2017 With Richard Kingsmill

The Adelaide bred MC has been on the scene since she was 17, but it’s only now she’s figuring out who she is. And who she can be. A self-proclaimed ‘extroverted introvert’, Tkay Maidza has continued to deliver different sides of her musical personality with each release. For instance, the heavy and aggressive ‘Shook’ sits happily alongside the soulful pop jam of ‘Don’t Call Again’ on her latest EP. Last Year Was Weird,Vol. 2 is the second in a trilogy of EP releases that she started rolling out in 2018. Richard Kingsmill catches up with Tkay to talk about the title, as well as the recent therapy she felt she needed to navigate the world around her.

The Bunbury band traded west coast vibes for the east coast to hang out with Matt Corby in Byron to make their debut album. Having built up a sizeable following from touring over the last four years, Great Gable decided to record their first full-length release at the renowned Music Farm studios outside Byron Bay. They approached Alex Henriksson to be their producer, who in turn brought Matt Corby into the process. As fans of Matt’s work, the combination was daunting, but ultimately fruitful for the four-piece. Singer Alex Whiteman spoke to Richard Kingsmill on how Corby influenced their sound, how the band emerged from the Bunbury scene, and also about how Whiteman’s sporting family arrived in Bunbury after emigrating from England.

The award-winning Canadian band has delivered a beguiling second album that has more than just a few references to death. After taking out a Juno Award for their 2018 debut Baby Teeth, the four-piece from Oshawa, Ontario, decided to take charge of their follow-up. The amount of work ahead for them was a surprise. For fans, the fascination with death across the new songs has been more than curious. Richard Kingsmill spoke to singer Katie Munshaw who formed this band with her old school friend Charlie Spencer and his two brothers. She spoke about her outlook to the world, and how it’s shaped these new songs on The Sun and Her Scorch.

Soon to turn 17yo, the Sydney rapper The Kid LAROI has already seen and felt a lot. Despite a hard road, he’s on a path for US success following his impressive debut mixtape.  A finalist in Unearthed High in 2018, The Kid LAROI (real name Charlton Howard) connected with the late Juice WRLD on the US rapper’s first Australian tour. The two bonded quickly, with Juice WRLD becoming a strong mentor for the rising talent. The Kid LAROI has written about the tragic death of his friend and mentor on his debut mixtape F**k Love, as well as the loves that have gone wrong for him while living in Los Angeles over the past year. Richard Kingsmill speaks here to The Kid LAROI about all that, as well as his upbringing.

Across the past decade, Sydney’s Lime Cordiale have slowly grown into one of the country’s biggest acts. Having scored four Hottest 100 hits last year, the band is only set for greater success with the release of 14 Steps To A Better You. The brothers Oli and Louis Leimbach are speaking here to Richard Kingsmill about their career, their family, their Post Malone connection, and how they ended up on actor Bryan Brown’s farm recording this second album.

The Atlantan rapper dishes up 6pc Hot – a new EP that both reflects on his past and projects to the future. Speaking to 6LACK on his 28th birthday, Richard Kingsmill covers racial politics, fatherhood, his influences like T-Pain and Usher, and how he’s delving into the food game these days.

This one man music machine has been on the rise the last couple of years, and now with his debut mixtape, he’s sure to continue to draw in the fans. Officially, he’s named Ian Muhayimana. However, Stevan is the recording moniker for the Wollongong 19yo. Having scored an international deal early on, he’s been building a fanbase amongst both the public and other musicians. In his first interview with triple j, Stevan speaks here to Richard Kingsmill about his African roots, how he got into music through a ‘very cool’ cousin, and how he keeps his four sisters in the loop on what he’s making.

With a major label deal and another new single streaming in the millions, the US muso speaks about his road to success. Born Sven Gamsky, Still Woozy was born into a family of Californian doctors. Not interested in following that lead, and after a failed experiment in a math rock band, he found his calling making upbeat and soulful music all by himself in his garage studio. Over the last three years, he’s amassed millions of followers online, and landed a deal with the legendary Interscope label. Richard Kingsmill spoke to the guy to find out more.

The West Australian band have built up plenty of momentum the past year. This album confirms their place as one of the country’s best new bands. However, the story of Spacey Jane extends back a lot further, to teenage years in Geraldton, forming friendships and jamming on Red Hot Chili Peppers through the night. For singer and main songwriter Caleb Harper, his musical development has existed alongside a religious upbringing that has taken years to reconcile. Harper and drummer Kieran Lama speak to Richard Kingsmill about those years, and how it affects the emotional content of the band’s song writing.

Over the last year, he’s featured on five Top 10 UK singles, and his rise doesn’t look like stopping anytime soon. The 20yo Manchester MC Aitch (real name: Harrison Armstrong) uploaded a freestyle called ‘Straight Rhymez’ in 2018 which immediately took off. Stormzy became a fan, as did Ed Sheeran who Aitch says has already been talking with him of a collaboration. With the release of his new Polaris EP, find out more as Richard Kingsmill goes into his story with him.

Last year, the 19yo Californian named mxmtoon watched her song ‘prom dress’ explode on TikTok. The success came after years of her uploading covers and originals, played simply on the ukulele. With the release of the first of two EP’s this year, Richard Kingsmill speaks to mxmtoon about her passion for that instrument, putting herself in the social media spotlight at a young age, and how she felt seeing her music going viral last year.   

The debut album from the Bruny Island native arrives with plenty of small town honesty, as well as a strong and proud Tasmanian accent. Maddy Jane arrived on the scene five years ago, and after some breakthrough hits like ‘Thank You and Sorry’ and ‘No Other Way’, she’s now delivered her debut album. Titled Not All Bad Or Good , the album carries with it a wisdom and philosophy that sees the world in more than just black and white terms. Maddy speaks here to Richard Kingsmill about growing up in a remote setting, how it’s ultimately shaped her, and how important song writing is to her in relating to the world.

With an album to come in July, two big names on the electronic music scene have announced a collaboration. Under the name BRONSON, Golden Features has followed up his recent pairing with The Presets to work now with the American duo ODESZA. With the forming of a strong friendship years ago, the decision to start making new music together happened naturally, despite the two acts coming from very different styles. Richard Kingsmill spoke to Golden Features (aka Tom Stell) about the project and how they approached it.

Local artist merci, mercy is riding high with her official debut single. One of the most popular tracks on triple j right now, ‘Fucked Myself Up’ is a forthright song that came to the 19yo after hitting a low point that she needed to address. Richard Kingsmill spoke to her about that, all the travelling she did growing up, and her road to gaining the confidence to enter the music industry.

Who’s the Canadian behind one of the year’s biggest songs? Isaiah Faber is the 21yo who is riding high worldwide with ‘death bed (coffee for your head)’. It’s a song which had a slow birth, plus he’s an artist who’s been uploading songs for a four years now. So it’s no overnight success story. Richard Kingsmill speaks to Powfu about his early musical start, collaborating with beabadoobee on his hit song, and how he’s coping with his new found fame.

With their debut album, London band Sorry have an exciting take on indie music. Inspired as much by trip hop and jazz, they never wanted to be a straight guitar band. Richard Kingsmill spoke to Louis O’Bryen to find out how they evolved, whether they really are as cynical as some reviewers think, and what’s at the heart of the album’s title 925.

The Canadian duo have taken five years to release a third album, but the timing is eerily apt. Singer Megan James speaks to Richard Kingsmill about how the album works for her, how religion shaped some of the content, and why it took longer than planned.

Finishing a medicine degree, falling in love, questions of identity, the death of her grandmother – the last couple of years have been a turbulent time for the talent from Canowindra, NSW. With the announcement of her upcoming second album, Richard Kingsmill speaks to Gordi about her growth through that time, and making this new album at her family sheep farm with some of Bon Iver’s production team. 

The English band have just released a new single that speaks to these anxious times.

The LA band have been through some tough times of late. Last year, Hannah Hooper was diagnosed with a serious brain condition. Faced with the likelihood of having a stroke unless she underwent surgery, she turned to writing music as a distraction. Richard Kingsmill speaks here to both Hannah and partner Christian Zucconi about how they got through it, and the new songs we now have on their 4th album called Healer.