“Never Wear Heels on Stage, Unless You’re Britney Spears,” Says Next Big Hyperpop Artist, yergurl.
Who’s the coolest person on the planet? No, no, you’re mistaken; Kate Moss and Johnny Depp have been dethroned. The new queen of Australian hyperpop, twenty one year old Fae Scott (also known as yergurl), reigns supreme as she unleashes her assemblage of “sick juicy phat beats” onto her eager audience. Not only has she racked up more than 200k Spotify streams on several of her released tracks and nearly 5k followers on Instagram, she was also a finalist in the Triple J Unearthed youth songwriting competition — in other words, she’s talented, cool, creative, and blessed with an incredibly enviable social media feed. For fans of Y2K, cigarettes, hyperpop, bleach blonde hair, and anything Slayyyter considers one of her ‘favourites,’ yergurl might just be the girl for you! Take a listen to 'Puppy Dog', yergurl's latest single that just released yesterday.
Caitlin Andrews: Hi, Fae! How are you doing? Anything new in life?
Fae Scott: “Hey! I’m doing really, really well. Life is getting QUITE EXCITING as my man Jimothy always says. I just moved out into essentially my dream home and plans for new music are coming along very nicely!”
CA: In late 2020, you released your most recent single, ‘Until We Meet Again,’ which was combined with a killer Y2k-inspired music video. What was your creative vision when creating this track, and how did it manifest itself into the visuals we see in the music video?
FS: “First of all, the beat was just a funny little shower idea, but once I actually put it together, I just felt overcome with emotion and started singing the chorus, melody & lyrics. I was fresh out of my big break-up, so emotions were still running high, and I wanted to express my gratitude for that boyfriend and how I still felt somehow destined to end up with him… in a dreamy yergurl-kind-of-way. In the video, I just really wanted to capture that intense and euphoric vibe.”
CA: As previously mentioned, you’ve amassed a wealth of critical success, including obtaining the elusive position of finalist in Triple J’s Unearthed High and hitting 200k streams on your 2019 track, ‘Girls Like Me,’ (not to mention procuring an impressive amount of Instagram fan accounts!). What has been the most exciting or personally influential achievement throughout the course of your creative career?
FS: “Honestly, I’ve said this many times but playing at Groovin’ the Moo in Bendigo (2019) is still one of the hugest things for me. I was going to that festival for years, even before I was making my own music. Lots of massively memorable things happened to me at various Groovin’ the Moos, so being able to attend from a different perspective, almost like an upgraded one, was super fucking cool! Oh, and one of the coolest parts was having old mates from high school watch me up there… KOOKY!!”
CA: Throughout your career, you have been compared to a number of musical artists, most notably Grimes and Charli XCX. Who would you consider your main musical influences, and do you currently listen to anyone you’d consider underrated?
FS: “First of all, Charli XCX IS a big influence of mine, especially her early shit like the True Romance album. That album is like… the sound of “me” somehow. I’m also currently really inspired by Shygirl, but for the most part, I'm just simply inspired by little tiny moments in any given song, not so much artists as a whole. I think that’s why people tend to say my sound is ‘unique,’ as it is after all, mostly just Fae. But an underrated artist that I’m obsessed with right now would definitely be Lupa J — I am fucking OBSESSED with “Party Trick,” “Control” and “Call Them Up.” Those songs are in my driving playlist that I listen to every day.”
CA: Speaking of musical influences, Slayyyter, an internationally-renowned musical artist, once described your track, ‘Until We Meet Again,’ as ‘her favourite on the list’ within a Purple Sneakers review of Australian hyper-pop, in part due to the fact that ‘the vocals are so beautiful and bright and have so much emotion.’ How has such success at a young age affected your personal development? Do you feel famous?
FS: “In a weird way this feels really ‘right’ to me. I've always been striving for big things in life and to feel even just a slice of something big feels really dope and destined. Sometimes I feel famous, but mostly due to how others treat me. Sometimes it makes me feel awkward when people get really excited and intimidated by me, but for the most part I find it really endearing and let it be affirmation that I must have some kind of qualities that people look up to.”
CA: You’ve mentioned that ‘Skateboard’ and ‘Until We Meet Again’ are a conjoined narrative surrounding the beginning and ending of a relationship with a former significant other, who previously held a cameo within several of your music videos. How much of your music comes from personal or anecdotal experience? Does this ever have any negative consequences for you within your personal life itself?
FS: “Essentially ALL of my music is very anecdotal. It’s really rare for me to tell a story that isn’t mine, and usually when that’s the case it’s because it’s something I’m fantasising about or exaggerating the facts. But I have 100% felt the consequences. “boys think u look PHRESH!” is a diss track and the person who I wrote it about confronted me, lol. I've also had guys break up with me when they found out a love song was about someone else, as well as people spreading rumours about who a song is about. At the end of the day though, that was all high school bullshit and now I encourage everyone to take it as a compliment if I write a song about them, even if it’s exposing them in a negative light. If I write a song about you, that just means that you made a significant impact in my life!”
CA: If you had to pick five tracks as the soundtrack to your life, which five would you pick?
FS: “Lucky I already have a Spotify playlist called “Playlist of My Life”… but I’ll narrow it down. My picks would have to be “Living Dead Girl” by Rob Zombie, “Paris” by The 1975, “Art Deco” by Lana del Rey, “Rock Civilization” by Headhunterz and the song of my life right now is definitely “The Heat” by Rui Ho. All these songs are either tied to core memories or parts of my life I'd love to go into, but I'd 100% bore everyone.”
CA: Based on your Instagram account, you’ve also developed a love and proficiency for drawing alongside your music career. Do you come from a creatively-inclined background? What inspired you to pursue music?
FS: “I was drawing way before I ever got into music; it was one of the first ways I expressed myself creatively as a kid (besides playing with dolls). I actually fell out of love with drawing in high school and only started again in year 11, where I discovered I was actually still quite good! But despite that, music has always run through my veins. My dad was a singer, so I was practically singing even as a baby. But I got into production after having to make a song for a school camp photo compilation with Sony ACID Music Studio. I had no idea it was possible for me to actually make my own music until that day! The songwriting aspect took over my life after I had gotten into poetry as an over-emotional 14 year old.”
CA: As you’ve developed from an “over-emotional 14 year old,” (weren’t we all?) to an adult during your time in the music industry, what’s one piece of advice you wish you could give yourself or a fellow young creative?
FS: “I’ve definitely learnt a LOT from my mistakes…I honestly gotta get this all out!
First of all…Fight for what you want, politely but aggressively lol. A lot of people who work for YOU are going to try and make you think you work for THEM…Not in my world, baby!
There’s no rush. Don’t release a song that you’re not 100% happy with. Don’t release a video you’re not happy with. Never again am I going to let someone tell me that “There’s no time now,” or “This needs to be ready next week.” Like sis, it’s not ready, so it’s not done, so it’s not going to see the light of day until I get goosebumps when I see it or hear it.
Don't wear high heels on stage. You will be paralysed from the waist down. If you have ANY inclination to dance on stage…do...not...wear...heels!!! Unless you’re like Britney Spears or something.”
CA: Are there any juicy secrets, facts or inspirational quotes you’d like to share with us at Periphery?
FS: “Bro… my favourite quote that I quote probably every second day is, “The universe never says “No,” it only ever says, “Not right now,” or “I have something better,” and I MF BELIEVE that!!!! For example, I was kicked out of my house this year, but that ended up allowing me to move out into my dream house with my twin sister and best friend. That was definitely an “I have something better” moment.”
CA: What can we anticipate seeing from you in 2022?
FS: “I’d say anticipate big changes. The music I have lined up for 2022 is the most “me” music I've made yet, and while at its core it’s still the yergurl we’ve always known, it really has a new face and a bit of a new energy to it. I feel like the new shit sounds like a more “realised” version of what I've always been trying to achieve… but I’m still nervously anticipating the response! And look, I really don’t buy into the whole culture of women in music needing to “transform” every couple of years, creating these distinct “eras” but yo, ‘tis a bit of a new era on the horizon!”
Periphery Magazine thanks yergurl for her contribution, and wishes her luck with her upcoming releases! You can find Fae on social media and streaming platforms here:
Instagram: @yergurlmusic
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/256Y9onrKClLcW4xSDtbwo?si=nRXDEg7fSuuVaOzNk9-8-Q
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yergurl/