Robbie Miller quickly won me over with his accomplished guitar skills and soulful blue eyes. I needed to know more, so I caught up with him recently to chat about his music, sharing the stage with some of Australia’s finest, and his passion for mentoring indigenous youth.
You wrote your current single “Sunday” about your grandmother. What is it about her that inspired you?
As a kid my brother, sister and I would spend our first week of Christmas holidays at my grandparents’ house on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland. During this time I grew close with both my grandad and nana and few years later I was visiting during Christmas and my nana started talking about what we used to get up to on our holidays. She then started talking about her own life growing up, her own dreams and she mentioned how Sunday was her favourite day of the week as that’s when she got to spend time with her whole family. That conversation resonated with me for a long time. A few weeks later I sat down to play guitar and just starting singing and the words just fell into place.
You’ve actually been writing music since you were just 13. Was a career in music always the dream?
Funnily enough music wasn’t always my dream. I grew up wanting to wear the baggy maroon cap for the Queensland cricket team and everything that I did was centred on that cricket dream. Music is a part of my life that I do for the love and enjoyment; it has been that way since I first picked up the guitar.
You were raised on many of the same artists that I was: Van Morrison, Neil Young, and Cat Stevens. All of those guys have a real focus on the lyrics. How do you think that approach has shaped your own music?
I think the way they wrote their music has had a profound impact on my own approach. I fell in love with those artists because of the way their lyrics captivated and took my mind someplace else. When I first starting trying my hand at writing songs, they were the artists that I tried to emulate.
You won the Triple J Unearthed’s National Indigenous Music Awards last year. How has that helped your career?
The biggest impact winning Triple J Unearthed has had, is on my self-confidence and self-belief. I feel it is quite common for musicians to be hesitant about their own music and protective of their art and I was exactly that. Now knowing that I have a voice people want to hear and that the music I write resonates with them, just pushes aside any self doubt that I have.
You got to fly to Darwin and perform on the same stage as a bunch of leading indigenous artists. What was that experience like?
This might sound strange but honestly I don’t really remember much of the experience. I went from playing in my bedroom by myself, to getting a phone call telling me I was the winner of the Triple J Unearthed Competition, to then playing in front of a large audience in Darwin.
You’ve also shared the stage with some high profile acts like The Kite String Tangle, Bernard Fanning, and Kav Temperley. What have you learned watching them?
The most valuable lesson that I have learnt is the importance of dedication and professionalism towards my artwork and to not take myself to seriously. There are a lot of musicians who would love to be doing what I am doing right now, so I am just going to enjoy it and make the most of everything that comes my way.
The support act never has it easy. How do you win over a crowd that has turned up to watch someone else play?
This is something I really struggled with when I first starting playing live last year and something I know other acoustic artists like myself have had trouble with. Now I just try and get the audience involved throughout the set, better plan my set list to try and create ebb and flow and I always keep my set short and sharp. It’s just an acoustic guitar and me, if I play for too long I am sure I’ll start boring people!
In your spare time you work with high school students as part of the Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience. What’s that like?
It’s an incredible experience and something I have a great time doing. Over the years I have learnt some valuable lessons too, as high school kids are great levellers and some of their stories always seem to put life into perspective. Also being a role model to others is a great honour, one that I cherish and am extremely grateful for and I have no doubt that the students that I have worked with on the Gold Coast over the last four years have incredible and fulfilled lives ahead of them. This is not because of what we’ve done, but for the empowerment students have given themselves.
Do you have an album in the pipeline?
I currently don’t have an album in the pipeline, although I do have an EP that’s coming together. I am currently working on a few tracks with one eye on an album but there is a lot of water to cover between now and then.
Is there anything else you have on the horizon that you can tell me about?
I’ll have a new single out early 2015 followed by my debut EP!
Robbie Miller’s single “Sunday” is available for digital download now.
After all this music I was well and truly flagging by the time that Pepa Knight, or Central Coast Jesus as my husband likes to call him, took to the stage. It makes me feel very old when I realise I’d have already been in bed by the time an artist appears. I was determined to at least make it through a few songs, and the rush of energy that his set provided allowed me to do that. He has such a great calming presence, like a guru or yogi. The combination of his sitar and the trippy psychedelic light show, which would have been further enhanced if I’d invested in the 3D glasses, was mesmerising. Pepa and his band create something so beautiful, jubilant, and tribal that you can’t help but be swept up by it. I’m not sure the venue did him any favours though. He has such a big presence, he seemed a little out of place in this warehouse-like space. The people catching him at Mountain Sounds are in for a real treat; out communing with nature is where this music would really be at its best.
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