Speaker 1: All right, Kevin, who is your guest this week? We
Speaker 1: have Zoe one name, yes, Zoe with two ease Zoe, Like,
Speaker 1: I don't know who other one name artists the Donna
Speaker 1: share Tupac Drake, got anymore?
Speaker 2: Maybe Dirk's No, that dark's Bentley.
Speaker 1: No, okay, no, that's somebody who goes by their first name, like,
Speaker 1: it's not Tupac Johnson and we just call him Tubac. Okay,
Speaker 1: Riva still Reba McIntyre for the most party here, I'm done.
Speaker 1: So how did you find out about Zoe?
Speaker 3: Good?
Speaker 2: Old algorithm social media.
Speaker 4: Instagram came across her and then I was checking out
Speaker 4: her Instagram and she's from Australia and she seemed like
Speaker 4: a fun, happy girl.
Speaker 3: And I sound like Australia with Mars.
Speaker 2: But you'll never believe it.
Speaker 3: She's from Australia.
Speaker 2: It's so far though.
Speaker 3: Have you ever been there? I have not. I don't
Speaker 3: know why talking that voice, but still all right?
Speaker 1: Season two, Episode three of un Signed and Independent with
Speaker 1: Kevin O'Connell, who you may also know is kick off
Speaker 1: Kevin on twenty five Whistles and so as he said,
Speaker 1: she's from a whole other world called Australia.
Speaker 3: Her name is Zoe, and then you've seen her in person.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I went and saw her at a local writer's round.
Speaker 1: Did you go see her after you saw her on
Speaker 1: social media and you thought about her for the show
Speaker 1: or did you just stumble across her after you'd randomly
Speaker 1: seen her?
Speaker 5: No?
Speaker 4: I found her on Instagram first, then reached out to
Speaker 4: her and said, hey, do you have any show.
Speaker 2: It's coming out. I'd like to meet you and see
Speaker 2: you before before we sit down and talk.
Speaker 3: So I'm with research man. Yeah, like a you.
Speaker 1: Zoe moved to the UK from Australia and then Nashville
Speaker 1: last year. Kevin gets into that, and then it's about
Speaker 1: how long has she been here in time to say
Speaker 1: a year? That's what you said that? Yeah, like a
Speaker 1: year as in this COVID count as No year's.
Speaker 2: No, like a year as in twenty twenty two.
Speaker 3: Okay, so I put is she good? That's awesome? That's
Speaker 3: all I needed to hear.
Speaker 1: It's great, all right, unsigned it independent with Kevin O'Connell.
Speaker 1: Here he is with Zoe, who to him is from
Speaker 1: another galaxy.
Speaker 3: Apparently. All right, here you go, Thank you guys.
Speaker 4: This is my first international, I would say, guest, I've
Speaker 4: had on the unsigned and independent.
Speaker 2: So I am very excited.
Speaker 6: I'm so honored, very thrilled, so honored. That is the
Speaker 6: big Yeah, thank you so much.
Speaker 2: It's a big deal.
Speaker 6: So wow, no pressure, no, no, no, none at all,
Speaker 6: not at all.
Speaker 4: And I'm sure our audience can already hear your accent,
Speaker 4: so let's just dive right into it.
Speaker 2: You are from.
Speaker 6: Yeah, So I'm from Tasmania, at the very very bottom
Speaker 6: of Australia.
Speaker 7: It's the most southern state we have.
Speaker 6: The next stop is Antarctica, and I moved out here
Speaker 6: last year to chase music.
Speaker 7: And you know, this crazy dream of creating a ride.
Speaker 4: What is it like a girl from Australia Because forgive me,
Speaker 4: as you know, we can sometimes be naive as Americans
Speaker 4: and just think the only thing that happens in the
Speaker 4: world happens here, right, And the only thing that happens
Speaker 4: does happen here? Yeah, in country music happens in Nashville.
Speaker 4: So what does a girl from Australia think to herself, Like,
Speaker 4: how did you find out about Nashville? What made you
Speaker 4: think I want to move to Nashville? Where did that
Speaker 4: come from?
Speaker 3: All right.
Speaker 6: So the first time I ever heard of Nashville, I
Speaker 6: so quick little backstory before that. I grew up in
Speaker 6: the middle of nowhere. My family and I lived super isolated.
Speaker 6: We were about five six hours drive from the nearest city,
Speaker 6: and you know, like we lived off the land a
Speaker 6: lot of times, and so it was a pretty amazing
Speaker 6: childhood getting to grow up like that. So we only had radio,
Speaker 6: we didn't have internet, we didn't have phone signal, we
Speaker 6: didn't have like TV. So I grew up listening to
Speaker 6: a lot of records and a lot of tapes and
Speaker 6: a lot of radio. So anytime i'd get a chance,
Speaker 6: and you know, from friends or whatever, I'd borrow DVDs
Speaker 6: or VHS's and watch documentaries on artists and stuff because
Speaker 6: I loved music. And so I remember we ended up
Speaker 6: and I can't quite recall how we got a copy,
Speaker 6: but we got a copy of the Neil Young documentary
Speaker 6: here in Nashville when he was doing Heart of Gold.
Speaker 6: And I watched that over and over and over, and
Speaker 6: it was the first time I really heard about Nashville.
Speaker 6: And I was like, oh, my gosh, I want to
Speaker 6: be there.
Speaker 7: That's like the place.
Speaker 6: And I'd already fallen in love with music from a
Speaker 6: little kid. I grew up listening to everything from like
Speaker 6: Merl Haggard to ac DC and everything in the middle.
Speaker 6: And one of my favorite pastimes is, you know, listening
Speaker 6: to Rod Stewart, of all things, he was my lullaby
Speaker 6: music is like a four year old kid, I'd put
Speaker 6: on a cassette tape and fall asleep.
Speaker 7: To Rod Stewart. So music has always been a very big.
Speaker 6: Part of my life. And so that was the first
Speaker 6: time I really got to hear about Nashville.
Speaker 4: And your family doing some research here talking before is
Speaker 4: you're all musicians? Is that correct? Or you just come
Speaker 4: from a family that loves music in general?
Speaker 7: Bose.
Speaker 6: So, my dad plays guitar. He always had a guitar
Speaker 6: kicking around the house. My brothers all play other instruments
Speaker 6: as well. My mom she's like radio. She likes to
Speaker 6: play radio. That's her that's her instrument. She's the first
Speaker 6: one to tell you, which is great. She does play
Speaker 6: bass as well, but she wouldn't tell you that. So
Speaker 6: my dad always had a guitar around the house, and
Speaker 6: so he was like, I'm going to show you the
Speaker 6: first couple of chords, and so that was it, and
Speaker 6: he's like, I don't want to teach you anything more.
Speaker 6: He said, I want you just to learn your own
Speaker 6: way of playing it, because I don't want to influence
Speaker 6: you with my style.
Speaker 7: You could learn your way.
Speaker 6: And so I was always extremely grateful to him for
Speaker 6: that because it did allow me to have this, you know,
Speaker 6: unique sound.
Speaker 7: And I started writing songs.
Speaker 6: And I was about ten or twelve when I really
Speaker 6: started kind of gravitating towards writing my own stuff.
Speaker 7: So, but yeah, it was a very very musical house.
Speaker 6: There was always music being played or Dad was I
Speaker 6: was out with a guitar playing something and around the campfire,
Speaker 6: would always sit around and sing songs.
Speaker 7: My grandparents were always extremely musical, and.
Speaker 6: You know, so it was it was my grandma actually,
Speaker 6: she used to sing on our local radio stations down
Speaker 6: there as well.
Speaker 7: So wo yes, that's kind of like I've got a lot.
Speaker 6: Of music history in that sense, but I'm sort of
Speaker 6: the first one to take it internationally.
Speaker 2: What about your siblings, any siblings.
Speaker 6: Yes, I have I have how many do I have?
Speaker 6: Four siblings? Yeah, so two of them moved across the
Speaker 6: world with me. My two younger brothers, my parents moved
Speaker 6: with me and they all said, we want to help
Speaker 6: you kind of chase your dream.
Speaker 7: Basically, we're here to support you and do whatever we
Speaker 7: can to help you. And wow.
Speaker 6: Yeah, Like we literally left Astrat. They bought the dogs,
Speaker 6: you know, suitcase each.
Speaker 7: And that was it and we left and we.
Speaker 6: Moved to the UK six years ago. And we was
Speaker 6: over there. You know, it was doing you know, pretty good,
Speaker 6: was playing shows and it was going real good until
Speaker 6: COVID hit and then it was like, eh, you know
Speaker 6: how all that went. But yeah, so the family's just
Speaker 6: been the most incredible support all the way through with
Speaker 6: all of it.
Speaker 7: And they're here now. Actually they're they're with me, which
Speaker 7: is the best.
Speaker 4: So they're living in Nashville with you. Yeah, currently, And
Speaker 4: you guys all moved here at the same time. Yeah,
Speaker 4: did you ever come here before you all moved here?
Speaker 4: Or is it like I just seen it on documentaries
Speaker 4: and I heard about it and it's gotta be real.
Speaker 4: It's like people go to Hollywood.
Speaker 2: That's so funny, you know.
Speaker 7: Yes, So we had been back and forth a couple
Speaker 7: of times beforehand. I first, when I.
Speaker 6: First came to Nashville, I came with the ukulele, and
Speaker 6: the only gig I could get was out at Bobby's
Speaker 6: Idol Hour and it.
Speaker 7: Was before they moved.
Speaker 6: So it was like I walked in there and I
Speaker 6: swear it was like walking into a christ Fist office
Speaker 6: and song. It was like there's money on the walls
Speaker 6: and there's like cigarette smoke everywhere and the floors are sticky,
Speaker 6: and I'm like, man, this is what I want, you know,
Speaker 6: this is this is where I need to be. I
Speaker 6: walked in there, I was so nervous, So I had
Speaker 6: my leakal ali and I played like three songs and
Speaker 6: then there's like six people.
Speaker 7: In the audience and I'm like, I got this.
Speaker 2: That was your first.
Speaker 6: Gig, That's my first gig, Yeah, full gig ever actually
Speaker 6: outside of family.
Speaker 7: But yeah, it was.
Speaker 6: It was the best and I was hooked, and so yeah,
Speaker 6: we're doing back and forth a few times after that.
Speaker 6: Got to play CMA Festival in twenty nineteen, which was awesome,
Speaker 6: just poor COVID and all that craziness happened. And then
Speaker 6: after all that, got my visor and then moved here
Speaker 6: last year.
Speaker 2: Wow, So what is that like?
Speaker 4: Surviving the times through COVID We're tough for a lot
Speaker 4: of people, and people that are already established, and then
Speaker 4: I can't even imagine people who you know, don't have
Speaker 4: the backing of a huge label or management to make
Speaker 4: sure they can get through a year or two without
Speaker 4: maybe getting paid or getting gigs. And what was that
Speaker 4: struggle like for you, especially coming from overseas.
Speaker 7: Yeah, it was. It was a tough run.
Speaker 6: Like I had shows, I had a tour actually booked
Speaker 6: out through Europe for that whole year too, and then
Speaker 6: more shows back here in the US, and everything got canceled,
Speaker 6: you know, And it was of course, you're doing, as
Speaker 6: you say, being an independent artist.
Speaker 7: You're doing everything yourself, whereas once.
Speaker 6: Upon a time you would have a label with a
Speaker 6: booking agent, you know, organizing this stuff for you or
Speaker 6: taking care of your marketing or taking care of everything.
Speaker 7: You know, you're organizing or going out on the road.
Speaker 7: There's a lot.
Speaker 6: Of, you know, stuff that goes into it, and so
Speaker 6: to have that just kind of fall apart was devastating.
Speaker 7: So that was, you know, it was a really tough
Speaker 7: time for me too.
Speaker 6: I kind of I kind of went inward and thought,
Speaker 6: all right, now, what are we going to do?
Speaker 7: You know.
Speaker 6: And there was a few times too in the midst
Speaker 6: of all that, and I know a lot of artists
Speaker 6: went through the same thing. It was like should we
Speaker 6: give up? Do we stop? Like what's going to happen?
Speaker 6: We don't know where this is going to go? Can
Speaker 6: we even go back on the road anymore? Can we
Speaker 6: release music?
Speaker 5: Can we?
Speaker 7: So it was a really tough, challenging time. So I
Speaker 7: ended up.
Speaker 6: Falling onto songwriting and I started writing with everybody I could,
Speaker 6: but a lot of writers here in Nashville too. Everyone
Speaker 6: started writing on Zoom, which was really great. So I
Speaker 6: got to meet lots of people and lots of writers
Speaker 6: here and kind of it really opened a lot of
Speaker 6: doors for me that I didn't expect to open. So
Speaker 6: there's a lot of good things that came from a
Speaker 6: lot of things that also.
Speaker 4: Wasn't crect right right, a little ups and downs. Yeah,
Speaker 4: And you think your family support throughout the whole thing,
Speaker 4: from the beginning till now and even obviously moving forward,
Speaker 4: has been a huge upbringing for you and a big
Speaker 4: backbone for you.
Speaker 6: I should say I could not do it without them,
Speaker 6: like just emotionally having their support behind the back of me,
Speaker 6: Like they've been because.
Speaker 7: It's a lot of work and it's a lot of energy.
Speaker 6: And you know, if you haven't got somebody or anybody
Speaker 6: behind you that really believe in you, it's very easy
Speaker 6: to just feel like you're overwhelmed by it because there's
Speaker 6: so much you're doing. You haven't got as we said
Speaker 6: about a label, you haven't got that support. So you
Speaker 6: need people that really genuinely believe in you. And do
Speaker 6: you know the family too, more than anything. They know
Speaker 6: me from a little kid, so they know all of
Speaker 6: my quirks and my You know, you need to rest,
Speaker 6: you need to take some time, or you need to
Speaker 6: do this.
Speaker 7: You're not working hard enough or you should be.
Speaker 6: Know they just know you and they love you when
Speaker 6: they care about you, and that you can't buy that.
Speaker 4: Have you had a chance yet or a time I
Speaker 4: should say where you were thinking I don't think I
Speaker 4: should do this.
Speaker 2: You kind of touched on a little bit.
Speaker 4: And then did you ever go to your family, parents, friends,
Speaker 4: whoever and say you, guys, I don't know if I
Speaker 4: should do this and they're like, hey, no, I can't kick.
Speaker 2: You in the butt and say no, that's not happening.
Speaker 2: You're gonna keep doing.
Speaker 6: COVID was kind of that moment for me in a
Speaker 6: lot of ways too. It's like, come on, this is
Speaker 6: gonna be all right. Just you're e a reacting, Zay,
Speaker 6: It's gonna be okay, We'll figure it out. You know,
Speaker 6: there's other ways to make music, and I you know,
Speaker 6: I remember Mum saying that to me vividly. Actually, She's like,
Speaker 6: you know, maybe this's TV and stuff. You know, there's
Speaker 6: all the ways to do it that you just you know,
Speaker 6: you need to think about. And so that was when
Speaker 6: I was kind of like, all right, you know, let's
Speaker 6: focus on the songwriting and building better songs and writing
Speaker 6: with better artists and writers and stuff.
Speaker 7: So yeah, and you need that. You need people to
Speaker 7: be around you that can be honest.
Speaker 4: Do you feel like you've come out the other end
Speaker 4: post COVID as a better songwriter artist?
Speaker 7: I have said generally, I really I think so. Yeah.
Speaker 6: You know, Ben in Nashville is like the biggest education
Speaker 6: you could ever ask for, too, because you come to
Speaker 6: this town and we were just talking about it a
Speaker 6: little bit off air just as it was getting started there.
Speaker 6: It's like, you come to this town and you think, oh,
Speaker 6: you know, I've got the goods, but then you come
Speaker 6: to this town and it's like everybody is so talented,
Speaker 6: you know, it's like, oh my gosh, you know.
Speaker 7: So yeah. I do think though, it has made me
Speaker 7: a lot better than that I was.
Speaker 6: And I'm really grateful for everybody who's written with me
Speaker 6: and you know, believed in what I'm doing. That's the
Speaker 6: other thing about since I've been here in Nashville. It's
Speaker 6: kind of overwhelming in a beautiful way. How many people
Speaker 6: have just said you're welcome here, will help you, we
Speaker 6: support you, We think what you're doing is worthwhile putting
Speaker 6: our time into, and we're going to write with you,
Speaker 6: and we're going to do this, and we're going to
Speaker 6: do that. And that's such a huge compliment because you
Speaker 6: just don't expect anyone to do that just for the
Speaker 6: sake of it, you know.
Speaker 2: And if they do.
Speaker 4: I don't know about your background necessarily growing up, but
Speaker 4: me from California, I've talked about this a little bit before.
Speaker 4: You almost wonder, Okay, well what do you want from me?
Speaker 4: If somebody asks like, hey, can you help me out
Speaker 4: or something? But out here in Nashville, I can't harp
Speaker 4: on this enough. I've told so many people that, especially
Speaker 4: back home. I'm like, everyone like genuinely just wants to
Speaker 4: help you, and are it's weird. I love that, and
Speaker 4: it takes a while to get used to. I don't
Speaker 4: know if I'm I'm almost two years in and I
Speaker 4: still don't know if I'm used to it.
Speaker 2: I love that, You're like, people just want to help you.
Speaker 4: They want to get you to get whether it's music
Speaker 4: or radio or construction, it really doesn't matter.
Speaker 7: Yeah, that's so true.
Speaker 4: They just want to see you succeed in whatever you do.
Speaker 4: And there's just so much opportunity out here in every
Speaker 4: field and every profession. And I got that, and it
Speaker 4: seemed like you also have the support and outside of
Speaker 4: your family, just from people in Nashville, it's been.
Speaker 6: Yeah, as you say, it's like you do you kind
Speaker 6: of think, oh man.
Speaker 7: This is this weird? The only one of feeling this.
Speaker 6: It is though that and I think us Australians too,
Speaker 6: we're kind of very much like that. We're like one
Speaker 6: hand washes the other kind of it's probably not a
Speaker 6: good analogy, but it is. Everyone helps each other and
Speaker 6: if you, you know, if you don't help someone else,
Speaker 6: they're not going to help you, and everyone climbs together.
Speaker 6: And I love that Nashville has that mentality because that's
Speaker 6: how I was raised.
Speaker 7: I was brought up that way. So it is really
Speaker 7: really notice signed this to some friends the other night too.
Speaker 7: It's like, for the first time ever in my life,
Speaker 7: I feel like I'm home in a lot.
Speaker 6: Of ways because everyone here believes the same thing and
Speaker 6: want to have the same kind of creative outlook on life.
Speaker 6: And it's just, you know, this is a like minded
Speaker 6: sense here and I love being around that.
Speaker 2: I totally agree.
Speaker 4: I feel like I've only been here a couple of
Speaker 4: years that I feel like I've been here for my
Speaker 4: whole life. Yeah, well, in a great way, in a
Speaker 4: good way, I've always felt welcome. People are from all
Speaker 4: over the place, and whether it's a different country or
Speaker 4: a different state, and you're all like minded where you're
Speaker 4: just like, man, I don't know, life is just too short.
Speaker 4: Let's just help each other out and like, let's have
Speaker 4: some fune while we're doing it, you know. Yeah, And
Speaker 4: that's what I just feel like natural is like. And
Speaker 4: that's why I tell people all the time, like, the
Speaker 4: best decision I've ever made is a movie here for
Speaker 4: multiple reasons.
Speaker 2: But this isn't about me anyway.
Speaker 7: I know exactly what you're Yeah, good.
Speaker 4: And speaking of help outside of the family, and some
Speaker 4: musicians and in particular or songwriters who are some of
Speaker 4: your biggest influences out here? I know right here we
Speaker 4: have James House and I saw you guys at the
Speaker 4: listening room a few weeks ago with Jeff Cohen as well.
Speaker 7: And Jamie Floyd.
Speaker 4: Yes, yes, and you guys were awesome. So are those
Speaker 4: three influential like in your career or is it a yah?
Speaker 5: Yeah.
Speaker 6: So that's the thing that you know, we were just
Speaker 6: saying about Nashville opening their doors. Like I've been able
Speaker 6: to work with people who I have idolized or loved
Speaker 6: their work forever, you know, and they've just said, yeah,
Speaker 6: let's do something. Jamie Floyd, Jeff Cohen, James House, all
Speaker 6: these incredible rights, Phil Barton, I've just this new song
Speaker 6: that I've just done with him, and Dana Purdue and
Speaker 6: all these people have just been so incredibly welcoming. Of course,
Speaker 6: there was Kyle Jacobs.
Speaker 7: Who I was writing with him and he was you
Speaker 7: know what.
Speaker 6: Happened obviously, Yeah, absolutely, And so but you know he was.
Speaker 6: He was a huge support as well, and just like
Speaker 6: we can do this, anything we need to do, let's
Speaker 6: do it. And it's like everybody has been so welcoming.
Speaker 6: So all of those writers that I've been working with
Speaker 6: are people who I have I've been huge fans of
Speaker 6: forever and it's.
Speaker 7: Just an honor to have like the opportunity to work
Speaker 7: with them and they want to work with me. It's like,
Speaker 7: really sure you sure? Yeah, it's really lovely, It's awesome.
Speaker 4: James, do you mind just bring on for a quick
Speaker 4: second and ask you a quick question here about Zoe.
Speaker 2: I'd like to welcome James House if you want to give.
Speaker 7: All James this line producer here.
Speaker 5: I love great to be here.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I just quick a little background of yourself, James,
Speaker 4: if you don't mind, this is a little got here
Speaker 4: in eighty nine.
Speaker 5: That's I've been writing all my life. I've had a
Speaker 5: couple of number ones and Songwriter the Year nominated for
Speaker 5: eighth that Lonely It Do I yoakam a broken wing
Speaker 5: for Martina McBride. Just so I've been this is you
Speaker 5: were talking about how welcoming this town is and it
Speaker 5: was the same thing for me. I got here from
Speaker 5: I was living in LA at the time. I grew
Speaker 5: up in Sacramento. So yeah, I was very welcomed when
Speaker 5: I got here, and I was amazed with that, with
Speaker 5: that kind of helping hand and and it's it's it's
Speaker 5: just a great talent. I can't imagine living anyplace else.
Speaker 5: And Zoey just, you know, I think she's just got
Speaker 5: this specialness to her her personality and her voice and
Speaker 5: the music and the way she was raised. And you
Speaker 5: know artists, and it's a lot it has to do
Speaker 5: with their who they are inside and and what attracts people.
Speaker 5: And I think what makes that's what really a lot
Speaker 5: that makes her special. So and you know, I've met
Speaker 5: a lot of artists here. I've met all the idols
Speaker 5: you can imagine and stuff, which has been amazing for me.
Speaker 5: You know, when I got here, it was still there
Speaker 5: was Johnny Cash was still here, and then Buck Owens
Speaker 5: and Merle Haggard and I got to meet those guys
Speaker 5: and and and Riba and Dolly, and I've toured with
Speaker 5: all of them, and there's something special about all those people.
Speaker 5: And I really believe that that zoe has that too.
Speaker 2: I can tell.
Speaker 4: I can tell, And I didn't even know you were
Speaker 4: coming here today. And like I said, I.
Speaker 5: Saw writing after this, Yeah, I'm the ride.
Speaker 2: I was like, is this an uber?
Speaker 5: I got a little yeah, and then wait, I just
Speaker 5: got nominated for Blue Song of the Year.
Speaker 2: That's awesome, that's awesome.
Speaker 6: Yeah.
Speaker 4: I remember seen you had a listening room a few
Speaker 4: weeks ago and just some of the songs you were
Speaker 4: singing and the stories you were telling.
Speaker 2: And and my buddy who I work with here, actually he.
Speaker 4: Was He's a little bit older than me, so he
Speaker 4: knew the song is a lot more than I did.
Speaker 2: But he was just like, dude, this is awesome.
Speaker 5: Yeah, I get that. My mom liked you. I'm at
Speaker 5: that stage now which is always like that's nice.
Speaker 4: No, But I'm just interested to hear your perspective. And
Speaker 4: I know you just kind of said it. But how
Speaker 4: long have you guys known each other? And what how
Speaker 4: much growth have you seen in Zoe since she's been
Speaker 4: here and you guys have gotten together.
Speaker 5: Well, I was one of the zoom writers. I think
Speaker 5: we probably wrote ten songs or so. It was the
Speaker 5: worst she was in Campbelltown, Scotland.
Speaker 7: I was trying to write on zoom Man. It was
Speaker 7: just the worst on because I.
Speaker 5: Live in the country, so it is all the delays
Speaker 5: and stuff. But anyway, we wrote a bunch of songs
Speaker 5: and I did somebody and another friend say you should
Speaker 5: check this this artist out there. We all kind of
Speaker 5: always talk around this, you know, like who do you
Speaker 5: think is could and stuff. So I started kind of,
Speaker 5: you know, do the Instagram thing saying what she was
Speaker 5: doing and stuff, and we started writing and then it
Speaker 5: was like, wow, this could be. This is good, you know,
Speaker 5: and I've seen a lot of growth and it was
Speaker 5: fun to have her when she got over here. Everybody's
Speaker 5: like been, you know, wanting to write with her and stuff.
Speaker 5: That's really great, that's all. And so this he's seen
Speaker 5: this really growth. We've probably written I don't know a
Speaker 5: ton of songs here, but I recorded twenty or so
Speaker 5: and just the growth has been amazing. And I have
Speaker 5: a great team of musicians around that really care about
Speaker 5: her and stuff. So you know, this town is an
Speaker 5: amazing amount of talent that is here, and you were
Speaker 5: all everybody comes here is like it was a big
Speaker 5: fish in the small town, you know, and then they
Speaker 5: come to Nashville you know, you got you know, when
Speaker 5: I got here, it was like I had to go
Speaker 5: up against Garth Brooks, Clinton Black. I remember going out
Speaker 5: promoting my single to radio. I had my little song
Speaker 5: called Don't Quit Me Now, and then they were just
Speaker 5: been have you got another friends in low place? Yeah,
Speaker 5: so that was the competition. He's still you know, doing well,
Speaker 5: that guy. So but you know, but I'm still here,
Speaker 5: you know, and I can't imagine living any place. I
Speaker 5: see if you love music. The town is set up
Speaker 5: for music. A lot of people don't know that there's
Speaker 5: banks here that actually understand what songwriters go to and
Speaker 5: go through and artists go through to how they make
Speaker 5: their money. So loans can be given if you want
Speaker 5: to buy a house and stuff if you're you know.
Speaker 5: So that's interesting that that infrastructure is here, which is
Speaker 5: you know, one of the things I was, it's really
Speaker 5: great when I met Don Cook and Tony Brown and
Speaker 5: these guys. When I got here and I look at
Speaker 5: what Don Cook's ball and he had like thirty one
Speaker 5: number ones and he was from Texas. You're just a kid,
Speaker 5: but came dream from Texas, and I thought, wow, you
Speaker 5: can actually do this, you know. So yeah, and when
Speaker 5: you get here it becomes real. It's probably real for
Speaker 5: you now, yeah, it is.
Speaker 6: It's certainly it's a it's a huge wake up call
Speaker 6: coming here too, because you do you get kind of
Speaker 6: immersed in this town full of talent and you're like, oh,
Speaker 6: I need to step up my game like quickly, you know,
Speaker 6: And it is. It is a huge wake up call,
Speaker 6: but in a really beautiful way.
Speaker 4: And how much of an influence has he'd been on
Speaker 4: you personally outside of just the music.
Speaker 2: You know, I'm pushing you, and.
Speaker 6: You know what, actually outside of music, You've been really like,
Speaker 6: like into me about my accent because I.
Speaker 7: Know your accent is great.
Speaker 6: It's like being an understand me because I say so
Speaker 6: many Australian like terms, I forget that I'm not being
Speaker 6: understood and so I'll say things like oh fair income
Speaker 6: really and you'd be like, wait, what can you say
Speaker 6: that in American? And so that that's actually that's been
Speaker 6: really helpful because I have had a lot of problems
Speaker 6: with with that side because we don't we have a
Speaker 6: lot of like terms in Australia.
Speaker 7: But I'm I.
Speaker 5: Mean, I think I think to what I was sorry
Speaker 5: to me. She first when I heard her saying, I thought,
Speaker 5: she's like got this Olivia Newton John energy too. I
Speaker 5: actually got to write with Olivia, and I just think
Speaker 5: you really have that kind of the kindness. I remember
Speaker 5: I played her stuff for a for a beca Bramlet.
Speaker 5: She's from the great Bramlet family. Her dad mom or
Speaker 5: had the I had had a wonderful group back in
Speaker 5: the sixties and I played it for back on first
Speaker 5: Since she goes, is she from Australia, Like, what do
Speaker 5: you mean?
Speaker 3: She goes?
Speaker 5: She sounds nice. So there's this kindness to Australians and
Speaker 5: that I think America or you know, there's Keith, there's
Speaker 5: a whole Australian there are from last count somebody said
Speaker 5: it's like ninety business.
Speaker 2: Yeah wow, really there's a connected.
Speaker 5: And I love country music down there. They do. She's
Speaker 5: doing well, just not second number one.
Speaker 7: It's on the way.
Speaker 6: It's climbing up the chants of the war, which is exciting.
Speaker 7: I think you left there to go.
Speaker 5: You're having number ones in Australia.
Speaker 2: I love it, I love it. I love it. Well.
Speaker 2: Thanks thanks a lot, James. I really appreciate the I'm
Speaker 2: gonna go get coffee and all right, see you, James. Okay,
Speaker 2: he's going.
Speaker 7: Now, what was you talking about?
Speaker 4: No, I do want to go back to listening room
Speaker 4: and just those venues in general, because it's just so
Speaker 4: interested and you know, everyone that comes here, they go
Speaker 4: to Broadway and these they see these bands or artists
Speaker 4: play all these cover songs, and which is great. You know,
Speaker 4: you got to make your living and you get your
Speaker 4: practice in and all that. But I think these listening
Speaker 4: room writing around writers around venues are neat for people.
Speaker 4: If you're listening to this and you've never been here
Speaker 4: and your plan to coming here, I highly recommend them.
Speaker 4: Oh yeah, because you guys get to sing your own songs,
Speaker 4: which you probably don't get to do a lot of
Speaker 4: if you go play somewhere on Broadway. Oh and you
Speaker 4: get to talk about your songs. So I'm just interested
Speaker 4: to get into your brain a little bit what that
Speaker 4: means to you, you know.
Speaker 6: I think the Bluebird Cafe is probably the best example
Speaker 6: for this, because it's been created and preserved as a
Speaker 6: place for songwriters to tell their story and their side
Speaker 6: of the story. And that's it's always I found really
Speaker 6: interesting because for a long time I always thought that
Speaker 6: everybody wrote their own songs, and so I got a
Speaker 6: huge shock and all side of writing my songs like
Speaker 6: thinking this is how we do it, and then I'm like,
Speaker 6: oh my gosh, they don't all do that, like really,
Speaker 6: So I always find it even myself now, I still
Speaker 6: find it a huge treat to go into somewhere like
Speaker 6: the Bluebird or the Listening Room and here the real
Speaker 6: stories of how these songs really came about, you know,
Speaker 6: and it's like every time a shock, and so I
Speaker 6: think those places are super special in treasured.
Speaker 7: Of course, also love the Broadway stuff with you know,
Speaker 7: the big.
Speaker 6: Honky tonks and the cover bands and that's just fun
Speaker 6: and loud and just awesome. But there is something really
Speaker 6: to be said for the whole the writer's scene, And
Speaker 6: as you said a minute ago, I think it's something
Speaker 6: if you're coming to Nashville for the first time, you
Speaker 6: have to experience that, especially if.
Speaker 7: You're an artist or wanting to be an artist.
Speaker 6: That's like you've got to go and see that because
Speaker 6: that's the core of how it all began.
Speaker 7: You know.
Speaker 4: In Australia. So you've had a number one, correct I did?
Speaker 6: Yeah, So my song castles on the Sand just went
Speaker 6: to number one down there, which was awesome. Well I
Speaker 6: expect ahead, no, really unexpected because it's not your like
Speaker 6: It's that song from me was such a personal song,
Speaker 6: and it's not your like, your typical radio boffer.
Speaker 7: Long, you know, it's not super deeper UPPI.
Speaker 6: It's kind of more mellow and very I guess chill
Speaker 6: is the hip word to use to explain that. So
Speaker 6: it was a real shock when that did go to
Speaker 6: number one, and I was like super super honored and
Speaker 6: surprised by that.
Speaker 2: And what is it like when you go back to
Speaker 2: Australia then?
Speaker 4: Are you known there or here and there where you're at?
Speaker 4: Because I've I've noticed working in this industry just for
Speaker 4: a short not even two years, we've had, you know,
Speaker 4: artists from Canada come down and in Canada they're huge,
Speaker 4: right huge, Yeah, and then here they're not nearly as big.
Speaker 4: So it's just interesting to me to just get that dynamic.
Speaker 7: I've been back, yeah, no, not yeah, it's been it's
Speaker 7: been so long.
Speaker 6: It's been like nearly seven and a half years since
Speaker 6: I've been back. And I feel so bad because I
Speaker 6: have family and stuff down there. But it's like I
Speaker 6: was going to go back before COVID and then like
Speaker 6: everything shut down, and then it was like do we
Speaker 6: want to, you know, try and go back after it?
Speaker 6: But then Australia was still locked up for like the
Speaker 6: longest time, and so I just haven't had a chance
Speaker 6: to actually get back there yet.
Speaker 7: So I don't know. I hope they like me. It'll
Speaker 7: be really horrible if it's like I'm not welcomed.
Speaker 4: I mean, you got to get back there while you're
Speaker 4: hot over there, and then you got the number one.
Speaker 7: I hope I still like me.
Speaker 4: Well, as we close this out, Zoe, I want to
Speaker 4: talk about I see that we've talked about a little
Speaker 4: bit but didn't dive into it, your new single that
Speaker 4: just came out recently, which is called pick Me Up,
Speaker 4: Pick me Up exactly. I'm gonna play a little clip
Speaker 4: right here because I can't play music on here. I
Speaker 4: play five seconds. So're gonna get okay. So Here'szoe would
Speaker 4: pick me Up?
Speaker 7: Lost? Hey, that was a good fight, So there we go.
Speaker 2: All right, all right, did I pick a good five seconds?
Speaker 7: That was the bit I would have picked.
Speaker 6: All right, perfect, I'm glad you didn't get just the
Speaker 6: instrumental intro there.
Speaker 2: So where did this guitar come from?
Speaker 4: Well, you know, funny story, where did that song come from?
Speaker 7: Though?
Speaker 2: Where who'd you write it with? What's the answer?
Speaker 3: Ration? I mean?
Speaker 5: Pick me up?
Speaker 6: So that was actually written with my buddy Phil Barton,
Speaker 6: who's another Australigan out here. He writes with Liz Rose
Speaker 6: and so many incredible writers, him and his girl Dana
Speaker 6: Perdue and James House with the co writers on that
Speaker 6: one with me and I walked into that right with
Speaker 6: no idea what was going to write about. And Dana
Speaker 6: and I just sitting down and we're just talking and
Speaker 6: she's like, so you know what's going on? And we
Speaker 6: did that whole like the house things been kind of
Speaker 6: conversation and I said, you know, it's like, I don't know,
Speaker 6: so it feels like the world kind of just needs
Speaker 6: a bit of a pick me up, you know, and
Speaker 6: I kind of feel like I need a bit of
Speaker 6: a pick me up. She's like, Okay, there's our title.
Speaker 6: So we went from that and that was the whole thing.
Speaker 6: And next thing I know, we're just like laughing and
Speaker 6: goofing around and having the absolute best time writing the song.
Speaker 6: And I swear every time we wrote a line of
Speaker 6: the song. Phil he's the funniest ever. I don't know
Speaker 6: if you know Phil, but he's just hilarious. And anytime
Speaker 6: we'd write a line of his song, he'd be like, Man,
Speaker 6: it's gonna be a hit, you know every line and
Speaker 6: I'm just dying and fits a laughter.
Speaker 7: But it was the best song, right, and.
Speaker 6: We were just all laughing and giggling by the end
Speaker 6: of the By the end of the session, we really
Speaker 6: love this song.
Speaker 7: So I'm glad that it's out finally too so.
Speaker 6: But yeah, it's like the plan at this point is
Speaker 6: every six weeks putting out a new song and releasing
Speaker 6: Larry videos.
Speaker 7: And that to go with it, and playing as many
Speaker 7: shows and stuff as they can.
Speaker 6: So I'm playing the Bluebird quite a bit, listening room
Speaker 6: quite a bit, and yeah, kind of just getting out there.
Speaker 6: I've got a residency, get out of town, and so
Speaker 6: slowly but surely just kind of like build new music
Speaker 6: and put it out and it is.
Speaker 7: It's again, it's like you have to build content so
Speaker 7: it comes in.
Speaker 6: The world is so fast paced this day and age,
Speaker 6: so everyone's ready for something new like yesterday, So you
Speaker 6: have to kind of constantly be ready for that and
Speaker 6: so that's that's kind of what I'm doing with music
Speaker 6: as well.
Speaker 4: So yeah, I've learned that consistency is probably the number
Speaker 4: one thing, whether it's even because you almost feel like
Speaker 4: going back social media a little bit here, you're like,
Speaker 4: it's not that good, I shouldn't post it. But it's
Speaker 4: almost like you just got to put something out there. Yeah,
Speaker 4: which is weird. Yeah, but like you said, it's just
Speaker 4: content content content.
Speaker 6: And I think too, the other thing, like is I've
Speaker 6: been you know, I struggled with that side of it too,
Speaker 6: is like he said good enough, should I put it out?
Speaker 7: Or like, right, is this kind of let me look weird?
Speaker 6: But I think on the other side of it too
Speaker 6: is that you know, everybody is human, and so everybody
Speaker 6: has the same kind of little flaws and quirks and
Speaker 6: weird things, and nobody's perfect, so I think everyone can
Speaker 6: relate when it's not perfect as well.
Speaker 7: That's probably something that makes them.
Speaker 6: You feel a bit more genuine to people too, is
Speaker 6: when you just kind of you're honest about it, like, hey,
Speaker 6: he's you know, he's what I look like with my
Speaker 6: hair up, and I look like crap, and I'm in
Speaker 6: the studio and I've been here all day, you know,
Speaker 6: and here I am, you know.
Speaker 7: And I think people can relate to that in a
Speaker 7: lot of ways too.
Speaker 2: Totally agree.
Speaker 4: It makes you feel like you're human, You're actually human.
Speaker 4: You're like, wow, this girl's actually human.
Speaker 2: Okay, I can relate. I'm not the only one. I'm
Speaker 2: not just sitting here in my mile of my pajama padammas.
Speaker 5: Yeah.
Speaker 4: And I just woke up and like she's She's like me, Okay,
Speaker 4: that's good.
Speaker 7: That's good, exactly exactly all right.
Speaker 2: I want to close out with this.
Speaker 4: I always close out with this question I tried to
Speaker 4: is I just want you to think about some advice.
Speaker 4: If somebody's listening to this, whether it's in Australia or
Speaker 4: whether it's in the backyard here in Nashville, and they're
Speaker 4: young and they're getting their career started, and what is
Speaker 4: your advice for somebody thinking, whether it's not even a music,
Speaker 4: I want to go out and chase something, chase his dream.
Speaker 4: And what would you say to that person maybe double
Speaker 4: thinking it. I don't know if I'm going to do it.
Speaker 6: I'm okay, you know, I think It's like anything, if
Speaker 6: you believe in something enough, you have to follow through
Speaker 6: it because you'll always be wondering what if you know so?
Speaker 7: And that was the same for me too. It's like
Speaker 7: if it's a big thing to move across the world
Speaker 7: and decide to.
Speaker 6: You know, do this crazy thing in the music industry,
Speaker 6: because you have no idea whether it's going to work,
Speaker 6: you have no idea what the outcome is going to be.
Speaker 6: You just have to keep going be like, believe, just
Speaker 6: believe in what you're doing and believe it's going to work.
Speaker 6: And stay curious is the other thing I would say too,
Speaker 6: because that keeps you as crazy as it is. I
Speaker 6: think it keeps you youthful. You know, it keeps you interested,
Speaker 6: and that's a big part of it. It's staying interested
Speaker 6: in what you're doing because you don't want to lose
Speaker 6: that faith in what you're You know, you can get
Speaker 6: caught up in the turmoil of whatever it is. And
Speaker 6: this industry is no different. This industry has got a
Speaker 6: lot of politics and a lot of craziness involved in it,
Speaker 6: as you know. And so I think, you know, you
Speaker 6: have to stay curious and stay in and just believe
Speaker 6: in what you're doing, and know that you're special. No
Speaker 6: matter what everybody else is doing. You've got something that
Speaker 6: nobody else has got. So don't forget that, believe in that,
Speaker 6: and make sure that you see that gets out.
Speaker 7: Into the world because that's important. People need that.
Speaker 2: Love that, love that well.
Speaker 4: Zoe, thank you so much for coming in today. This
Speaker 4: has been a lot of fun. James sank you very much.
Speaker 6: Welcome.
Speaker 2: James is back. By the way, he came back.
Speaker 7: You found out coffee.
Speaker 2: Well, go check out Zoe, Go check out her music.
Speaker 2: Follow her on social media Zoe Music.
Speaker 4: Remembered Zoe with two e z o ee music on
Speaker 4: Instagram or Instagram is awesome. Go stream her music. Her
Speaker 4: song picked me Up. She got a lot of stuff
Speaker 4: in the work, so keep up with her. She got
Speaker 4: a great Instagram. I'm telling you good Zoe. Thank you
Speaker 4: so much.