Becky Rhodes Miss Me Yet? Interview

Following up from her debut single "He's Not You", Becky Rhodes recently released "Miss Me Yet?" giving fans the last tease before her forthcoming EP Wonder out October 2nd. Hailing from Brisbane, Becky completed a Bachelor of Music from the QLD Conservatorium of Music before relocating to Melbourne to further her career. Working as a musician, performer and vocalist on the Melbourne live music scene for the last few years, Becky is known for her powerhouse vocals & lively stage presence and works for some of Australia's best entertainment agencies. She also recently featured on MADISON and CRKDSMLE's dance single "For Your Love", the first of a string of vocal features to come.

Two weeks prior to entering the studio to record her debut EP with Mark D'Angelo of The Backlot Studios, Becky had her relationship suddenly end. With no set idea on what material she'd be working on in the studio, this experience provided much of the inspiration for the new material. Becky explains, "My producer was so fun & relaxing to work with and he really helped bring my songs to life. I can often hear the different instruments, layers and motifs of the songs in my own head, but I can have trouble articulating and then applying them to my songs, but Mark really understood my vision & brought my ideas to life. Some days in the studio were really hard due to the heavy nature of the songs & not being in the best headspace in the weeks following a breakup - but laying down the songs during that time really helped me work through my emotions & it captured a really raw side of heartbreak that I wouldn't have been able to capture if I wasn't experiencing that pain at the time."

Becky has already had a charmed experience working within the music industry, travelling around Australia with various shows & bands and performing at The Sydney Opera House as a teenager. Now leading into the release of her debut EP, Becky reflects on what she wants listeners to gain from her songwriting. "Everyone has or will experience heartbreak from time to time. Whether that's from a relationship or a friendship ending or losing a loved one - we can all relate to this theme. This EP has songs I wished I could have listened to during my own heartbreak. But it's not all sad. There's moments of happiness, reflection & moving on, so I want the listeners to be able to relate in their own way & mostly, enjoy my music."

Interview with Becky Rhodes

Question: How would you describe your music?

Becky Rhodes: I'd describe my music as catchy pop with super personable lyrics. There's a definite 'sad girl on the dance floor' vibe to this EP and all the songs tie together with that general theme of heartbreak. Even in the saddest moments of the EP where the lyrics are really raw and emotional, the melodies are still fun and catchy and very poppy.


Question: Can you tell us about 'Miss Me Yet'?

Becky Rhodes: Miss Me Yet? is a really fun moment on the EP. It's upbeat, sexy, empowering and has pop, indie and western vibes all rolled into one track. It's a breakup tune, but it's not sad. It's all about that realisation that if someone doesn't want to be with you anymore, they're the one whose missing out on something great. It's empowering and it's a song that makes you feel good about yourself. It's also got major cowgirl vibes to it, which is super different for an indie pop song. It makes me want to get out my pink cowgirl hat and do some line dancing and make my ex really regret all his life decisions.


Question: Is there a particular message you hope listeners take from your music?

Becky Rhodes: I wouldn't say there's a particular message I want to convey - but I just want to make music that people resonate with and like. I wrote the EP during a pretty devastating break up, and I feel like I wrote songs that I wished I had to listen to, while going through that. So, if someone is going through something similar, I hope that these tracks help them through it. And if they're not going through a breakup or a bad time, then I just hope people like the music.

Question: Do you prefer performing live or recording?

Becky Rhodes: I have been performing since I was a little kid and come from the theatre and live music scene, so I definitely prefer performing live.


Question: Which is your favourite song to perform live and why?

Becky Rhodes: I only got to perform these songs once before Covid took over the world, so I can't speak from much experience here - but I'd say 'Change Your Mind'. It has this huge and heavy drum and bass part that is really fun live. A few hair flicks and head bangs will definitely be going on in the future when that song is played live again.


Question: If you could have anyone, in the world, attend a show, who would it be?

Becky Rhodes: That's such a hard question - but probably Stevie Nicks.


Question: What motivates you most when writing music?

Becky Rhodes: I am very much someone who writes from their own personal experiences and whatever's going on in their own life at the time. I wear my heart on my sleeve with my writing, which is kind of scary and exposing - but it's the only way I know how. I wish I was someone who was able to write more abstractly and detach themselves from what they're writing about - but I just don't think it's my style. My biggest motivator from my writing is pretty evidently, my love life and the rollercoaster ride that it is. So, not only is my love life entertaining all my friends who are in long term loved up relationships, but it also fuels my song writing - which is really obvious in my EP. So, even though I've had some really rough times at least I got some good songs out of it - so can't complain.


Question: Which music/artists are you currently listening to?
Becky Rhodes: Really loving the new albums from Glass Animals, DMA'S and Taylor's Folklore. Also been digging a lot of Kita Alexander and Gracie Abrams lately too.


Question: What or who was your inspiration to go into the music industry?

Becky Rhodes: I've been singing and performing since I was really little. I remember Mum and Dad taking me to a production of Annie when I was surely about 6 or 7, and I just remember saying "I want to do that". So, my parents enrolled me in singing lessons and theatre classes and I never really looked back. For the longest time I wanted to work in musical theatre and I studied it at Uni and even worked in that industry for a while, but as I got older, I was drawn to live music and music festivals and started gigging with bands pretty regularly. And then one day I just realised I was at my happiest being the front woman of a band, not in the chorus of a musical - so I just switched gears and started doing the live music stuff and writing my own music. So, I guess we can attribute that production of ANNIE for inspiring me to get into performing but it was singers like Vera Blue, Florence Welsh, Meg Mac who really inspired me to become an artist and start writing my own music.


Question: What's a typical day like?

Becky Rhodes: A typical day in the life of Becky (DURING MELBOURNE LOCKDOWN)
• wake up at extremely late hour
• drink a lot of coffee
• return emails/life admin
• teach kiddies how to sing/play instruments via ZOOM
• work on any vocals/songs
• workout
• watch mindless tv for many hours
• go to bed at very late hour
• repeat
*in a non-lockdown world, there would be a lot more gigs mixed into this routine and a lot less ZOOM*

Question: What is the biggest challenge you have faced along the way to your musical success?

Becky Rhodes: I'd say the biggest challenge is knowing what to do once you've written and recorded your music. You could literally write the greatest song known to man, but unless you know what to do with, whose hands to put it in etc - no one's going to hear it and no one's going to care. Learning about the ins and outs of the music industry and dealing with all the admin, promotion, social media etc is weirdly a bigger part of making music, than actually making the music itself. In saying that, I've only just dipped my toes in the pond of the music industry so I've still got way more to learn - but that to me, has been the biggest challenge.


Question: What has been your favourite part of becoming a music artist?

Becky Rhodes: Singing my own music is probably the best part about becoming an artist. As someone whose grown up singing other people's songs, it's definitely exciting to get to sing my own words and to have people react in a really positive light to my music.


Question: What's next, for you?

Becky Rhodes: Hopefully - live gigs. Everything's a bit up in the air at the moment, but that's hopefully what's next - the return of gigs.
I'd love to be able to perform this EP live and even just get back to singing in live bands at weddings and events again - I even miss singing 'Horses' to drunken crowds every weekend. Who would have thought?!
Aside from that, I'd like to get back in the studio and start writing some new tracks..


Question: Can you share your socials? (links please)

Becky Rhodes: Facebook  
Instagram  
Soundcloud 


Interview by Gwen van Montfort