+ (614) HEALING VIBRATIONS WITH BILLYMAREE

Issue 02Music

4 Nov

Written By Francesca Nwokeocha

TALENT Billymaree

PHOTOGRAPHY Jade Damico

STYLIST Elle Hioe

STYLIST ASSISTANT Sarafina Manyang

WORDS Nicole Ngo

STUDIO Innkeeper Studios

For the female artist, confidence is a double-edged sword. Sensuality is both a weapon for and against. Born and raised in Western Sydney, artist Billymaree has broken into the Australian music industry, fore-fronting its emerging RnB scene. “I want females to embrace their layers, strength in their toughness, in their softness too.” In a climate that claims to champion the nuances of female identity, the irony remains ripe in the fact that the female artist is still one-dimensional. Paradoxically again, definitions and experiences of love, self and sexuality have simultaneously multiplied and been disseminated. Billymaree’s release Tonight, showcases her nuanced lyricism, capturing the ebb and flow of love and lust Down, an inhale of deep soul, exhaled with powerful vibrations. Capturing a vast archive of inspiration – the unprecedented versatility of Michael Jackson to the melodies of Craig David, the jazz-imbued simplicity of Sade, and the sensuality of Jodeci, Billy defines music as a spectrum. “I want to have duality, I want to channel the energy of the greats. Music is a spectrum, you have the power to do whatever you want.” Perhaps a reminder of our ability to feel, perhaps an attempt to make us fall in love with love again, Billymaree plays with RnB as both a source of personal catharsis and empowerment. Laid back and unapologetic, Billy speaks to me via zoom as she folds her laundry.

614. What are your earliest memories of music? When did you discover this love?

My family was one of the first brown families to move to Sydney in the 80’s. Surrounded by a white community, they really gravitated towards the music of the minority. RnB, Hip Hop, Rap, Black music. That’s what they could relate to at the time, experiencing this complete lack of cultural appreciation. Growing up with a family in an AOG Samoan church that loved music and dancing, I was always surrounded by these beautiful, soulful sounds. They made me feel safe, at home.

614. How has this shaped your artistry and crafted the qualities you adopt into your own music?

Growing up in an area with less privilege as a housing commission kid on Centrelink, where mum’s always at work, you don’t have the time to sit back and fall into a victim state, to let the world decide what you can do. My upbringing gave me a drive that sits at the pit of my stomach. I go hard or I don’t at all. I come from a lineage of hard-working, strong women. Independence was one of the most prominent qualities I saw in the people
around me. I make music with a drive to heal the women before me. I want to channel generations of pain, I want to create a safe space, not just for me, but for my mum and grandmother, they are such a big part of my story.

614. How do you place your own emotions into your music and use it as a mechanism for storytelling, for yourself or for others?

[laughs] The trauma. I am a very sensitive and emotional person. From a young age, everything I’ve put out has found its commonality in love. RnB is very emotion- based, and at the basis of life is relationships – with people, with yourself, with memories, everything. I am in tune with everything around me, I feel a lot. I always find myself channelling situations that I’ve heard about, or been around, from multiple perspectives. I love playing with perspective. I write from the perspective of the person who broke my heart, I take [on] those emotions. Why did they do what they did, what drove them to do it? That kind of helps me heal.

614. Would you say music is a sort of therapy or release for you?

Yes, for sure. But I’ve learnt that it can be dangerous if you don’t learn how to put the emotions in and leave them. A lot of people will consequate their music with their energy and what they were experiencing at the time, then they will keep revisiting it. I needed to learn to put everything in my song and release it, physically and mentally. Separating music from the human behind it is difficult.

614. As an artist, how has your music become a documentation of your growth?

I listen to music I made at 16 and think ‘Who was this girl?’ It’s funny because back then my experience of love was so limited. I was very much into new-age spirituality and ancient meditation practices, and I still am but I made it my whole thing. I think as you grow older you find that these all just form a layer of yourself. I’ve become more whole and so have the experiences that inform my music. I still have that 16-year-old girl in me. She sits at the root of it all. She just knows a bit more now and I feel you can definitely hear that in my music.

“I make music with a drive to heal the women before me.”

— Billymaree

614. You write love songs, what draws you into the ‘love song’?

[laughs] That is a good ass question. At the base of everything is love. Human connection is everything. Sometimes people think what is happening to them is this un-lived experience, then they’ll hear a song and think, ‘Other people go through this as well?’ It’s the interconnectedness, not necessarily the feeling of love itself, because love is just a passing emotion. Love connects us to the things and people around us. That’s what draws me in every time.

614. It must be surreal to know that so many people connect to your music. How do you think your music connects to your listeners?

I think for the women, it makes them feel safe to be soft, sexy, confident and connected to themselves. In this day and age, there’s an overpowering concept of the get-it-on-my-own woman; a fuck men mentality. Yes, this is empowering and significant but I think there’s a growing fear of letting down your guard and admitting you’re in love with someone. I want to reintroduce the idea that healthy relationships are normal and beautiful, and nothing to be afraid of. For the men, I’ve been told it feels like I’m singing directly to them. It makes them feel that they can be soft, and can accept and give love. Men can feel sexy and embrace femininity too. It’s not a question of your sexuality. It explores the simple fact that we are human beings, and we are allowed to feel.

614. Where do you find your femininity within you in such a male-dominated industry?

Since the beginning, if I step into a room with men, I approach them like they would each other. Like a “man”. I put on a physical act of masculinity just to feel safe within my own skin. I shouldn’t have to do that. I should feel safe stepping into the room and own who I am and speak who I am. I want to be the soft woman I am at my core. It can be easy to say, ‘Well you can,’ but there is an inevitable backlash. As I’ve grown older, I’ve continued to find the meaning of my own femininity. I’ve become more comfortable with presenting myself as authentically as possible, whether that’s associated with femininity or masculinity. I’ve realised that if I can’t walk into a room feeling like myself, then I have to question exactly what it is I’m walking into. I shouldn’t spend my time sharing my life’s passion, what I love most with these people.

614. What do you love about live performances?

Being on stage and watching how people react to your music, singing your words, dancing, [and] moving, that is so special. To me, the connection that music forms is just as intimate as sex. That emotional pull, that unspoken spiritual connection. The ego’s not there, everything is stripped back. I also love that you can use music to provoke people, you can control ego, make someone feel like they’re that bitch. You can also completely remove it, that’s a big part of live music. It’s your music but people feel what they want and what they need.

614. Has solitude given you a new perspective on music making and yourself?

For me, personally, solitude has allowed me to take a step back and evaluate what’s important for me and my artistry. As you grow as an artist, you go through different phases, you experiment. But I think ultimately, it has taught me there’s nothing better than embracing yourself completely. No gimmicks, no dripping in designer, it’s beautiful when you can just channel your music into who you are without filtering who you are.

614. How does it feel to lead this new age of Australian RnB?

Whether people realise it or not, it is so pivotal pioneering music. We haven’t even taken off yet; the plane is still on the tarmac. The American scene and the UK scene, they are up in space by now, we are still in our infancy, and we need as much support as we can get. Support is our biggest driver when it comes to pushing Aussie music globally. Australia is on a visible fight to the top, the Hip Hop scene is growing, and RnB is at its threshold. Music is something you have to work on for years; this shit takes time. We all need each other; making music takes a whole village. For us RnB artists, we are now in the time and place to really step on the scene and embrace the music that we grew up listening to. We’re making it ours.

With much unreleased music and a project in the works, Billy’s sound continues to grow as she offers a snapshot of a scene that is teeming with readiness. Australian RnB will put its name on the map, and Billymaree will be all over it.