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Interview with

(8th September 2023)

Interview with Shaquira Hobbs

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Congratulations on the release of your album “Positive Spin” on August 18! Can you tell us a bit about the inspiration behind this album and what listeners can expect from it? 
 In my songwriting,  my songs always had a lot of hope interwoven into even the most devastating of songs that I had written, I suppose there was always a sense of a silver lining, so I kind of took that and looked at the songs that I had kind of gathered over the last couple of years, and i realized that the thing that was kind of threading everything together was the fact that I had really heavily leaned into that sense of optimism. So that was kind of where the initial idea for the record was born from.

How did you approach the creative process differently this time, and what aspects did you focus on refining from your previous work?
It was similar in the sense that I was doing a lot of co-writing, but a few standout things that did set it apart from the previous album’s creative process was the fact that we had the global pandemic, when I kind of first started writing the album. So I was doing a lot of songwriting in my bedroom, over zoom and over audio movers and learning to collaborate virtually.That was a point of difference.

You’ve mentioned that pop music has been a therapeutic space for you. How did you manage to infuse such personal and introspective themes into an uplifting and catchy pop sound in your music? 
I think I was just really into songs that kind of lived in that more upbeat sonic space and I’d been listening to probably the main influence with that, kind of oxymoron kind of vibe. I suppose it’s, it is the fact that I was doing a lot of listening to Luna and I feel like as devastating as a lot of Luna songs can be when they’re addressing heartbreak and stuff like that, you know, there is this real sense of, you know, in their production, it still makes you feel very happy and uplifted.
They have this really amazing song on their second record called, um, the Second Record Saves the World, the song’s called Taken, which is this beautiful kind of sparkly, very, I don’t know. It feels very light, but you know, it’s still a very sad song as well. So that was really influential when I was making this record were, were their records for sure.

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Your new single “Don’t Date The Teenager” seems to delve into the theme of heartbreak and growth. Could you share the story behind this song and how it ties into the overall narrative of the album?
Yeah, in terms of how don’t date the teenager ties into the theme of positive Spin is probably because it is a song that deals with what can be quite a heavy topic, and it’s very honest, Lyrically. But the production is so upbeat and so fun, and it’s impossible not to dance to. So I think that in itself is kind of the positive spin.
Also just the fact that it’s very much a song that captures the fact that there was a real lesson learned, and there’s a lot to take away from that. That is something that can be positive. A lesson learned is a positive thing. So, in terms of, you know, where the song kind of came from and what inspired it,  I’d been really watching how other artists were being really vulnerable in their work.
I Was kind of watching that unfold in other artist projects that I looked up to, and how honest people were getting. And I think, you know, as a part of moving into my mid twenties, I just kind of decided I think I’m gonna maybe try and do that now. I think that I’ve always, I’ve written songs from my heart, but I definitely have wanted everything to feel very gentle.
Even when it’s sad and intense and I think with songs like Don’t Date The Teenager on Positive Spin, I’ve kind of broken through something and allowed myself to just get very real and direct about things. So yeah, it felt very different in that sense, but I think that it’s a sign of, you know, me kind of growing as an artist and, and as a person.
And there was something, you know, that I really wanted to address with this song. The topic is very important to me and, it’s just, it’s really nice that it lives in this sonic space that it does. ’cause I think it carries a really important message, and it’s also really catchy. 
So it’s inescapable, well that’s my goal with it anyway.

Your musical journey has been quite remarkable, from winning Triple J Unearthed in 2016 to your recent successes. How do you feel your sound has evolved since your debut, and how does “Positive Spin” represent this evolution?
My sound has definitely evolved a lot since then, I think that I probably just allowed myself to do something that I dreamed of doing as a very young child. I was so obsessed with pop music when I was Little, little, like, I loved Hillary Duff, I loved Kylie Minogue. That was my first CD ever, and back in the days of Walkman’s, yes, I did see those days.
I used to listen to those kind of CDs and, I really, I loved them. And when I started writing songs, I was seven, so I was kind of imagining these, you know, I would play these like big sparkly shows and I would do these really fun, upbeat music videos. And somewhere along the way, you know, when I kind of started my career, I was just tapping into other elements of inspiration.
I was much more in like a folky, organic singer-songwriter space. I really was leaning on other childhood influences, um, that my parents had exposed me to, like Joni Mitchell, probably more so, and, and Laura Marling and,, artists kind of up that alley. And, that’s kind of where we started. But then the song that kind of, you know, started my career essentially.
You know, I think it was just allowing myself to be honest with the fact that I wanted to eventually move into that space, and reference those things that I had loved so much as a small kid. And so, you know, I kind of have been thinking about these two records that I’ve made these two full length albums and begin to look around as something that I think my 16 to 17 year old self would’ve really appreciated.
And I feel like positive spin is something that like my 10 year old self would’ve. Being obsessed with. So, um, yeah, which I really like. I think that I’ve just probably moved more into a pop space, but really just permitted myself to do so, and learned so much from that more organic space that I started in sonically.

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You’re about to embark on ‘The Big Pop Show’ National Tour in September. What can your fans expect from your live performances, and do you have any personal highlights or favorite moments you’re looking forward to on this tour?
They can expect probably just a lot of movement. I really enjoy moving, taking full advantage of the space of the stage. Now I dance around a lot and strutt up the stage. It’s so interesting. Like it’s become a thing of like dealing with nerves. I’ll just be like walking when I’m down the stage as I’m singing.
There is a real sense of wanting to kind of be playful with these new songs. Um, and they can definitely expect, they can expect a slightly longer set. I think I’m gonna play more ’cause there’s so much music now, which I think will be really, really fun, and they can expect a lot of outfits and, yeah, and a lot of sing-alongs.
I hope that’s, I think it will be a really fun tour.

Your cover of Billy Joel’s “Vienna” garnered massive attention on TikTok. How did it feel to have such a viral moment, and did that experience influence your approach to your own music in any way?
Yeah, oh it was surreal, yeah, it’s weird thinking back to the time when that kind of first started taking off. It’s a lot to process when you open TikTok every day and there’s just all of these new people and comments and it was, you know, not something I ever could have expected to happen.
And, it was really cool, I think because. It’s such a timeless song and I had covered it because I’d, I’d seen people engaging with the original version of the song and you know, I think that it really spoke volumes for the time of moving out of the pandemic, kind of back into the rush of life.
A lot of people kind of really feel the pressure of that. And I think that song kind of gave people the sense of relief to remind them that it’s okay to not do everything all at once. ’cause I think that the boom post Covid really did imply that you had to do that. So, yeah, it was just very special that in some way I got to help communicate that message to people.
I had this message come through the morning on Instagram actually from someone that was like, I love your song, Vienna. What do you mean by Vienna Waits for you? And I was like, well, I didn’t write it. So I actually, but yeah, no, it was, it was really cool, and you know it, it brought a lot of new people to my project, which I’m so, so thankful for.

As a songwriter and performer, how do you balance vulnerability and self-expression in your music while ensuring your listeners connect with the messages you’re conveying?
Oh my, I mean, I think that’s the thing that helps me connect to my fans, you know, is the vulnerability, really. I think that’s it, yeah, it helps. In fact, kind of over the last couple of weeks I’ve put out a song, from the record, don’t Take the Teenager That is, you know, a very vulnerable song for me, but, As soon as I have, you know, an interaction with a fan who feels that they resonate with it or that it’s helped them or that it’s, they’ve really felt very seen or, or heard.
I think that it has brought me this real sense of relief in kind of getting those messages and, and seeing that from them. And, you know, I, yeah, I am really thankful for the community of people that I have in my audience now. I think that it was a big step with this record, kind of allowing myself to be more honest, but I’m so lucky that I have an audience that trusts me and my creative process and, and that they feel like that’s a positive thing for them as well.
It’s really special to get to kind of connect with the fans in that sense. And once these songs are out, you know, they’re not really my stories anymore. They become so many other people, which is just like the most surreal, crazy thing that I’ll never get used to, yeah, I look forward to this album, being able to do that for people.

Finally, what message or feeling do you hope your listeners take away from “Don’t Date The Teenager” and the album “Positive Spin” as a whole?
I want positive spin to be the album that you put on and go. All right, we’re going out and I want you to put your lippy on and, and, you know, play the record and feel like that brings you into a space of like, all right, we are now going to kind of regain a sense of kind of, you know, lightness, I suppose after that really necessary grief with those other records and for, for positive spin to kind of, you know, bring you into the light and, and to go out and, and have a dance, if that makes sense.

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GRETTA RAY – New album ‘POSITIVE SPIN’
STREAM / DOWNLOAD HERE

‘POSITIVE SPIN’
Tracklisting

Positive Spin
Upgraded
Nobody Here
Heartbreak Baby
Dear Seventeen
Don’t Date The Teenager
Loving Somebody
The Cool Boy
Can’t Keep It Casual
You’ve Already Won
Light On
America Forever (with Maisie Peters and Carol Ades)

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GRETTA RAY
‘THE BIG POP SHOW’
National tour

w/CATE and special guests

CLICK HERE FOR TICKETING INFO

FRI 15 SEP – PRINCESS THEATRE, BRISBANE, QLD (LIC/AA)
SAT 16 SEP – METRO THEATRE, SYDNEY, NSW (LIC/AA)
FRI 22 SEP – NORTHCOTE THEATRE, MELBOURNE, VIC (18+)
SAT 23 SEP – ASTOR THEATRE, PERTH, WA (LIC/AA)
FRI 29 SEP – LION ARTS FACTORY, ADELAIDE, SA (LIC/AA)
SUN 1 OCT – NORTHCOTE SOCIAL CLUB, MELBOURNE, VIC *U18 MATINEE

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FOLLOW GRETTA RAY

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Press Release 19th August 2023 (below) HERE

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releases sophomore album

STREAM / DOWNLOAD HERE

WATCH THE VIDEO FOR ‘DON’T DATE THE TEENAGER’ HERE

+ GRETTA’S
‘THE BIG POP SHOW’
National Tour
with support from CATE
hits the road this September

CLICK HERE FOR DATES & TICKETING INFO

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AMNPLIFY – DB