Interview by Brooke Gibbs.

FMM: Happy release day!

Stacey: Thank you. Yeah, it's very exciting. So good to finally have it out in the world.

FMM: Did you have any big celebrations today? What does today look like for release?

Stacey: It's hard. I usually work on release day, but I took the day off today because I really just wanted to focus on celebrating it and kind of getting into the nitty gritty. So, I actually took myself out for brekkie and did a bit of fun admin and just shared the song around a bit. It's been a nice chill day. It's been really exciting.

FMM: You mentioned that you shared it around a bit. What have the reactions been like so far? What are people saying about the release?

Stacey: It's been a really beautiful reaction. I was not expecting it. Everyone's been really loving the uplifting vibe of some of the tunes, but also more of the somble ones. It's interesting to see how people are taking it on board, but it's all been really lovely interactions.

FMM: That's great to hear, and I love what people are saying about the uplifting themes as well, because obviously I've listened to it and that's what I've taken away from it as well. It's very positive, uplifting, it's fun. It's got a bit of everything in there.

Stacey: Oh, I'm so glad you feel like that. That's awesome. Thank you.

FMM: You've mentioned that this EP is a lot about self-discovery and growth. What are some things that you learned about yourself when writing and recording this release?

Stacey: Yeah, basically this is the first project that I've done that's this big, so it was quite a learning curve in the process of releasing everything. It's taken about over a year to record everything and get it all out, so it's been a long process, but the music for me is more about the self discovery and the kind of coming of age sort of period of my life. Basically, the songs encapsulate all of the experiences that I've had in the past five years or so. I decided to put them into one big EP and put them out into the world as kind of a closing chapter of my life and like a new beginning into another chapter. It's very exciting to finally have it shared out into the world and have those songs available for people to listen to.

FMM: As you mentioned, it's a lot about personal growth. How do you feel like. Sometimes it can feel vulnerable to share personal stories and your own experience on such a public level. So, how does it feel when people who don't know you can have insight into what the last five years have been like for you?

FMM: Yeah, it definitely is quite scary. You're never really sure what people are going to say or how they're going to react to your experiences and things like that. But, I guess that's part of the songwriting experience, and it's a really rare opportunity to be able to kind of have this platform to speak about things that are relatable to some people. I'd say probably to most people, like heartbreak and love and relationships and friendships are all quite common things that we all experience. I feel quite lucky that I have such a platform to be able to kind of share my experience and how I've come out of those hardships and the lovely things that have happened after that and things like that. I guess it just provides people with a bit of hope and a bit of a feeling of that they're not alone.

FMM: And that makes sense, too, because I was going to ask you what are the main messages that you hope listeners get out of it, but it sounds like, as you're saying, hope and knowing that they're not the only one experiencing what they're going through as well?

Stacey: Yeah, well, I guess Ripples is a song that's about friendship, and for me, it was quite a big one because through that five years, my friends really stood out to me as being the biggest sort of support network. And, I guess some of the songs are about self-discovery in the sense of my sexuality and dealing with all of the backlash that that might come with as well. Then some are about heartbreak and coming out of toxic relationships and reflecting on that. But then there's also April, which is about love and finding love and feeling like you're deserving of something really healthy and good in your life, so it really takes you on a journey. I guess there's something in there for everyone, which is really cool.

FMM: Yes, and that means no matter what they're going through, whether it's now or in the past, it's something relatable for everyone.

Stacey: Yeah, I'd say so. Yeah, I hope so.

FMM: I’d love to hear your creative process, from how you go from personal experiences, to them turning them into a song. But also, five years is a long time. How do you go from everything that can happen in five years to choosing what's actually going to make you onto the EP?

Stacey: My creative process usually starts with a journal entry or some sort of lyrics written down because something's happened in my life that I want to kind of get out because this is my outlet as, like, an emotional thing. So I guess for me, it starts mostly with lyrics, and then it'll go to piano and I'll kind of add chords and things like that and then figure out melodies from there. I'll usually take it to the band and that's when it kind of takes its form and turns into a song and.

I guess these songs were quite pivotal moments in that period of my life. I guess I was at uni in those five years, so there were a lot of songs that I wrote that were crap, to be honest. I feel like these ones kind of really stood out as pivotal points in those five years and really big turning points and learning opportunities in my life as well. So, it wasn't too hard to actually choose because these are the songs I play most in my sets and these are the ones that have resonated with people. I feel like it kind of just naturally came to itself as a full EP, I guess.

FMM: Do you have a personal favourite from the EP or what song really resonates with you the most?

Stacey: Yeah, it's so hard because it just depends what mood I'm in. Sometimes I'm just like, oh, I just want to feel things and that's when Crumbs is put on. But, sometimes I'm feeling really thankful and stuff and either Ripples or April will go on when I'm feeling a bit more happy and excited. But I think, yeah, probably April or Ripples is my favourite because I just love being able to put horns and trumpet into a song and it's more of, like, the poppier stuff that I've done. So to me, that's quite a different sound to what I'm used to hearing myself do.

FMM: For anyone who hasn't heard your EP yet, how would you, in a nutshell, describe your sound or what can they expect from it?

Stacey: Yeah, that's a great question. It's kind of hard because they're all quite different, but I guess in a nutshell, it's like indie-folk pop with sort of like modern 60s vibe. It goes from melancholy ballads to uplifting pop.

FMM: I'd love to hear where you draw some inspiration from as well, obviously personal experiences, but musically, do you have any artists that you're really connecting with or enjoying at the moment?

Stacey: Definitely. I feel like Florence & the Machine has been one with me for as long as I've done music, essentially. She is such a huge inspiration for me. Another one for this EP in particular was Carol King, which you can probably hear a little bit of in Ripples with the piano parts and, yeah, I'd probably say, like Maggie Rogers and Meg Mac sort of vibes. They're probably the biggest inspirations for me at the moment.

FMM: Yeah, and they are great artists, too, and that's a very great mix as well. I feel like, as you said, some of those influences do come through in the EP, which is great as well.

Stacey: Thank you. Yeah, love them.

FMM: And April 6, your band is doing a live performance, so tell us what we can expect from that. What do you have in store?

Stacey: Yeah, so on the 6 April, we're playing the launch show for the EP. At the moment we've got the supports getting confirmed, but we've got The Stamps locked in as a support, which is very exciting, but essentially, because it's such a closing chapter for me, I kind of wanted to make it a bit of a party. So I'm thinking cake. I'm thinking disco balls.

FMM: Yes!

Stacey: And I think we're going to have a lot of fun, even though some of the songs are a bit more moody and melancholy, I think the whole roller coaster is what makes it enjoyable. So, yeah, I'm really looking forward to it and I can't wait to celebrate it all. I guess if you're in WA, come down to Lyrics Underground on the 6 April, which would be lovely to see you there. We haven't played a gig in a while, so I'm very much looking forward to being back on stage and celebrating all this hard work with my band.

FMM: Yes, it's going to be amazing and we're so keen to see it. We'd love to hear who's in your band as well, ff you want to give a brief introduction to who's in your band or who's helped with this EP as well?

Stacey: Definitely, I would love to. We started working with a new producer and sound engineer for this and I have loved every minute of it. His name is Michael Strong, so we've been recording in his living room for the past year and he's amazing. Love him to bits. On drums we've got Riley Sutton, who is an amazing drummer. He's also in a few other bands. One of them is called Joan and the Giants. We've got Finn Pearson on bass, who has his own music project as well. We've got Ruby Miguel on keys and backing vocals, who is her own artist under Villa, and she also plays amazing weddings. We've also got Ashton Weaver on guitar, who is also in a few local bands. We've got Miranda Murray Young, who is on cello for a few of the songs. They are incredible, and we've also got Chris Zapper, who is on trumpet for two of the songs. They just are on the cherry on the top. I've had such a beautiful time recording with such talented people and I'm super stoked to be able to share it with all them.

FMM: Sounds like a great team. You've got a great bunch of people supporting you there.

Stacey: I do. I'm very lucky.

FMM: Do you have anything else in store for the rest of the year?

Stacey: Yeah, we're still planning the rest of the year because getting this EP out was such a pivotal moment. So, yeah, we are planning a few gigs. Hopefully some exciting ones are in the horizon. Haven't got anything locked in just yet, but hopefully exciting things ahead for the rest of the year.

FMM: Sounds great, and we're very excited to see where you go from here as well.

Stacey: Thank you so much. Thanks so much.

FMM: Were there any other comments you wanted to add about this release or about yourself or your band that we haven't covered?

Stacey: Yeah, with Ripples, we actually released a music video for it, so

if you want something visual and something really fun to go watch, it's basically just a big party with all my friends and bandmates. There's a bit of roller skating in there as well. It's on YouTube under Stacey Ann channel, so you can go visit that one as well, if you like. That was really fun to make.