Project Description
Interview with
ESME
Interviewer – Vicky Hebbs
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Did you always want to make your own music? When did writing music become serious for you?
I didn’t really know I wanted to share my own music until about 2015, a bit of a late bloomer I guess! Before that I was very much a jazz singer, I spent all my time learning about jazz and it kind of consumed my musical world. Writing became serious for me when I realised I had a craving to tell my own stories, write about my experiences and explore things lyrically, it all really started with my first release ‘Come with me’.
How would you describe your sound?
I think my music is defined by intimateelectro sounds and often softer vocals and jazz inflections but it has some grit with heavier beats and touches of dark electro pop and soul.
Why do you think people resonate with your music?
I think people mostlyresonate with me when I perform live and usually with my lyrics that are often about the complexity of love, not just romantic love either. I think people really resonate with music that has a background in soul or jazz, even if it’s just a little bit, and I’ve noticed people definitely connect with it more since bringing in the sounds of my era, the electro sounds.
Who are or have been your major music influences?
It’s very inconsistent in termsof genre, but definitely Gretchen Parlato: she’s a jazz vocalist that really helped me accept my quieter sound and tone. I am heavily influenced by Radiohead – I think their melodies and chords are stunning, Erykah Badu – she taught me how to really feel what I’m singing and playing, Prince, Corinne Bailey Rae and of course the jazz greats like Billie, Ella and Nina Simone. There are some amazing female artists in my age group at the moment though that I think have really paved the way for unique contemporary music, like Lianne La Havas.
You just released Ella. Can you share what the song is about? What inspired you to write it?
Ella is really about how music has the ability to affect and changeyour moods and emotions. I used to listen to Ella when I was sad, started with her classic song ‘Blue skies’ and then discovered her album with Joe Pass and her featuring with Louis for George Gershwin’s music… it made me so happy. I really wanted to pay tribute to the reality that music and art is so important for our minds and hearts.
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What was the first thing you did when the track dropped on August 9?
When I’mreally happy, I love to eat and drink coffee and nourish my body! I went to a cafe and had a big breakfast and listened to Ella over and over again. I was so so happy!
Do you have any more new music in the works?
Yes! Lots!
What was it like to open for Amy Shark?
It was a whirlwind! It was the first bigshow I’d ever performed at. I’d never been filmed for TV before and I’d never even used in-ears! I don’t think I performed my best because I was trying to process everything. But it was one of the best experiences I’ve had with music, it felt like the real deal and I felt really grateful beyond words to be there. Amy was beautiful too, it was wonderful to watch her afterwards.
What’s next for you in 2019? Will you be touring?
2019 is a building year for me.I’ve almost recorded everything for my debut EP and I’m just starting to share little parts of it starting with Ella. I think like any artist I’ve got to grow and I’ve got to share with my listeners and the industry here more and invite them into my world and sound. Definitely some more intimate shows coming up though!!
If you could perform or record with any music artist, who would you choose? And why?
It’s very ambitious of me to say Moses Sumney! I love how he starts with the smallest sounds and it just grows and swells to such emotive musical heights. I would love to write or have him produce something. In my wildest dreams that would happen!
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Do you have any longer-term goals or aspirations as a musician?
I definitelyhope to be able to be a performing artist, writer and musician for as long as possible and as my main means of income. I hope to keep crossing genre boundaries and growing musically as well. I do have a goal though to be able to sponsor another young Australian female artist when I’m a bit older. I would like to support someone who hasn’t had the same opportunities as others. I think there are lots of talented kids like that in rural places, foster care systems or neglected home environments.
What is the best thing about performing to a live audience?
Performingto a liveaudience is magical in so many ways. I think mistakes make a live performance really beautiful and connecting. I really like to recreate my songs, they don’t sound exactly the same as the recorded version and that’s probably the best thing about performing live. To be making something in the moment, you have to be so intune with the present.
What’s been the career highlight so far?
So far, going to Brooklyn in October lastyear and collaborating on my music with such amazing producers and artists. Just being in a different country and doing what I love was so memorable and special for me.
Finally, a few questions for some quick answers –
FAVOURITE:
Album – OK computer (Radiohead) Is your love big enough? (Lianne La Havas) Mama’s Gun (Erykah Badu) Frank (Amy Winehouse) In a dream (Gretchen Parlato)… please don’t make me choose!
Artist – At the moment Lianne La Havas!!
Movie – Wild Target with Emily Blunt and Vicky Cristina Barcelona. I re-watch both these often, so they must be my favourites!
Place to visit – I love south east Asia, I’m going back that way very soon. Venue to play – I’ve had some pretty special shows at Since I left you (SILY)
Food – Pasta!
Drink – Gin and tonic or just scotch on the rocks.
Person in History –Audrey Hepburn
Tattoo – (If you don’t have one, what would you get?) I don’t have one, probably some kind of understated flower, not a rose or anything romantic, maybe lavender… or just a leaf haha.
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Check out ESME below
Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Soundcloud
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Esme Bio
Esmé is a Sydney based singer/songwriter. In 2017, she self-released her debut single Come With Me which won the attention of Triple J presenters, Sony 301 and MTV Australia, who gave her the opportunity to open for Amy Shark at Australia’s first ever MTV unplugged 2018. Her second single I Wonder was a soft release and an artistic exploration, produced by Nick Herrera (Hiatus Kaiyote). This track helped to define Esmé as a complex songwriter with a poetic mind and showcased her unique vocal tone. Jackson Langford (from theAustralian website Purple Sneakers) noted her sound as ‘alienesque’.
In October 2018, Esmé flew to Brooklyn in New York and spent two weeksstraight writing and recording with a creative team of 3 producers from both
the UK and US including Royce Wood Junior (NAO) Twilite Tone (Kanye West,Gorillaz) and Chris Penny. She left with a full body of work featuring hip hopinspired sounds, swelling synths and string arrangements, jazz influenced vocalsand thought provoking lyrics.
The Australian artist draws upon influences from the speakeasy era, injecting soul into her phrases and inflections with her breathy tone and narrow vibrato, sometimes reminiscent of Erykah Badu. Each one of her songs is personalisedwith artistic production work, painting a colourful picture in audio as her voicefloats above broken urban beats, orchestral movements and deep melodic bass lines. Her music leans into the realm of electro pop alongside artists such as Charlotte Cardin, Jordan Rakei, Billie Eillish, James Blake and Sabrina Claudio.Though her voice is characterised by her unique airy vocal tone, Esmé isn’t afraid to venture outside of her softer sound to a darker production realm which will be evident in her upcoming EP due for release at the end of 2019.
The first taste of this project is Ella, out on August 9. Initially a jazzy demo turned into an electro soul song, the dreamy track pays homage to one of her biggestinspirations: Ella Fitzgerald. Fusing current and past sounds with finesse, Esméwill lure her listeners into her spellbinding universe.
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