Meali Grace’s recently released debut single Upstream is a poignant exploration of the themes of perseverance and resilience, brought to life with silky vocals and raw instrumentals.
To celebrate the song’s release, Marx Music had the pleasure of asking the rising artist about her experience in the music industry from busking to booking gigs, the power of music and writing for the hearts of listeners, as well as self.
With a Bachelor of Music specialising in Songwriting, Meali describes her formal training as pivotal in her current writing, citing it as a tool which allows her the opportunity to properly explore her creativity.
“Music has been my one passion from a really young age,” Meali said of her aspirations.
“I realised when I was looking for future jobs and uni degrees in year 12 that music is my life passion. At that stage I had only really just started writing songs and finding my musical voice and inspiration and I hadn’t found anyone who had a ‘big career’ that wrote songs in the style I saw my writing going.
“Then I found Lizzy McAlpine and I finally saw someone who I could really look up to and aspire to be like.
“When it comes to Sydney's influence I believe that from playing so many cafe gigs, markets, events etc, all around the city and beyond, is where I really fell in love with performing and sharing my love of music with people.
“Being able to go see so many live performances and shows also showed me how powerful music can be in bringing people together.”
When asked about Upstream’s origins, the artist attributes the shared human experience of resilience as its overarching theme, likening it to fighting a current.
“I was sitting at home one night and this idea of swimming against the current came to me and I just couldn’t shake it,” she said.
“I then continued to think about how I believe it’s a common human experience to feel like the weight of the world is pushing you under.
“That’s how the chorus came about, as I sat in my room one night with my guitar, fixed on this image of swimming against the current and left with this thought of how much longer can I keep doing this before exhaustion hits?”
While her music is the product of personal experiences, the artist looks for balance in her song-writing to ensure listeners feel a relatability to their own circumstances.
“I love to write verses that really place the listener in their personal and more specific circumstances and experiences, so that people are able to think and put their own personal and unique contexts to the song and are able to connect with it on a different level.“
With more than 100 original songs to her name that await their release, Meali says she is still navigating her creativity, constantly exploring and playing.
“I try to work on moments of inspiration as soon as they strike. I once heard a quote that said 'creative inspiration is like wet concrete, you have to keep working with it or else It will dry and harden, making it hard to work with.'
"I find myself doing one of two things when I know I need to write or push myself to be creative.
"I will sit in my room by myself, often at night and just start playing my guitar, playing with different ideas, chords and shapes, often that will spark an idea.
"The other thing I love to do is when nobody is home, I go play the piano in our living room and do that same thing, play with different random ideas and just explore the options."
This year, listeners can look forward to tracks which will compliment Upstream, following an acoustic and piano style.
“It’s my hope that the listeners can immerse themselves in these moments with me, there'll be themes of loss of relationships, want, desire, surrender and heartbreak.
“Long term is to create an audience of people who connect and appreciate the type of art and music that I make.”
