Priya Francis, a Melbourne singer-songwriter, has released a thoughtful new track named 'Swimming,' a beautiful melody about gaining independence. While the song is about Priya requesting to be left alone, composing it revealed to her that she was addressing her own anxieties about always having someone looking over her shoulder. 'Swimming' is about realizing that it's time for her to make her own errors and sort things out for herself. 'Swimming,' produced by Jarrod Hambleton with contributions from Coben McDonald (one half of electronic band Yuto), is a calm piece with steady rhythm beats and dreamy guitar riffs that set the platform for Priya's beautiful vocals.
By Kamil Bobin
Discovered via Musosoup
Kamil) Hey Priya Francis, super nice to have the chance to chat with you. What have you been up to over the past year in this big old mess?
Thank you having me! This year has been a bit of a ride to say the least, but I'm glad I managed to sneak the release of Swimming in before it ended. I spent a lot of this year like most in lockdown, but it really gave me time to keep developing and growing as an artist, whether that was collaborating with other artists or pushing myself creatively, which I'm really grateful for.
I'm very interested in how you started your adventure with music and did you know from the beginning that this is what you wanted to do?
My relationship started really young. I was just always involved in music in some way whether it was through school or outside in my own time and it's just been something consistent for me. I definitely knew it was what I wanted to do and I've just aimed to take every opportunity I was given to explore it.
Your latest track is 'Swimming'. Can you share with us the background of its creation and did any unusual things happen during its creation?
Swimming came out of Melbourne's last few lockdowns in 2021. It was a pretty typical process to be honest, it came about through just mucking around, playing around on Logic and recording the first thing that came to mind until I fully developed an idea, then I sent it off to Nitecaller, (Jarrod Hambleton) who really gave it legs.
I've noticed that you have a lot of pictures on your Instagram with other people. How important are relationships for you?
They're everything. They're what nearly all of my songs revolve around and the relationships I have with the people in my life are the most important thing to me. The people I'm surrounded with helped me out heaps throughout this last year.
You live in Melbourne, Australia. What do you like most about this place?
The culture in Melbourne is insane. Every corner of it is filled with insane undiscovered talent and there's something going on all year round. So many creative individuals live in Melbourne and it's easily one of the most inspiring places to live in.
Does your family share your passion for music? What do they think about your work?
Though they wouldn't admit it, the majority of my family is just as musical as I am. I grew up in a musically rich household and my mum and dad really blessed me with the diversity of music they exposed me to from a young age. Even through my extended family, there's always music involved when we get together and it really surrounds some of my fondest memories I have with them all.
Can you write what was your best performance in your career? How do you remember it?
It's hard to pick a favourite. I've been lucky to perform with a bunch of amazing people, all of them my closest friends and I think being able to share those performances with them and truly be myself is probably my favourite thing about those performances.
Do you have any other passions apart from music? If yes, can you introduce them to us?
To be quite frank, not really. As a child and teenager I was always writing, whether it was poetry or reviewing other musicians for local publications, but somehow I've always managed to bring it back to music, intentional or not.
Who's your ideal musician to collaborate with and why?
Jon Bellion. As a writer and a producer the man is just a treasure trove of knowledge and talent. I feel like it would just be an insane masterclass in musicality, creativity and thinking outside the box. He's also really honed in on a sound and I've been in love with his music since I was about 15 so collaborating with him would blow my mind.
What are your plans for next year? Do you have any productions ready to be released?
My plan for next year is to release more music for sure. Ready to release? Not yet, but definitely close. I just wanted to get Swimming out this year so I could share it before 2021 ended and I could go into 2022 with a fresh slate. I'm keen to collaborate with a bunch of new artists, collaborate with artists I've already worked with and really just develop and grow the music people have heard from me.