Get To Know PRISCILLA in Five Minutes or Less
Okay! Let’s get started. Tell me all about Priscilla!
We’re PRISCILLA – an alt-pop duo from Boorloo. If you’re into labels - P (they/them) is the band’s lead songwriter and vocalist, and Luke (he/him) is the band’s lead producer and instrumentalist, but we are pretty fluid within those roles during the creative process. Except for the singing part – Luke doesn’t sing.
You’ve been long-time friends right? So how did this music duo start?
L: We’ve been friends a long time, but the band started in 2018. It started with two of us in my lounge room on a dusty old keyboard and Garageband, and really came about because we wanted to write and perform our own music, not others.
P: Yeah, we used to jam a lot together back when we were at university. It’s an interesting friendship because our personalities and experiences are quite wildly different, but we’ve always sort of clicked sonically, and our love of making music together has stayed the same. It’s a big commitment. We literally started a business together and now we’re 5 years in and still creating.
Does your sound fall into a specific category of influences or genre?
P: There’s so much to learn from all the different corners of music, whether for the vocal sound, the orchestration, the songwriting, or the production; it transcends genre. I’m drawn to artists who feel like they are displaying their authentic selves.
Was there an “Uh-Huh” moment when you realised music was your path?
L: For me, there was never a specific moment, except for winning the rising star award in grade six for playing Eternal Flame on alto saxophone. In all seriousness though, it really has just been a lifelong rabbit hole filled with experience after experience. Not to mention the beautiful people I’ve been fortunate to meet along the way that have kept me inspired and constantly writing.
Give us a rundown of the songwriting process!
P: One of the beautiful (and scary things) I find about songwriting is how deeply personal it can be. I initially felt averse to putting a lot of myself and my experiences into our output. It feels like you’re holding a piece of yourself out for the world to see and critique, which is exposing. I’m coming to embrace that, and I think it now results in better songs.
L: The process for us is very collaborative - we always write together and feed off each other's ideas. One of us will come up with an idea, then bring it into the studio and from there it grows so naturally. I love that music is endless. It has no boundaries and can always be found around us, every day, wherever we go.
What do you want people to take away from your music?
P: I want people to take away whatever they want from it! I’m just happy if people listen to our music and it somehow affects or connects with them. I always connect best with music that’s both danceable and has that element where it helps me get through or process something. I hope that our music does that for some people.
As a queer non-binary person, I naturally write lyrics with my community in mind - I want to make music to dance to that I didn’t have as a kid. Something I could listen to that made me feel seen.
Have there been moments where music has really challenged you?
P: Honestly, for me, it’s been finding the time to create. At the moment, I have so many ideas but don’t have the time to transform them into something. I might have said the opposite if you asked me that question a few years ago. As I’ve gotten older, life has inevitably gotten more complicated, so the challenge has been finding a way to forge forward and hold space for the music industry in my everyday life. I feel like I’m slowly finding that balance, but I’m constantly working on it.
L: Same as P really. That constant drive to ensure that family, health, happiness, creativity, artistry and financial security all coexist. The music industry has changed so much since we began, so the challenge has never really been the music itself, that is natural, fun and wholesome for me. The challenge really is ensuring there is a place for that creativity in life.
Thanks so much to both of you! Lastly, what does being a Ones To Watch artist mean to you?
L: An opportunity to be amongst some of the incredible international acts making their own way within music. Ones To Watch offers such a big platform to musicians looking to expand and take advantage of new opportunities, and it's a pretty humbling feeling to be involved.
P: Being recognised for your craft is extremely humbling and validating. I’m just grateful for our music to be amongst such incredible artists on this platform.
