut mixtape. I got a publishing deal with Wise Music as well, during COVID so writing K-POP and really embracing what my life would look like as a full-time songwriter.
With restrictions in all states easing, gigs and tours are finally back! Do you have any gigs lined up? And anything you’re looking forward to?
I'm working on my mixtape which is now 15 tracks long and unlike my old music, I didn't use any guitars or live drums, all beats and synth so I'm excited to reinterpret that, live. I don't have any shows at this stage, I'm entering a whole new market of pop so I'm spending some time learning about that scene.
Speaking of gigs, what would be your dream festival line up for you to play alongside?
Oh yes, I love this question. My favourite artist is Charli XCX so I'd be stoked to play anywhere with her, added bonus A$AP Rocky and Solange.
Top 3 artists you’ve been listening to recently and why?
I just got my Spotify summary back for 2020 and my top 3 artists I listen to the most are me (lamo), Dante Knows and Charli XCX. Atm I'm listening to Muki, Clara Fable, Caroline Polachek, Ash Nikko, Dorian Electra and Nikki Fresh! If you don't know Nikki Fresh, it's Nicol Richie's environmental rap project produced by Joel Madden and my favourite discovery of 2020. It's all on my POP AF playlist.
Finally, what’s next for Beks?
So I've just dropped the first song off my mixtape 'Stars in My Eyes' and the second single 'The Thing About Us' is out on Friday, Dec 11th. It's an absolute dance floor banger I wrote with Cam Nacson(Sad Boi) and Tamika Nacson (Xira) and just found out it's been added to Nova Coles radio so listen out when you're doing your Christmas shopping (haha). In 2021 I'll be dropping new music I made with Taka Perry, Kim Moyes (The Presets), Jim Eliot (Ella Goulding), Korkey Buchek, Lucy Neville, Clara Fable, Airports and more. BTS I'll be continuing to co-write and try to have somewhat of a personal lifeto draw from.
‘Stars In My Eyes’ is out now! Stream HERE
GROOVY LOCAL GALS - YARA
We recently put together a small Instagram story series featuring a bunch of local gals who’re killin’ it right now, doing what they love and doing it well. Here’s a more in depth series-style look at each of those featured legends and a few more sick chicks we wanna mention! First up…
YARA (Yara Alkurd) is a Palestinian singer/songwriter with a melting pot of smooth sounds, stemming from jazz, soft RnB and neo-soul.
We recently put together a small Instagram story series featuring a bunch of local gals who are killin’ it right now, doing what they love and doing it well. Here’s a more in-depth series-style look at each of those featured legends and a few more sick chicks we wanna mention! First up…
YARA
(also featured on our Industry News Page)
YARA (Yara Alkurd) is a Palestinian singer/songwriter with a melting pot of smooth sounds, stemming from jazz, soft RnB and neo-soul.
Yara is a personal friend of ours who has seen some serious ups and downs but consistently keeps her head held high and keeps smashin’ it* out of the park (* - ‘it’ being her personal and musical achievements, and well, everything else she does). We love this gal and can not WAIT to see what she does in the next few months…years…forever… Yara is a shining example of what it means to do what you love, do it well, and do it regardless of what others may say/do to see your downfall, in both personal and professional scenes. Seriously, she’s the bomb dot com.
Following a rewarding yet strenuous upbringing at the heart of the Gaza strip, Yara migrated to Australia in 2009, to the small Victorian town of Colac. Learning english from countless hours of western television, she found herself hopelessly in love with the language and in particular, the music.
Yara’s been heavily influenced by the sounds of Amy Winehouse, Lianne La Havas, Emily King, H.E.R and Snoh Aalegra. She made the move to Melbourne to study and pursue music, which is where she founded her 7 piece band and is now an active musician in the Melbourne scene. She’s since worked with the likes of Eliott, Velvet Bloom, Emma Volard, SKŸE, Rara Zulu, Meiwa, The Senegambiant Jazz Band and Jack The Fox.
YARA’s very excited to be releasing her first track, ‘Man Hater’, into the world. According to her, it’s a piece about the poor way in which society treats women, specifically outspoken women, who request change.
“I’ve experienced an uncomfortable amount of difficult encounters with men in my life, which have been unpleasant to say the least, but what has been even more problematic are the people (men and women) who witness these situations, stand by and do nothing, or worse, dehumanise those who stand up for themselves and call them man haters”
YARA ’s debut single ‘Man Hater’ is to be released on the 8th of March 2020 (International Women’s Day).
LOVE FOR MAN HATER
“I just love the contrast between the lighter instrumental mixed with heavier, real talk. It’s like you've mixed pissed off with joy to make it more musically digestible, but topically not holding back.” - SKŸE
“So beautifully written - with such a strong message that EVERYONE needs to hear. Your melodies and voice are like honey. This one’s gonna be in my head for a while.” -Eliott
“It’s like you’ve got some real Billie Eilish tonal qualities but in this soul genre. And In terms of lyrical tone and mood it’s really unapologetic, and you’re really owning the space you’re in and not apologising for yourself.” -Sannia
You can also catch Yara on our next episode, to be released the weekend of International Women’s Day - keep your eyes peeled for that one, we’re pumped.
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