Name: Asha Jefferies
Nationality: Australian
Occupation: Singer, songwriter
Current release: Asha Jefferies's new single "Keep My Shit Together" is out via Nettwerk.
Recommendations: "Summer of Love" by Jess Ribeiro; The Creative Act: A Way Of Being by Rick Rubin

If you enjoyed this Asha Jefferies interview and would like to keep up to date with her music, visit her on Instagram, Facebook, bandcamp, and Soundcloud.



When I listen to music, I see shapes, objects and colours. What happens in your body when you're listening? Do you listen with your eyes open or closed?

My favourite way to consume music is through movement. I seem to listen to music best when I’m walking, running or driving.

So normally, I’m listening with eyes wide open, and looking at a changing landscape.

What were your very first steps in music like and how would you rate the gains made through experience - can one train/learn being an artist?

I was very driven to express myself as a kid, through song or dance or talking. However, having the patience to learn an instrument really challenged me. I just wanted to make the sounds! Not talk or learn about the sounds!

Growing up, I’ve learnt being an artist means having the passion to express yourself while also holding the patience to train yourself in music / an instrument. However, I think being an artist is about exploring and challenging musical ideas and concepts.

I think anyone can learn the language of music and is born with a natural ability to express themselves through sound. However, everyone’s desire and need to express themselves is different. Learning an instrument requires patience and persistence.

According to scientific studies, we make our deepest and most incisive musical experiences between the ages of 13-16. What did music mean to you at that age and what’s changed since then?

I’ve recently looked back at a playlist I made when I was 14 and it’s made up of beautifully moody, sad and heartbreaking songs.

It makes sense that our most incisive musical experiences happen at this age - being a teenager can be a truly confusing and chaotic time, as we question our growing identity and how we fit into the world. Brooding and moody music helped give a voice to my feelings and encouraged me to express this in my own songs as a young person.

Music has always acted as a validator for my emotions. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve found more enjoyment in brighter, lighter and happier music than I did when I was a sensitive teen.

What, would you say, are the key ideas behind your approach to music and what motivates you to create?

I’m inspired by honesty and making music sound as organic and effortless as possible. I try to approach making music by surrendering - the more pressure or thought I put into writing, the more it feels fake or untrue.

I also think it can be challenging to know how to articulate feelings and I find music a great tool for extracting a whole world of human emotions.

To quote a question by the great Bruce Duffie: When you come up with a musical idea, have you created the idea or have you discovered the idea?

I would love to think of it as a magical beautiful discovery. That every idea is right at our fingertips, we just have to lean in, to grab it.

Paul Simon said “the way that I listen to my own records is not for the chords or the lyrics - my first impression is of the overall sound.” What's your own take on that and how would you define your personal sound?

I believe a song is a world that we enter when we listen to it. A world of feeling and colours and seas and bridges. If we connect to it, we are connecting to the song’s world. That’s how I interpret Simon’s experience.

I would define my personal sound / “world”  similarly to how I would describe myself - honest, sarcastic and emotional.

Sound, song, and rhythm are all around us, from animal noises to the waves of the ocean. What, if any, are some of the most moving experiences you've had with these non-human-made sounds? In how far would you describe them as “musical”?

Every sound can be described as musical.

Once when I was a kid, a friend’s Dad told me that trees screech and howl, but not everyone can hear it. I remember being so fascinated. I’d like to believe this, that just because we can’t hear things like trees, doesn’t mean they aren’t producing sounds.

From very deep/high/loud/quiet sounds to very long/short/simple/complex compositions - are there extremes in music you feel drawn to and what response do they elicit?

I am pulled in by quiet and short pieces of music. Sounds that make you sit still and deeply listen.

Could you describe your creative process on the basis of one of your pieces, live performances or albums that's particularly dear to you, please?

The songs I’ve written that hold the most meaning to me are the ones that feel effortless, as if the lyrics, melodies and chords have fallen out of the sky and I have caught them. In order to “catch” these ideas, I try to let go of all expectations and surrender to any ideas of the song’s outcome when I’m writing.

I find the most fulfilling part of being an artist is the creative process, it teaches me how to surrender.

Do you conduct “experiments” or make use of scientific insights when you're making music?

I would say, when I’m writing music I’m always experimenting.

I never quite know what I’m doing and I don’t think I ever want to - to stay curious and open about creating is the only way for me.

How does the way you make music reflect the way you live your life? Can we learn lessons about life by understanding music on a deeper level?

Absolutely. Creation is everything and we are always creating - a thought, a new outfit etc.

I’m not sure if my approach to music reflects my approach to my life. If anything, I feel like they balance each other out. Making music reminds me to loosen my grip on the things I can’t control and teaches me to stay open and aware.

Do you feel as though writing or performing a piece of music is inherently different from something like making a great cup of coffee? What do you express through music that you couldn't or wouldn't in more 'mundane' tasks?

This makes me want to ask the question - could Robert Plant and Jimmy Page make a cup of coffee that expresses the same feeling as “Stairway to Heaven?” I want to say yes.

Every time I listen to "Albedo 0.39" by Vangelis, I choke up. But the lyrics are made up of nothing but numbers and values. Do you, too, have a song or piece of music that affects you in a way that you can't explain?

Absolutely! I remember first listening to Sigur Rós and being overwhelmed by the world that it transported me to. So nostalgic and familiar and beautiful and haunting.

It felt like the music deeply understood me. It absolutely ruined me.

If you could make a wish for the future – what are developments in music you would like to see and hear?

I’d like to see more diversity and equal representation across all roles in music. The more inclusive and accessible we can make opportunities, the more voices can be heard.