Perth is known for many things: beautiful models in the form of Gemma Ward, amazing actors like (the late) Heath Ledger and Sam Worthington, and illustrious poets such as John Kinsella. And the list doesn’t end there. Fashion designers, painters, doctors, rock bands and football players… Western Australia creates talents who are quintessentially unique and yet iconic of our state’s isolated and exuberant landscape.
But pop stars? Does WA have any pop stars it can officially add to the list? Well, yes… now it most certainly has in the form of one larger than life and incredibly effervescent Cassie Davis. This blonde bombshell is all sass and driven ambition, not bad for a girl from the northern suburbs.
Davis has a distinct musical styling. Her debut album, Differently, fuses elements of hip hop, rock, pure pop and more obscure notions, such as traditional Ghanaian tribal rhythms, to create a sound that sets her apart. It’s music that jumps up in your ears before settling back into more commercial sounds, all fused together by a vocal that many describe as a fusion between Lady Gaga, Gwen Stefani and Lauren Hill.
‘Early on I knew that song writing was a way for me to express myself,’ Davis said of the long road that has lead her to this point, discussing exactly how high her star is climbing as we chat in a busy Subiaco café. ‘The first song I wrote was when I was eight. It was called Round & Round Again and it was about doing the wrong thing again and again and you’ve just got to get your heart right. Oh dear. What an eight year old!’
Soon after that, Davis began working in a recording studio in Gnangara, her home suburb. ‘It was just amazing,’ she said of the time. ‘I started off sweeping floors and by the end of it – I was there for three or four years every Wednesday – I had my own little production suite where I was making beats and recording different artists they had come through. It literally changed my life. I wouldn’t have been able to produce my own album without those skills. I’m obsessed with recording. I’m a real tech nerd.
And that’s how it started. From there, Davis began recording the beats for her debut album in her bedroom back in Perth. By the time she reached LA – where the majority of the album was produced – she was given a sound engineer who helped her with the album… although, half the time, she ended up kicking him out of the studio.
‘I essentially wanted to do it my way,’ she laughed. ‘I’m sure he thought it was the easiest pay he’d gotten. Let’s just put it this way: I’m in control of my destiny.’
It’s a destiny she currently shares with her manager and sister, Emma, the two of them co-owning the record label Davis set up, 12 Stones. They began shuttling back and forth between their home and the United States, setting in motion a whirlwind of encounters that has led Davis to work with the likes of Rodney Jerkins (Michael Jackson), Printz Board (Black Eyed Peas) and Wayne Wilkins (Kylie). With such pedigree, it’s no wonder the album sounds as masterful as it does.
‘Who had the most profound effect? A guy by the name of Wayne Wilkins,’ Davis admitted. ‘There were a few, but he probably has become my mentor. I worked with him so much in the States and just watching him write songs was incredible. Usually I’ll just spew them out, but Wayne sits with them and really works them out. We wrote a song together called Criminal and we spent a really long time on that song together.’
Of course, talking to Davis one instantly has concerns about how the American scene might shape (read homogenise) an artist such as her, a girl who is beautiful for being so fresh faced. One also wonders what tolls such a ruthless scene can take, even though Davis appears largely unscathed by her experiences thus far.
‘There have been times where I’ve just felt like not doing it anymore, it’s too hard, because (the industry) knocks you back all the time like you would not believe. It can be so depressing. Fortunately I have Emma there encouraging me on. And then I’m there, spurring her on.
‘It can be so hard though, it really can, because sometimes it’s someone crushing your dream and telling you that you aren’t good enough. And there will always be people who don’t like what you do, which is fair enough because I don’t like everything other people do either. Everyone’s entitled to their opinion.’
Differently is out now through Sony Music.
Quickies with Cassie Davies. What’s your….:
Favourite childhood memory? Playing Cowboys and Indians with my brother.
Favourite break dance move as a kid? My favourite power move was a split between the headspin and the windmill.
B-Girl name? Eight Track, because I was recording the whole time.
Favourite instrument? I have a real soft spot for the saxophone. That was my favourite instrument growing up so I really love it. It’s so smooth.
Favourite time of day? I like the evening. I’m not a morning person. I can stay up very late too, but what ever time I get up I still don’t want to get up.
Favourite thing to write about? My favourite thing to write about is just life in general. That’s what inspires me. It’s hard to write about nothing. If you listen to my album there’s a few songs on there about love but not many. Most of them are about being in weird situations or whatever. But mainly I write about whatever is in my heart at the time.
Recipe for writing a great song? Some songs I definitely start with a beat. That’s like a really important point. But then you need the right rhythm or melody and lyrics, so all those things together make for a great song. But then underneath all of that you need an awesome bassline. It can be such a small part, but it really makes or breaks a song I think.
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