With a sound that easily traverses the sonic territory of Lorde, Lana Del Rey, Benee, and Adele, Melbourne singer-songwriter Rya Park continues to highlight her exceptional talent with the release of new single, 'Kill It Now'.
Fresh off the delectable trip-hop, indietronica joint 'The Lucky Ones', 'Kill It Now' sees Rya once more team with Slum Sociable's Ed Quinn and The Temper Trap's Toby Dundas.She's also expanded her collaborations, teaming with another emerging local talent Hauskey to co-write 'Kill It Now', which The Temper Trap premiered the accompanying music video earlier this week.
Tell us more about your new single 'Kill It Now'... sound, vibe, influences?
'Kill It Now' is definitely inspired by some of my favourite female artists; Lorde and King Princess.
I wrote this about a relationship that was too good to be true. Almost like it's perfect, but let's end it because I don't want to get hurt at the end of it. It's a bit of a cruisy song; definitely a Lana Del Rey influence. I'm obsessed with her latest album, 'Norman F...ing Rockwell', I just think it's fantastic. I suppose it felt natural to create something like 'Kill It Now' after listening to it so many times.
You co-wrote the song with another emerging talent, Hauskey. What did he bring to the track that really made it shine?
Hauskey is an amazing songwriter and I have been so lucky to write a number of songs with him. He really brought the song to life with his string arrangement and guitar parts too. The instrumentation in this song has so much character and it wouldn't be where it is today without Hauskey's charm.
He's a big fan of Lana Del Rey too, so it was easy for us to write together and to come up with something that we both loved. I was instantly at ease when writing with Hauskey, he's very calm and super lovely.
Slum Sociable's Ed Quinn and Toby Dundas from The Temper Trap produced 'Kill It Now'; that's an impressive team; how did the collaboration come about?
I started working with Ed in June last year after a trip to New York and we wrote some of my previous tracks – 'Bad Name' and 'The Lucky Ones' together.
He's so fun to work with; always great banter, but we do put our head down and get the work done too! I really love his style and especially his drum samples; the drums on 'Kill It Now' are Ed's. I've been a big fan of Slum Sociable for years and it's very exciting to be working alongside Ed.
As for Toby, he's been the incredible mixer behind the scenes helping to bring so many of my songs to life. He's so lovely and talented, and I'm so grateful that he came on and did some production on this track too. We're also working on another song for next year together.
The Temper Trap has also premiered the music video for 'Kill It Now' on their socials; that's overloaded with amazing feels. You must be over the moon with joy?
I am so grateful for this. I was very nervous and jittery before it, but also very excited. Ellena Paskevicius brought the video to life and we created something really special and something that I'm so proud to share.
2020 for Rya Park; despite all the pandemic issues, has it been a productive year (musically as well as personally)?
It has been musically. This is the fourth single I'm releasing this year, which I can't really believe. I didn't think I'd be releasing any music this year, but it's been a whirlwind of releases.
Look, this year hasn't been great personally, but it hasn't been good for anyone. I've battled with my mental illness a lot this year as I know lots of other people have and yeah, it's not been easy. As restrictions start to ease and the weather starts to get a little brighter though, I'm starting to feel a little less depressed.
March 2021 will see the release of your debut EP, 'Lexapro'; will this feature songs you've already released or a new batch of music?
My debut EP will have some songs on it that you have already heard, but will definitely have some newbies on there too. I've been working on the EP release for awhile now and I can't wait to share the whole thing.
I wish I could right now, but it's not actually finished yet! Still a little bit more work to do on some songs with some tweaking here and there. A new song that will be coming out next year was written by myself and Steph Marziano in London. We wrote it last year on a hot summer's day and celebrated with some Apperol Spritz.
As your debut body of work, what impression do you want to leave with the listener?
I want to make young men and women feel heard and a little less alone. If I can even do that for one person I'll be happy.
The best part of releasing songs that are so personal is that other people share their stories too and it's incredible to see such vulnerability and openness from fans. Although I feel sad that other people might be feeling as down as I am, it at least creates an honest and open dialogue for people to find solace in.
You were born in London, but raised in Singapore before arriving in Australia; how did that upbringing shape your own music/ songwriting?
Yes! Growing up in Singapore was definitely an experience. I had friends from all over the world and knew about so many different cultures.
Everyone that we met over there was without family, so friends kind of became your family. I suppose this upbringing has given me the ability to be very open and non-judgemental about others.
The past 12-18 months has seen your career begin to emerge to a bigger audience; as an artist, how are you feeling about the next 6-12 months and what you can achieve?
I'm looking forward to finally releasing my debut EP. I've been working towards this release for a while now and I can't wait to share the songs with everyone.
I'm feeling hopeful about things here in Melbourne at the moment and hoping that we can go back to live performances next year. I really miss performing.
You told us in another interview you'd like a framed picture of Alex Turner as part of your rider; guessing he and Arctic Monkeys are an influence?
Oh yeah! The Arctic Monkeys are one of my favourite bands of all time. Also, Alex Turner is just incredible. I went and saw their concert last year and I was mind-blown. Big fan. Haha.
As an emerging female artist, how important is it to you to present a positive message for other young woman who wish to pursue a career in music?
I guess the message that I want to send is that it really is okay not to be okay and that asking for help when you need it is really important.
As someone who struggles with anxiety, depression, an eating disorder and body dysmorphia too, I want to be able to share my story with other young women, and hopefully make them feel a little less alone or more open to sharing their experience with someone.
I stayed quiet about my battles for so many years, and it hasn't been until I've opened up about them that things have started to really improve.
