Silly Talks Music

Generally speaking, the heavier music genres don't top music charts these days. And if they do, most of them are all male outfits. Is Australia different on that front? What does the heavier scene look like in The Land Down Under? And what is it like to be a woman in that broad genre? All these topics (and more) are the focus of my chat with Sam - the singer of the Sydney alt-metal band Fifth Dawn. Find more content like this on the sillymcwiggles.blog. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

Despite what you might think, not every musician or band in Australia is from Melbourne or Sydney. BELLA DEER is based in Geelong, Victoria, for a change. She talks to me about all the great opportunities she's had in the music business so far, including being a finalist in the prestigious Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition. But everyone knows the music industry is not a bed of roses. So Bella also sheds some light on the challenges independent musos still face, not only in the Land Down Under. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

Hands up if you know any Aussie country artists. Fanny Lumsden is one of them. And she's taking me on a journey through the country music scene in the Land Down Under. We're also talking about Fanny's breakthrough album and the signature tour she's been running in rural areas for over a decade. Last but not least, check out this playlist with Australian country artists curated by Fanny. More content like this on my ⁠sillymcwiggles.blog⁠.  --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

Season 5 opens with a chat with an international guest. Pilani Bubu is a singer/songwriter from South Africa. Her recent multi-part project, "Folklore", is a selection of stories about her land and a personal journey. Pilani talks about discovering her role in preserving her ancestors' knowledge and wisdom and what it's like to sing in her native languages. This chat is a great lesson on South Africa's history and current affairs. Hence, here's a list of all the important people, places and events Pilani has mentioned throughout this interview, with a few personal notes from her as well: * Where she is from: Transkei / Wild Coast / Mpondo People / Eastern Mpondoland * Where she currently lives: Gauteng / Pretoria (The Capital City) / Johannesburg. * Activist musicians: Mirriam Makeba / Brenda Fassie Dorothy Masuka Hugh Masekela * Post-Apartheid Genres: Afropop / Kwaito * African Renaissance Artists: Malaika / Mafikizolo *Dance Movements / Post-colonial freedom of expression: Ama Piano / Ggqom / Moonchild Sanelly / Sho Madjozi / Tyla (nominated for Grammy now for Water) / Musa Keys (also nominated) * The languages she speaks: Xhosa / Sesotho / Setswana / Zulu / Afrikaans / English P.S. Shakira sang the 2010 World Cup song in collaboration with a group called Freshlyground, with the lead singer Zolani Mahola. P.S.2 Jazz improv and inspiration for singing in Joburg was a diverse area before the Group Areas Act (A law passed by the Apartheid government to separate us by racial groups in terms of where people could live) called Sophiatown. More content like this on my ⁠sillymcwiggles.blog⁠.  --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

Silly McWiggles is back on air. Are you ready for more chats about the (Aussie and beyond) music business? This is a special March 2024 edition dedicated to females in this tricky industry. #girlpower Find out why it's taken Silly this long to release another round of interviews and who her amazing guests are this time. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

On June 1, 2023, for the first time in history, TikTok live-streamed a concert from an Indigenous Australian community. Over 100k platform users and 2,000 locals from Wadeye in the Northern Territory, where the event took place, watched the rising First Nations hip-hop star J-MILLA deliver his electrifying show. Chryss Carr, who manages the young rapper, was the one who pulled off this collaboration. How did she convince TikTok to enter this risky business in a remote area where the internet could drop out any time? Find out from this episode. Check out AUM (Chryss's company): ⁠https://www.aum.net.au/⁠ Get to know J-MILLA: https://www.instagram.com/jmillaofficial/ Watch the news report about the concert: https://www.tiktok.com/@jmillaofficial/video/7241890310966594824 Find more content like this on my page: ⁠⁠https://sillymcwiggles.blog/⁠⁠ --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

Having been in the music business since the 80s, artist manager and former publicist Chryss Carr has probably seen it all. But even she thinks PR has become a much more complex game these days. She also shares her views on women's place in the industry and gives me solid advice on why the music industry is now a labyrinth and how to know “who's who in the zoo”.  Check out AUM (Chryss's company): ⁠https://www.aum.net.au/⁠ Get to know J-MILLA: https://www.instagram.com/jmillaofficial/ Learn about the "Beneath The Glass Ceiling" movement: https://linktr.ee/beneaththeglassceiling Check out Andrew Watt's book "Welcome To The Jungle: Navigating the Music Business in Australia": https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20840836-welcome-to-the-jungle Find more content like this on my page: ⁠⁠https://sillymcwiggles.blog/⁠⁠ --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

She worked with the most commercially successful Aboriginal Australian musician, Gurrumul. Thanks to her, Australia (and the world) heard about Indigenous rapper Baker Boy. She also secured the first global TikTok live-streaming event from a remote territory for another one of her hip-hop artists, J-MILLA. Artist manager and former publicist who can’t help but still dabble with the media, Chryss Carr, speaks to me about her rock'n'roll career in the Australian music industry, falling in love with Darwin and the Northern Territory, and what it takes to break First Nations acts. Check out AUM (Chryss's company): https://www.aum.net.au/ Learn more about Gurrumul: http://www.gurrumul.com/about/ Watch the documentary about Gurrumul: https://youtu.be/TXa3gw3g4C4 Find out what's on at the Darwin Festival: https://www.darwinfestival.org.au/ Fall in love with the Northern Territory: https://northernterritory.com/ Get to know Skinnyfish Records: https://www.skinnyfishmusic.com.au/ Learn more about the First Nations' "Voice" to Parliament: https://voice.gov.au/ Find more content like this on my page: https://sillymcwiggles.blog/ --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

Many people dream of working in the music space. But being a part of the business also comes with some downsides. Ask any artists touring for extended periods of the year. Ash King is the in-house psychologist for Support Act, the Australian music industry's mental health charity. She walks me through the impact of well-being on the lives of the people working in the music business (and everyone else's, for that matter). Visit Support Act's page: https://supportact.org.au/ Support Act's Wellbeing Hotline: 1800 959 500 (24 hours a day, 365 days per year, within Australia only) Find out why you should support 'Support Act': http://sillymcwiggles.blog/2021/11/17/why-you-should-support-support-act/ Learn more about 'Sound Minds': https://supportact.org.au/mental-health/sound-minds-meet-ups-for-the-music-community/ Participate in the Aus Music T-shirt Day: https://www.ausmusictshirtday.org.au/ Read my article about #ausmusictshirtday: http://sillymcwiggles.blog/2019/11/13/need-another-reason-to-wear-your-favourite-bands-merchandise-join-ausmusictshirtday/ Watch the interview with Lucas Sutton: https://youtu.be/axXNMI7N2NI Find me online as @SillyMcWiggles --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

Apart from haka, rugby and Lorde, what else do you know about New Zealand? And how about the Māori culture? Meet Matariki Cultural Foundation's Director, Hinu(rewa) Te Hau, who shares her invaluable insights on the importance of Māori arts and music in New Zealand's society. Browse some Maori vocabulary here: https://tereomaori.tki.org.nz/Teacher-tools/Te-Whakaipurangi-Rauemi/High-frequency-word-lists Get to know some Maori artists: https://www.last.fm/tag/maori/artists Learn about Taonga pūoro - Māori musical instruments: https://www.tepapa.govt.nz/discover-collections/read-watch-play/maori/maori-musical-instruments Find out more about the traditional dance, kapa haka: https://www.newzealand.com/int/feature/kapa-haka-maori-performance/ Learn about The Treaty of Waitangi: ⁠https://nzhistory.govt.nz/politics/treaty/the-treaty-in-brief⁠ More resources about Mātauranga Māori – Māori knowledge: ⁠https://www.takai.nz/find-resources/articles/matauranga-maori/⁠ Visit Matariki Cultural Foundation: https://www.puoronz.com/ See what Creative New Zealand has to offer: https://www.creativenz.govt.nz/ Check out Māori Language Commission: https://en.tetaurawhiri.govt.nz/ Visit NZ Music Commission: https://nzmusic.org.nz/ and its division, Outward Sound: https://nzmusic.org.nz/international/ Listen to Iwi Radio Stations: http://www.irirangi.net/iwi-stations.aspx And finally, connect with me on my channels: Silly McWiggles --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

The chat about diversity, inclusion and access with Morwenna Collett - a disability consultant in the arts industry in Australia - inspired me to make my online channels more suitable for different audiences. So I thought providing transcripts on the platforms where my podcast is available would be a good way to start. But I ran into some unexpected obstacles... Find the subtitled version of this special episode here: https://youtu.be/q8_isYfp_Dc Check out Otter for your transcripts: https://otter.ai/home Find Morwenna's page here: https://www.morwennacollett.com/ DM me on socials @SillyMcWiggles with your thoughts --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

Wheelchair-accessible venues, quiet spaces for neurodiverse people at festivals or sign language interpreting at concerts are no longer just nice-to-haves. Yet, there's still much room for improvement to make the music business more diverse, accessible and inclusive. How's Australia doing on that front? Morwenna Collett, an accomplished facilitator passionate about increasing accessibility within the music industry, is talking me through some of her findings and her own lived experience as a musician with a disability. Find the subtitled chat here on YT: https://youtu.be/txTx0LqW45U Visit Morwenna's website: https://www.morwennacollett.com/ The article about Beyoncé's and Lizzo's ableist lyrics is here: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2022/aug/01/when-beyonce-dropped-the-same-ableist-slur-as-lizzo-on-her-new-album-my-heart-sank Watch this video of Auslan interpreters rocking out at a gig: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2369978963293765 Amber Galloway (American sign languages interpreter)'s website: https://www.ambergproductions.com/ Check out Ability Fest: https://www.abilityfest.com.au/ and my blog post about it: http://sillymcwiggles.blog/2021/11/24/is-ability-fest-the-most-accessible-music-festival-in-australia/ Learn about Arts Access Australia's mission: https://artsaccessaustralia.org/ Meet Morwenna's peer and disability advocate, Eliza Hull: https://www.elizahull.com/ Find out more about Hack Sounds: https://hacksounds.com/ --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

Dino Lupelli is an entrepreneur who creates opportunities for innovation in the music sector, especially the live side of it. He's based in Milan, Italy, but the projects he spearheads, like Linecheck and the Music Innovation Hub, have had a global impact. A big part of his work is related to the ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) aspects of culture. So I picked his brain about the "green" side of concerts and festivals, including ideas to become more sustainable, the cost of the transition and how the topic is perceived by different parties within the music business, in general. Learn more about Dino on his website: http://www.dinolupelli.com/ Visit the Music Innovation Hub: https://musicinnovationhub.org/home-en/ Browse useful resources provided by these sustainability-focused music organisations: Julie's Bicycle -> https://juliesbicycle.com/ Music Declares Emergency -> https://musicdeclares.net/ Green Music Australia -> https://www.greenmusic.org.au/ Find me on socials as @SillyMcWiggles, and check out my sillymcwiggles.blog for more music-related topics. Feel free to drop me an email at: sabatheexperiencedesigner@gmail.com as well. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

Who’s keen for more “Silly Talks” with Saba from the Silly McWiggles project? This season, we’re going international. And the chats are centred around topics like sustainability, working with First Nations artists, accessibility and mental health. Stoked to be back! Speak soon! Collab proposals are welcome. Find me online: sillymcwiggles.blog or Drop me an email at sabatheexperiencedesigner@gmail.com or DM me @SillyMcWiggles on socials. Podcast credits: Concept, recording, production & artwork design - Saba from the Silly McWiggles project Music Theme from iMovie --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

In my humble view, some jobs in the music business are totally underestimated. Sound engineering is one of them. The truth is, you only notice the sound techs when something goes wrong at a gig. So I asked Dan Nash, an Aussie professional with over 20 years of experience in the field, to explain what goes into this challenging, yet fascinating profession.  You can find Dan on IG: https://www.instagram.com/dannashthings/ Learn some audio terminology from this online glossary: https://www.musicianonamission.com/audio-terms-by-subject/ Check out two audio technology companies Dan mentions in the chat: DiGiCo: https://digico.biz/ Avid: https://www.avid.com/ Find me on socials as @SillyMcWiggles, and check out my sillymcwiggles.blog for more Aussie music-related topics. Feel free to drop me an email at: sabatheexperiencedesigner@gmail.com as well. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

Have you heard of Big Sand yet? It's a virtual science fiction band, "Australia's Answer to Gorillaz", that debuted in April 2022. Sally Coleman, the project's creator and "manager" talks me through how she came up with the idea, the tech that made it possible, and her adventures in the world of animation and motion capture - totally new to her.  Check out the Big Sand's website: https://www.bigsand.band/ I also wrote about it on my blog: https://sillymcwiggles.blog/2022/05/04/theres-a-virtual-science-fiction-band-in-australia-and-it-dropped-its-first-single-last-week/ Connect with Sally on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sally-coleman-777801134/?originalSubdomain=au And here are some companies and initiatives that helped Sally make the project happen: CDW Animation - https://cdwanimation.com/ Artbreeder - https://www.artbreeder.com/ Unreal Engine - https://www.unrealengine.com/en-US Digital Futures Initiative - https://australiacouncil.gov.au/investment-and-development/partnerships-and-co-investing-with-us/apra-amcos-digital-futures/ --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

Wouldn't it be great if touring musos could save on some costs generated by life on the road, by receiving free food, accommodation or transport, for example? Pixie Weyand, the founder of Feed Music, is convinced this can be done. I'm sold on this idea already, but Pixie is currently on the journey to convince brands and music fans about it, too. Find out how the concept works from this episode.  Check out Feed Music's website: https://www.feedmusic.org/ Connect with Pixie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pixieweyand/?originalSubdomain=au --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

A flight from Sydney to New York is about 22 hours, from Perth to London - approximately 16 hours, and from Melbourne to Singapore - more or less 8 hours. So it's not easy or cheap for an average Aussie act to tour overseas. Nevertheless, the world is finally embracing the potential of the artists from the Land Down Under. So I've invited Larry Heath, the Associate Producer for Sounds Australia - the Australian Music Export Office, to take me through all the ups and downs of exporting Aussie music abroad.  Get to know Larry's company, Heath Media: https://www.heathmedia.com.au/ Learn more about Sounds Australia on their website: https://soundsaustralia.com.au/welcome-2/ Read about the Aussie BBQ in London in May 2022: http://sillymcwiggles.blog/2022/05/25/the-2022-aussie-bbq-was-heaps-good-hey-my-takeaways-from-the-event/    --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

I often get the question, "Who is your music journalist role model?" Well, here is me talking to one. Sosefina Fuamoli has worked with Rolling Stone Australia, the ARIA Awards, or BIGSOUND music conference, for instance. And I'm quizzing her on the "definition" of Australian music, some grassroots organisations championing local music Down Under, and the vital aspects of the business that still need to be addressed urgently. Don’t forget to tune into the Silly Encore with Sosefina after this one. We’ll talk about some of her fave Aussie acts. Find out more about Sosefina on her website: https://www.sosefinafuamoli.com/ And here are links to some projects we mention throughout the episode: NEWPRINT (supporting young artists of colour living in outer urban and regional areas): https://mav.org.au/projects/newprint/ Music In Exile (not-for-profit record label for artists from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds): https://musicinexile.com.au/ BIGSOUND (Australian music business conference and showcase): https://www.bigsound.org.au/ --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message

We’re back to talk more "silly" stuff with serious Aussie music industry peeps. This time round, they’re (mostly) not musicians themselves. Housekeeping: no more video from this season onwards, just my sexy international accent and my esteemed guests in audio format. Sooooooo keen. Hope you are, too! Saba from the sillymcwiggles.blog Collab proposals welcome! Drop me an email at sabatheexperiencedesigner@gmail.com or DM @SillyMcWiggles on socials.  Podcast credits: Concept, recording, production & artwork design - Saba from the Silly McWiggles blog Music Theme from iMovie --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/silly-mcwiggles-blog/message