INTERVIEW: Rhea Robertson Talks “Mulholland Drive” Single and Music Video
If there’s one thing I’ve learned about Australia it’s that their music scene has a goldmine of talent, one that is severely underrated. I’ve been awestruck particularly with the wave of amazing female singer/songwriters from the region, one being Rhea Robertson. The artist caught my attention last year with “Save Yourself”, a single that instantly became an all time favorite in my 10+ years of blogging. The single was a collaboration with music producer Luke Wylde who recently notched a credit on Usher, Lil Jon, and Ludacris’ latest single “Sex Beat”. This collaboration made both of them a lock on our new feature The NEXT 100, as artists to be on the look out for in 2020. And it looks like we’ve been proven right.
Rhea and Luke have joined forces yet again on a brand new single released today called “Mulholland Drive”. As with their previous collaboration the duo bring out the best in each other. Rhea’s sultry vocals meshed with Luke’s bluesy production is one for the ages. The first thing that comes to mind is that this song needs to be in movies and commercials. This song screams liquor commercial, perfume commercial, lingerie commercial, any scene in a badass movie, you name it! The single itself creates a cool cinematic feel and that’s before we even get to the music video where it all comes to life better than we could have imagined.
Amazing work by Rhea Robertson, Luke Wylde, and their team. I can’t wait to see what the two have coming next. Take a look below as Rhea’s talks about the single and much more!
As the whole world goes through a time of adjustment due to the pandemic, give us a perspective of how life is in Australia. How are you personally handling this time of quarantine and what is helping you get through?
We’ve got a lot of restrictions in place and it’s hard not seeing family or friends during social distancing. I feel incredibly grateful for my health, partner and our 2 cats…my heart really goes out to those going through this on their own. Personally I’ve been keeping myself occupied with plenty of activities. I’ve really been trying to not put too much pressure and just go with the flow each day. I haven’t felt bored yet, honestly there are so many things to choose from each day, it’s almost overwhelming! I’ve been playing music everyday, lots of writing and musings, learning sign language, looking after my veggie garden and learning a lot online about self sustainability, knitting (haha actually so therapeutic), reading, cooking/baking, beach walks or bike rides everyday. It’s really freeing to allow yourself to just be, I think all this time has really allowed that space to let go of some perfectionist tendencies and enjoy creating just to create with no expectation or judgement.
“Mulholland Drive” is your latest single which is available today on streaming platforms. Talk about how this single came together and what it means to you?
This single came together in LA a couple years ago, so I’ve been waiting for the right time to share it. It came to me while driving along their infamous Mulholland Drive up behind the Hollywood Hills. There is a cult classic film by David Lynch with the same name that features a car crash and an incredibly twisted storyline. Thinking of this crash on this long and winding road, this hook just kept circulating in my head “crashing, crashing, crashing but I’m crashing with you”. I got back to the studio and started creating the song with Producer Luke Wylde and had some amazing musicians (Phil Simmonds, Sean Kantrowitz, Tim Parry) contribute to make the track the incredible soundscape it is. They really captured the feel for me, so the melody and lyrics just poured out with ease. Each line for me holds its own power and is very driven by the lyrics, so listen closely!
Not only are you releasing the single today you’re also releasing the music video that’s like a movie in itself. Tell us about the process of creating these visuals and how the vintage theme came to be.
I am so incredibly happy with how these visuals turned out! I worked together with local film student Shiromani Singh on the concept and stylisation of the clip. We wanted a 1920’s feel, making the storyline eerie, distorted and confusing for the viewers. There are so many versions of the story depending how the viewer perceives it and that is exactly what we wanted. The David Lynch movie Mulholland Drive is a neo-noir, cult classic film with super abstract, old Hollywood style and we wanted to pay homage to stylistic elements. Trent Owers did an incredible edit, which really gave it that multi story feel! All the incredible actors are from my local area and brought such vibrant, high quality performances. Everything from an incredible Drag Queen, a seductive circus girl, mysterious men, devastated elegant women, tales of love, lust, broken hearts and poison. It’s all there and you’ll need to see it to choose your own adventure in the clip!
In January we featured you as part of our big feature The NEXT 100 where you detailed your plans of releasing a lot of new music in 2020. Given the unpredictable time we’re in, are your plans for 2020 still on track?
Most of the entertainment industry (myself included) have lost all sources of income during this time. So it will definitely be different to navigate releasing music during this time as an independent artist. However, I won’t let it stop me! Music is my mission on the planet so I will always find ways to share what I create. I don’t necessarily follow the “rules” of the industry, as my goal has never been to seek fame from what I do. It has always been about sharing to connect with the hearts of others, so my aim is to keep doing that. I am hoping to share a whole range of music this year, collaborating with different artists and producers. I’ve never been one to be bound by one genre, so expect to see a crossover of different kinds of musical expressions from me this year.
Stream “Mulholland Drive” on the ‘NEXT In Music’ playlist!
Follow Rhea Robertson:
Stream Our Playlists:
