On the threshold of a stylish restaurant, where every nook seems to have stepped out of the pages of sophisticated magazines, I meet Kimmy Macq. This cozy place, known for its panoramic views of the city framed by an endless horizon, creates the perfect atmosphere for our conversation. The air is fragrant with freshly brewed coffee and exquisite dishes, while the soft light adds a special flair to the meeting.

Kimmy, elegantly dressed, effortlessly combines both classic and bold accents characteristic of her musical style. We take a seat at a window table and begin our conversation. Today, we will discuss many topics: her music career, her recently released EP, which has already sparked a wave of interest and anticipation among fans, and, of course, the emotions and experiences that form the basis of these new compositions. One of the main features that Kimmy possesses when she talks about her music is that her eyes light up. In this revelation, one can sense the passion and dedication to her craft, which makes her words even more impactful. This interview promises to be rich: candid stories about inspiration, the challenges on the path to creating music, and her personal expectations for the new project. All of this collectively tells us one thing: Kimmy Macq is not afraid to experiment and take risks while remaining true to herself and her listeners.

photo by @hollysh00ts

Hey Kimmy! Your latest single, “Hell on Earth,” really hits hard with its exploration of existential themes and the human experience. What was it that made you want to delve into such deep, thought-provoking subjects in your music? Was there a specific moment or inspiration that led you down this path?

Yes, it’s quite existential. I find a lot of the time words and melody just come to me out of nowhere, but in this case I had intentionally sat down at my piano and had Logic plugged in and ready to go. I was playing these inverted chords, just exploring, and the progression I fell upon gave this really deep emotion I couldn’t help but follow. At the time my family back in Australia was dealing with (and still are) my Mother’s long and painful descent into Dementia. It’s a confusing thing to understand and I feel that that was a big part of what thing song means to me, particularly in the second verse. 

“Hell on Earth” has this cinematic vibe that’s pretty unique. I’m curious about the creative process behind it and how you came up with the sound. Did you have a specific vision in mind, or did it evolve organically during the making of the song?

I think I answered this almost entirely in the first question, but when you think about it, themes like this need that cinematic, sombre sonic representation, really. I am fairly certain I just sent a piano & vocal demo to the producer, Elliott Garfias aka Enigo Music, who I met through the Sync Licensing community on a group listening session. I don’t know if I had even heard much of his work before in the beginning, but he heard ‘Bad Place’ on the listening session and offered to produce it, which is a big deal. I was fortunate to have already agreed to work with John Frame at Mahbell Music on ‘Bad Place’, but had just freshly written ‘Forever Wild’ at the time and thought that could be cool to collaborate on. I was blown away by what he came back with, nailing the Mazzy Star reference sound I had provided. So, all that being said, as soon as I wrote ‘Hell on Earth’ I knew I wanted to work with Enigo again, and he absolutely delivered.

I’m really looking forward to your new album, “River Water.” It sounds like it’s going to be quite the ride through the indie pop territory. Can you give us a hint about the overarching theme or concept that connects all the songs on the record?

I’m really excited about it too. I think the connective tissue between all the tracks on River Water is that all the songs are inspired by some of the most intense life moments we experience as humans, either real or second hand, that we all go through. Each song has become a little world of its own, in how my collaborators bought them to life. ‘Bad Place’ is about right person / wrong time, which ‘River Water’ touches on as well – both being thematically bitter sweet so that the overarching feeling is gratitude and fond nostalgia. ‘Forever Wild’ is about absolute heartbreak and needing to choose yourself. ‘You Can Rest Now’ is really about end of life and letting go after trauma. ‘Morning’ is about a magical chemistry that is ultimately not mutual and fizzles out. ‘Hell on Earth’ we talked about above, and ‘The Ruse’ is about a secret, toxic and destructive relationship that couldn’t have been avoided. I guess it’s an emotional rollercoaster when you lay it out like this! The feedback has generally been that the songs are really getting people in the feels though, and that’s all you can really hope to achieve as an artist.

photo by @hollysh00ts

The cover art for “Hell on Earth” and also all singles from the “River Water” really caught my eye—it’s visually stunning and seems to resonate with the mood of the song. Could you tell us a bit about the concept behind the cover art?

Yes, I absolutely love the artistic cover concepts for these songs. I did them myself, after teaching myself some design in Canva during the pandemic. I’ve actually done quite a lot of surrealist digital collage art over the past 3-4 years, most of them are on my Poetry Instagram account @kimberley.poetry, and sometimes I use poems to inspire them and vice versa. For this album I did some research and made a mood board of all different single and album art I loved, as I was working on the release. I really liked the simplicity of black and white, and didn’t feel like I could come up with a photo shoot idea that could do the songs justice just yet, so I landed on a combination of a bold typeface and stripped-back iconography for the illustrative element. Once I had that framework, what each song needed was easy to figure out. I have also done album artwork for a few other artists singles and one album, and really enjoy that work immensely.

‘River Water” features seven indie pop gems, each presumably with its own story to tell. How do you go about crafting narratives within your songs, and what storytelling techniques do you find most effective?

I have to be honest with questions like this – I have come to realize that a lot of my work is very automatic, organic and from the heart/gut. What I mean by this is that I seem to go on auto-pilot into a flow state where something bigger than me is making these creative decisions. Of course sometimes I stumble or need to think on certain parts, but I seem to have been blessed with the ability to pull songs out of thin air, and it comes relatively easy to me. I might not be as strong vocally as some artists and friends I admire, and I might have a long way to go in terms of my own production ability, but writing a decent song quickly, and also being willing to craft it as needed from there, once the flow state has passed, is my usual approach and seems to be my biggest strength. Once a song starts coming through, I see where the narrative is going and what the story really ‘is’ as it reveals itself. It becomes apparent and I roll with it. It’s really quite a fascinating thing to experience, because sometimes I know what it’s alluding to, from my life, but it’s also so interesting to see how it comes out, when you’re open enough to let it. Openness is paramount. To sit down to write or perform, being open is one thing you absolutely cannot do without.

Your influences range from Lana Del Rey to Florence + the Machine, Mazzy Star, and Lucy Dacus, among others. It’s quite an eclectic mix! I’m curious, how have these artists influenced your musical style?

I forgot to list Tom Petty in there as well, he’s my hero and inspiration. Altogether these influences are the ones who struck me the hardest for the longest, and I just see myself so much in those songs. It’s like you hear that music and you know you want to create your own version of something like that. I would also include Lights and Metric on that list, including Emily Haines solo record, and for the Australians of my generation, Missy Higgins and The Jezabels got me good as well. I grew up listening to Celine Dion and Tina Arena, but I’m not a belter, so vocally I now look up more to people like Billie Eilish. I see aspects of all of these artists in my work, and I truly love and appreciate how they have formed me as an artist.

Your song “Better” was featured in the 2023 film “Love in Tahiti.” How did this opportunity come about, and what was your reaction when you found out your music would be featured in a film?

Like a lot of artists during the pandemic, I fell for the dream that sync licensing represents and after 2 long years of writing, collaborating, pitching, rise, repeat – I got one of those right song, right time moments. ‘Better’ was a topline collaboration I did with a fantastic producer Frank Iva, and knew when I was writing the lyrics and melody that I needed a specific kind of vocal on it. I asked my friend and collaborator Sarah Su to check it out and she delivered a stunning wall of sound, as she did in our previous project KHALO. We’d already done and finished the song, and I think that same year I came across a brief for a small romantic movie set in Tahiti. It was a sync agent in a small closed community that shared the brief, and two of my topline songs were forwarded for consideration. I was absolutely over the moon a few months later when we discovered our song made the cut. I hope it’s the first of many because there’s nothing in the world like that feeling. Except maybe watching it for the first time! That was a memory I’ll cherish forever.

photo by @hollysh00ts

Indie pop is a diverse genre with various substyles. How would you describe your specific sound within indie pop, and do you feel a sense of responsibility to contribute to the evolution of the genre in any particular way?

Oooh that’s a good question. I need to get better schooled on all the indie pop subgenres, I feel I’ve gotten a bit behind honestly. I do notice with some submission platforms like Crucial Music and such, that you really do need to know where you’re sitting in terms of genre/sub-genre, but it’s always so tough! I think the closest I’d know to label it as would be Dream Pop? I think in terms of responsibility, I wouldn’t necessarily know if I’m contributing to the evolution of it, probably… but when you say responsibility my mind goes in another direction. What I have learned is that it’s my responsibility or calling to seal up my music and send it out into the ether. We need to witness each other doing that, because of the circuits of self-belief, motivation and inspiration that get kicked off when we take that step, as artists. Just last week I saw that my friend and fellow artist/songwriter Cinzia of Cinzia and the Eclipse released a gorgeous EP called Springland, and it made me so excited all over again to finish all the preparation for my own. I’ve seen the spark spread like wildfire and I want to light this place up!

What’s your favorite comfort food or guilty pleasure snack while you’re working on new music?

I usually forget to eat when I’m writing and in the flow state. Guilty. I always make up for it later, but my favourite moments are truly this: when I’m letting loose doing demo vocals on a weekend evening, when my husband is at hockey and my son is asleep, and I can make a delicious fresh gin/lime/soda and step up to the mic. I see Lake Ontario out the window in the distance, and the lights of the Beaches from the hill our place sits on, and sometimes, there will be a full moon shining right onto my session through the window. Not a snack – but an entire scene 🙂

When the music vibes are on pause, and you’re not in the studio, how do you like to kick back and recharge? Are you a bookworm, a Netflix binge-watcher, or maybe you’ve got a secret talent for cooking up some killer comfort food? 

I love road trips and adventures in and out of the city with my family and friends. This is a big year for road trips and travel for us, including Nashville in July (our first time!). Travel for me is a creative break and a creative buzz at the same time. It brings new perspectives and refreshes you. As an Australian living in Canada on the other side of the world from where I grew up, I suppose I’ll never stop loving the movement and wonder that travel brings. What’s magical is that it always brings a new meaning to home, and builds resilience. Heaven knows artists need THAT!