Project Description

Interview

with

TREY COOPER

Interviewer: Georgia Dickinson

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There’s nothing quite like seeing a fresh face in the music industry. Someone who brings dramatics without it becoming condescending. Someone who is sensual without it feeling overbearing. That’s where 18-year-old Trey Cooper comes in.

Hailing from Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, the young singer/songwriter has already made waves with his debut ‘Embrace’. Within a week of its release, the song reached number 5 in triple j unearthed’s indie chart and number 8 in triple j unearthed’s overall chart. I was fortunate enough to sit down with the young prodigy to discuss his influences in music, the raunchy music video for ‘Embrace’ and more intimate details about his first EP, set for release in May.

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So, tell me a little bit about how you got into writing and performing your own music.

I got into writing music because of other musicians I listen to that influence me. I’ve always had this real drive and love for songwriting after playing music for so long. And now, I constantly have this vision that one day, I’ll be able to have a hit song that’ll push the boundaries of what us as people and as a society accept as a popular hit.

I like to make songs that contain a piece of myself as well as a sense of complexity, but I want to write them in a fun way. To me, songs like Matt Corby’s ‘Brother’ and Harry Styles’ ‘Sign Of The Times’ have really changed the industry and have altered how people perceive to be a “hit” or what isn’t.

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Aside from Harry Styles and Matt Corby, who else would you say are your biggest influences in music right now?

I would have to say I’m as obsessed with Michael Jackson, just as much as I am with Jeff Buckley. They’re total opposite ends of the scale when it comes to the industry but I feel as though it’s a good thing that I draw influence from different styles. Those artists drive me further to know that there’s a possibility of being someone like that and people looking up at me as an icon or a figure to stick out and not fit into the norm.

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So do you ever imagine yourself not being in the music industry? What other careers do you think you would be pursuing?

Honestly, I could not see myself doing anything else. Music is something I’m so focused on and something that I’m really in love with. I’m really going to try and spread the love and give people a piece of me with my music, but if that doesn’t work out, I’m always wanting to be involved in the music industry in a different way somehow. I can’t imagine doing anything else.

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So, you’ve just released your debut song ‘Embrace’. What’s the song all about?

I mean, I love seeing people make up their own interpretations of the song but for me, I wrote ‘Embrace’ when I was a little bit younger when I sat down with this girl. And you know when you talk to someone for ages and you imagine a short-term future with them and you imagine what it would be like in a relationship with this person. When I got around to meeting that person, I sang ‘Embrace’ as it came to me, so it didn’t overthink it and the line “Don’t overthink it” refers to that. To put it simply, it’s about a guy singing to a girl about imagining a future with that person.

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What was the writing and recording process like for ‘Embrace’ and your debut EP in general?

The writing and recording process was absolutely amazing, especially for my upcoming EP. I had a few songs that I had written a while ago that were still very close to me. I had a lot of songs written in general, which I all love equally, so it was hard to pick 5 songs that I really wanted to showcase. But we managed to do exactly that, one of them of which I wrote a few weeks into recording.

In terms of recording processes, it was amazing! I got to work with a really awesome producer called Sam Vallen. He’s got a prog metal band called Caligula’s Horse but he’s so diverse and was able to work with my styles and take different approaches to everything we did. It was probably the best recording process I’ve ever been through and he’s definitely someone I can see myself working with for a long time in the future as well.

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Speaking of the EP, when can fans expect to hear more from the debut?

I don’t want to put any exact dates out there but I think the chance to hear more songs shouldn’t be too far down the line. I think the main thing for me as a new artist is really trying to let each song connect with as many people as possible in a certain amount of time. So with ‘Embrace’, I really want it to stick in people’s brains and let people get used to me because I personally found that in the past that I’ve had a lot of trouble digesting new songs all at once so I’d love to just slowly let them out and let them work their own magic.

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‘Embrace’ is currently sitting at number 5 of the triple j unearthed indie chart and number 8 on the overall chart. How do you feel about the success ‘Embrace’ is receiving at the moment?

It’s super exciting for me! I don’t like to work myself up too much with things like that but it’s great to receive a lot of love, especially in the same week that track’s been released. It’s like people are understanding me and really liking it. I only hope that it continues and that I can keep people interested in not just my music but who I am as a person as well. I’d really like to get into an intimate relationship between me and people who want to on my journey through music.

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Along with the release of ‘Embrace’, you also came out with a music video for the song. Who came up with this idea for the music video?

My manager and I sat down in a meeting and discussed ideas. I had a lot of ideas that were more based around something sensual and abstract and he also similar ideas that were a bit more performance-based. We really couldn’t decide because we’re not really scriptwriters so we sent it off to a company and they came up with this awesome idea that’s a bit “In your face”. It really kept me interested and I love it! It’s got a lot of different meanings in here that people can find out about a bit later, but that’s pretty much how it all came together.

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You were there for some parts of the filming process of the video. What was it like to see the music video for ‘Embrace’ come together?

It was great! I’ve had a lot of involvement with everything we’ve been doing, management and all other companies we’ve been working with, which is something I love. Being on set, they filled me in on everything they were going to do, I even got a copy of the script and was able to read through that too. The actors we worked with were very professional and there were a few scenes where I had to try not to laugh. The whole experience was new to me, but it was really great.

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Aside from the EP, what is the plan for the rest of 2018? Can we expect a tour around the country any time soon?

That would be ideal! The EP is a huge part of this year, just to get a lot of interest and love from a lot of people. And if it happens, I would absolutely love to tour. I’m just fortunate right now to have a lot of people on board that are interested in what I’m doing.

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