Project Description

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Interview with
SNEZ

(9th May 2022)

Interview by Dave Bruce

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How would you describe your sound? Why do you think people resonate with your music?
I’ve always had trouble putting my ‘sound’ into a box. It’s not quite folk, not quite country, but there is a strong storytelling aspect which I feel is universal and is the very thing that connects me to my audience. People tend to take away what they need from my stories and make it part of their own lives.

Which artist’s music and/or performance, past or present, inspires you today?
I am forever on the lookout for something or someone to move or shift me from complacency. When I was learning stagecraft and the art of performance I was taken by the intensity of Nina Simone. Her energy was powerful and it was as if she was speaking to me directly. I wanted to have that as a performer!
Being a child of the 80’s and 90’s I grew up with Whitney Housten and Mariah Carey and I was in love with Boys to Men, which is soooo embarrassing.  I quickly realised that I would never be able to sing like that, so I gravitated towards musicians who had a message to give, who spoke through their lyrics like Michael Waugh, Joni Mitchell, Paul Simon and James Taylor.

Your new single ‘Two And One Makes Three’ is about to be released! Describe its origin and evolution. 
My little girl, Ellie, has been touring with me since she was 2 weeks old, she’s a huge part of my touring life. The first time I had to leave Ellie was when she was 3 years old to play at the Wallaby Creek Festival in far north Queensland.  I spent the first two days drinking wine, dancing, sleeping in and doing all those things you do before you have children, it was wonderful. On the third day I really started to miss her, my identity is so tied up with being a mother.  I went back to my van, had a good cry and started to write ‘Two and One Make Three’, trying to capture the longing for freedom and at the same time feeling the pull of the umbilical cord.

Your Macedonian heritage reveals a deep sense of storytelling. Does your child show signs of carrying on this tradition?
I think children are intuitively great storytellers. They don’t get in the way of their own imagination and can create magic from the simplest idea. My daughter, Ellie, has been influenced by music and storytelling since birth. It’s in her bones. She’s already got a 1% copyright claim on at least half of the songs on my last album, with her contribution to rhyming patterns

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Your tour is huge – What are you looking forward to, and what can the fans expect?
I am so excited about getting in the van and hitting the road. I look forward to getting off the highway and driving through old country roads where the cows and the drovers stop traffic. 
I guess when I’m on stage I can only tell MY story, the highs and lows and take the audience on a journey. I hope that by the end of my show each night, the audience feels like they know me really well through stories and songs.

How has COVID affected you to date? What have you introduced to balance the losses from missed events?
I think the music industry has really suffered through Covid. Without the arts, life lacks soul. I felt my energy and motivation start waning as tours were cancelled for the third time round. I spent more time rehearsing and working on my shows, so I could hit the ground running when things picked up.
With events being cancelled, Covid gave me permission to slow down and reassess what is important, not only in music, but in my personal life. I used my time creating music videos, blogging and getting better at the business side of music, which is a never ending journey.

If you could perform with any music artist, Alive or Dead, who would you choose? And why? 
Hmmm, that’s a difficult question. I saw Bonnie Raitt in concert years ago with her band and she’s the coolest woman on the planet. I absolutely love her style. I would love to sit on stage with her and play an acoustic ballad, swapping harmonies. She has an earthy vibe and I think our voices would gel together really well….ahhh we can only dream!

Do you have any long-term aspirations as a music artist? 
My never-ending goal as a musician is to keep getting better at what I do. To keep giving the gift as authentically as I can, and using the storytelling medium to pass on stories from my family heritage and everyday experiences. To create light and shade and connect with as many people in the audience as I can. Anything more that happens, is icing on the cake!

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What is the best thing about performing to a live audience? What’s been the career highlight so far?
A few years ago I got into the house concert scene. This can be intimidating for a lot of artists. You are essentially playing unplugged, just yourself and your instrument with the audience right under your nose. You can hear a pin drop.  When you get it right, you have the audience in the palm of your hand and it becomes like an intimate conversation between yourself and the audience. You can’t get better than that. 

Finally, a few questions for some quick answers –
FAVOURITE:
Album – Michael Waugh, Asphalt and the Oval
Artist – Bonnie Raitt
Movie – Harry and the Hendersons
Place to visit – Licorice and Chocolate factory in Junee
Venue to play – House Concerts
Food – Nachos, potato chips
Drink – Port, Coca cola from the tap at the bar
Person in History –  Frida Khalo
Tattoo – (If you don’t have one, what would you get?) Don’t have one, but I am so in love with my chicken, Julia Gillard, that I would probably get one of her.   

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Follow SNEZ
Website – Facebook – Instagram

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Latest Press Release (below)

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AMNPLIFY – DB