CHLOÉ & BEGINNING AGAIN | 5 TRACK EP

After an extended hiatus spent in the beautiful and bewildering mahi of motherhood, Tāmaki Makaurau based musician and songwriter Chloé has resurfaced with new songs and a fresh wind to begin again.

The songs are chosen, the producer, studio and musicians are locked in. The goal is a 5 track EP to be released later in the year. Please consider partnering with her to bring these songs to life in the studio over the coming months.

18 months ago I went back to uni to ‘re-finish’ my Pop Music Degree with people half my age. The happy by-product of all this was that I could borrow their enthusiasm for making music, and they helped me to believe in myself again.

Forced to create by way of uni deadlines, the songs kept coming, the collaborations started, and I started performing again. Unsigned, unfunded but undeterred, I’m determined to move these songs from ‘bedroom bangers’ to ‘streaming sensations’ (love me some alliteration!) I have quality people like Vivek Garbiel in my corner (who happens to have all the producing/energinners skills I am missing), as well as many musical collaborators and the loving support from my whānau and friends.

I am raising money for:

• Studio time for 16 weeks (1 day per week roughly)
• Engineer and producer fee
• Session musicians (at least $200 a day per musician)
• Promotion & marketing once song is done (estimate is $1k per song)
• Photographer - update my photos closer the project being finished
• Graphic design work - lyric videos & single/EP graphics 

The songs are all ready to go, but now is the time to refine them within a studio context with the help of strong musicians, good gear, and a creative producer.  I've booked in the next four months with an experienced engineer/producer called Vivek Gabriel (Aro, Strahan, Avantdale Bowling Club, others) to record a 5-track EP. I'll be basing myself out of his studio on Fridays predominately for 16 weeks, and will be recording vocals and session musicians during these sessions (drums, bass, keys, gats & horns).

I believe artists should share their work. Too long my songs have existed as hidden tracks in Soundcloud or buried chord charts in Google Docs, but after an extended amount of time honing my skills and scrutinising my motivations around making music, I am more convinced then ever that this is 'my thing', and I'm not done with it - in fact - this is just the beginning!

It's a beautiful, awful and wonderful thing to be an artist. Sometimes I pine for the 40 hour work week and the ladder to climb. I am jealous of my friends jobs with momentum and pay rises!  But I can't help the fact that I feel more like myself tucked away in my studio writing (and rewriting) song after song, and wanting to sing it to whoever is willing to listen to it. 

Being an artist in New Zealand is pretty difficult tbh. My experience mirrors many others I'm sure. Most of my peers have moved on. Which makes me feel every crazier now than I did when I was a twenty-something starting out. There is some support for artists, but there is simply not enough funding and opportunity to go around. I work as much as I can to fill the lunchboxes, and make music in the margins, but with some financial support I will be to relax into this next season having the headspace and time to be as creative as possible. 

I believe artists create beautiful worlds that help us to understand and name the gloriousness and messiness of our humanity. I wasn't sure I would ever return to making music again, but I'm sure that this is the next-best-thing I can do right now and I'm so grateful for the support.