SaxONLY is one of Australia’s most exciting musical exports at the age of 17.
Starting his musical career at the tender age of 15, SaxONLY has proved to be one of Australia’s most exciting, albeit youngest, rising musical talents. Sax has garnered the hearts of many, one, in particular, is that of Triple J’s Musical Director, Dave Ruby Howe.
Starting his career as a hyper-pop artist, Sax has found himself branching out musically as he has started implementing hip-hop and pop-punk elements into his craft, creating a sharper and polished sound. His latest single See You In Hell sees him taking a step forward in his craftsmanship, as he delivers hard-hitting lyrics with dark and gritty beats. This single shows us that he is only just gearing up for what is ahead of him.
Join us as we chat with SaxONLY about starting his journey in the music industry, social media and his single See You In Hell.
HAPPY: What was the exact moment that you fell in love with music?
SAX: I fell in love with music when I found that I could express myself in ways I wanted to and tell a story in my own way.
HAPPY: Coming from such a small town in NSW, you started busking on the street with your twin brother, what was the catalyst or moment in time when you knew that you wanted to pursue music as a career?
SAX: I always knew I wanted to pursue music as a career it was just a matter of time until I reached out to the microphone and since then I’ve never looked back.
HAPPY: The songwriting process started with you and your brother making music together in your bedroom. Looking back at how far you have come since then, have any aspects of your songwriting changed?
SAX: To be honest I still keep a very similar structure with my songwriting, now I just try to be more mindful of lyrics and melodies.
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HAPPY: Within your music, you have weaved in influences from international artists, what inspired your journey to incorporate these influences into your hyper-pop sound?
SAX: A lot of people have influenced me as an artist, and I like to implement their swag into the “Sax Sound”.
HAPPY: You have a new single out See You In Hell, which is such a banger of a track. It sees you putting your own twist on that new wave pop-punk feel with elements of hip-hop, does this track mark a new era of songwriting for you?
SAX: The song See You In Hell does definitely branch out into a lot of different genres and being able to work with other people helped bring the sound to life.
HAPPY: See You In Hell reflects on a toxic relationship. Has songwriting always been a cathartic outlet for you to process tough emotions and experiences? Or was it something you had to build up to when delving into your own personal experiences and sharing them with the world?
SAX: See You In Hell reflects on certain aspects of my life, I do try to include real-life situations in my own music to give it as much authenticity as possible.
HAPPY: You share a lot of behind the scenes on your Tik Tok, as well as moments interacting with the general public. With Tik Tok being such a huge platform where you can gain a large following very quickly, do you feel that it has played an important role in getting your music out there compared to what would be now old-school platforms such as radio, youtube etc?
SAX: Tik Tok has definitely helped me as an artist but I feel that it’s also made me realise how deadly the tool is if used right. I have had some cool moments on Tik Tok but I wouldn’t say it grew my brand single-handedly
HAPPY: What’s something someone has said about your music that you hold close to you?
SAX: I hold on to all the positive messages regarding my music, I can’t narrow it down to one.
HAPPY: If there was one piece of advice you would give your younger self at the start of your career what would it be?
SAX: I would tell my younger self to be grateful and enjoy the journey and don’t get caught up in other people’s business.
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HAPPY: Thank you so much for speaking with me today! I can’t wait to hear your next release ‘Run It Up’, and I can’t wait to see what 2023 has in store for you!
SAX: I would like to view 2023 as a development year for me. If plans change I’ll make to move accordingly.
Stream See You In Hell via Spotify below.
Interviewed by Laura Hughes.
Photos supplied.