The music industry is all about moments and capitalising when the stars align. Sprinkle in a little (eek, a lot of) luck and an underground talent can quickly garner a rabid social media following when those elements fuse together.
This is what happened to Meanjin/ Brisbane-based artist Paulina earlier this month. An emerging talent who has already built an online audience with a string of singles and an EP since 2020, alongside winning the Youth Award at the Queensland Music Awards, an impromptu jam with beatboxer extraordinaire Tom Thum created the perfect storm to capture virality in a bottle.After uploading a snippet of their jam of a new song titled 'Focus On Me' to Instagram, collecting 1.4 million views and a staggering 15,000 new followers in its wake for Paulina, the duo decided to get series and hit the studio proper to record the magic they had created.
"This track is more than just a viral hit; it's a reflection of our shared experiences and the spontaneous magic that happens when Tom and I create music together," Paulina shares. "It's about finding solace in music and each other."
Tom adds: "Paulina and I have managed to find a synergy in our workflow and creativity that I only come across very rarely. I think the fact we both just want to be creative for the sake of simply enjoying the process, makes all of our ideas so far seem very natural.
"I think that's why this song works, it was a fun, spontaneous seed of an idea that well and truly outgrew it's pot very quickly."
Who is Paulina... 'Just A Girl' - No Doubt.
I sound like... I've been getting compared to Portishead a lot recently!
My first gig was... At Studio 188 in Ipswich (Queensland) for their Unearthed series back in 2019. I'll never forget how sick I was that day, had a fever and all, but my god did I have the time of my life onstage – from that day on I knew I only wanted to do music.
When did you settle on your name... Hahaha, well Paulina is the name I was born with so I guess since day one! My last name though is a long, complicated German last name hence why I kept my artist name to just my first name.
In the studio we usually... Tom Thum and I will predominantly create songs using our voices, with very little extra instrumentation! We've created bass instruments and synths out of my voice before, plus seeing as he's a stupidly talented beatboxer, he can make just about any sound we need with his mouth.
If I could tour with anyone... It would be RAYE! She is hands down the best artist I've ever seen live and I'd be honoured to tour with a girl who's got a voice and a beautiful energy like hers.
Social media is... Dope but addictive.
My favourite app at the moment is... Co-Star for sureeee! It gives me advice and horoscopes every day based on my birth chart. Even though I know it's partly AI, I still love the extra lil morning motivation it gives me :)
To date, my most embarrassing moment was the time... I choked on an oyster and caused a scene in a really fancy restaurant. I've never had seafood since. I was eight.
Life on the road can be... Though I've never toured before, I have played some shows in Germany and in London, and dayum it's fine. Though it's a real pain having to haul all of your equipment to the other side of the world (not to mention the extra luggage costs, lol).
If you'll have me on your bill, all I ask is that my rider contains... Raspberries, blueberries, nuts and some 100 per cent cacao dark chocolate – combined, it's my ultimate favourite snack! Ooo and can't forget some fresh lemon and ginger to make myself tea.
The most scary scenario I've found myself in, was... When I was in Fiji in 2018 and it was storming and flooding and I had to take a boat across a river that was literally shark infested to get to my hotel in the middle of the night, and we nearly capsized multiple times, to the point where two fish legit jumped into our boat!
What celebrity / famous person would you love to be spokesperson of the band... Jennifer Lawrence 1,000 per cent! She's legit so funny and so real, I think she'd be perfect.
If you had to live in a city abroad, where would you choose and why? London! I love it there. Love the musicians I get to work with there, the restaurants, the markets, the parks, the history. It's a full vibe (minus the weather).
Three people you'd like to invite around for a dinner party... Emma Grede, Zendaya and Amelia Dimoldenberg. I just think these are three bad-ass women who are dominating in their industries and are helping open countless more doors for women. I can only imagine how inspiring they would be to talk to.
If we were coming over to your place, what would you cook for us? It's got to be tacos for sure! Mexican food is my all-time fave cuisine and I hate to flex, but in my humble opinion I think I make the best guac haha.
When it comes to pets are you a lover or hater of our furry friends? Omg LOVER! I've got dogs and horses! Can't imagine a world without them.
No matter the expense, send me a case of... Lemon-lime bitters.
The last time I saw the inside of a gym was... One month ago. Not a huge fan of gyms, I prefer swimming or boxing and working out at home.
What's the one chore you dislike the most? Vacuuming. Argh.
Do you have any phobias... Yeah, I hate cockroaches. If I see one I'll scream and get my mum to kill it.
Would you ever partake in a reality show? Hahaha, dudeee I would kill to be on an episode of the Kardashians. I'm obsessed.
If you could prank any of your friends, who's your target, and how are you bringing them down? OMG, no clue I'm so bad at pranks. I'd just call up Scotty & the Ninjas from 'Prank Patrol' to do the dirty work for me. ;)
Best local takeaway joint for a midnight feed that will leave you with a food coma? Holyyyyy there's a Vietnamese takeaway place literally 200m from my house and they make the best banh-mi in the goddamn WORLD!
Which fictional character best describes your personality? SpongeBob. He's just doing his own thing and obnoxiously laughing his way through life, lol.
Last show you binge-watched (and what kept you glued to the screen)? 'FBI'. Dude, I'm a SUCKER for any and all criminal shows. In another life I was most definitely a special agent.
