GG Magree is a name you might be seeing pop up a lot more ten. Her biggest claims have been working on songs such as “Frontlines” with Zeds Dead and NGHTMRE and “Ghost” with Jauz. Since then she has worked with Borgore and LAXX and has been remixed by Habstrakt, Crankdat, Spag Heddy, Champagne Drip, and more while touring around the world and recently performing at Ultra Music Festival.
It was there that we had a moment to speak with GG Magree. Before taking to the UMF Radio stage, she indulged us on her origins in Sydney, Australia, her growth as an artist, and her upcoming projects for 2019. Here’s what she shared with us:
How are you doing today?
GG Magree: I am absolutely fantastic! I’ve lost my voice. I have busted my knee. But other than that, I’m feeling Miami, baby!
I can understand losing your voice because how much you sing. But how did you bust your knee?
GG Magree: That happened yesterday at the Borgore Party. Someone spilled a drink on these marble countertops where the DJ decks were. I went to jump up on stage, but because the way I jumped and the way my hand touched the spilled drink, I slipped and smacked my knee on the corner the edge the marble countertop.
Cast required?
GG Magree: No, it’s just super swollen and I have like bruises all over my leg.
You’re applying ice to keep it down though, right?
GG Magree: I iced for two hours.
That’s good to hear! Dialing things back from your recent injury, I wanted to talk about where you were born and raised. So where was that?
GG Magree: Although I’m based in L.A., I was raised in a small little beach town in Sydney, Australia called Cronulla. I grew up there with my mom and my dad until my parents split. Then my dad lived in the eastern suburbs while I stayed with my mom in Cronulla]. And this is a very small, little beach town. And then, when I turned 18, I moved in with my dad because he was living more in the city and I wanted to go out and party while I was in university at the time. From his place, I moved to London. And then I moved to Barcelona and lived there] for a little bit.
Tell us a little bit about that. How did you end up in Barcelona?
GG Magree: Well, I didn’t mean to move there. I was there for a very small amount time. It was about four months. I went to go meet a friend and I ended up just staying there. I was able to continue doing my university work] by correspondence through my computer. So I asked myself, “OK, why would I leave Barcelona? This place is brilliant!”
And that has to be especially true considering how close everything is to each other over in Europe versus your experiences in Australia, right?
GG Magree: It Australia] can feel so isolated. I feel like I’m very lucky because I’ve traveled and lived in so many different places. For example, I love America and I see myself spending the rest my life here. I love Australia and it will always be my heart, but my life is in America. Everything is here like my partner, my friends, my work, and everything.
Since we’ve just elaborated on your upbringing, when did music become path you wanted to pursue full time?
GG Magree: While I was in university, I was studying property economics and my dad owned a couple nightclubs. He would ask, “Why don’t you throw some university parties?” And I was like, “This is easy. All my friends party.” So I started throwing these parties and they started getting 2000 capacity.
Were you DJing at the time?
GG Magree: I wasn’t DJing at this time. I was just throwing the parties. But at some point, I was like, “I don’t really like the music that these DJs were playing.” I got into the 2000-electro, Ed Banger Records music. You know, like Teki Latex, Busy P, Mr. Oizo, old-school Justice, and Cut Copy. I was really into that era. So I wanted to learn how to DJ so that I could play this at my own parties. I used to do four hour sets for $15 an hour at the local pub and I taught myself how to DJ.
From there, did GG Magree just take f?
GG Magree: It took time. The parties started to get really big. I got a booking agent. And then I found my manager who is my fucking angel. She’s like my sister. Then we made the move to the states.
When you started getting into making music, did you have any musical training to lean on?
GG Magree: No, I did not have any classical training. I didn’t even know I could sing until two years ago. So everything that I’ve made has just been super organic because it makes me feel like I am in the right place.
How did your singing evolve from where you started to now?
GG Magree: I used to write poetry a lot. So I knew that I could write. But it was actually Tyler or a.k.a.] NGHTMRE who asked, “Yo, GG. Can you sing?” And I said, “Yeah!” And he said, “Yo, send me some shit.” And I was like, “OK.” So I went in with a vocal engineer and him and I wrote two tracks and one the tracks was “Frontlines”.
That’s incredible! And speaking your music, I was recently listening to your new single “I Wanna Lose You”. How did that song about?
GG Magree: I did a seven-week bus tour with Borgore. And I’m a positive, upbeat human, as you can gather. There’s not much that really bogs me down. I mean, I still get stressed or I get upset as every human does. But touring that intensely and having shows every day for seven weeks with maybe a total four days f, I realized I hadn’t been away from home like that for such an extended period time. It definitely took its toll. With the unknown happening everyday, I started to get mild panic attacks. I’m not a great sleeper, so I don’t really sleep that much and I wasn’t sleeping that much on the road. So “I Wanna Lose You” is about anxiety. It’s about losing that thing that you don’t want in your life. I wanna get rid it. It cannot control me. That is not who I am. There was a moment in my life where I felt that this was making me feel like I was crazy. I didn’t start to lose touch with myself, but it did start to feed into it more. And then I was like…nah. This is not me. And then I wrote a song about it.
I find it interesting that a lot young or new artists try to write or compose something that fits a certain trend or something popular. But then they reach a point where they don’t need to write something popular because someone is already working on that. So they’ll start to write music that’s more personal to them. I think it’s incredible that you were able to reach that stage personal music as immediately as you did.
GG Magree: I’m so happy! It’s all organic. I try to do what I love.
So what new musical projects can we expect from you in 2019?
GG Magree: I have another single dropping in May. It’s called “You Don’t Know Me” that’s a little more upbeat and dance-y. It’s about… Actually, we can talk about it when it comes out. I want people to hear it and see what they think about it. And then I’ll describe the meaning to the song. I am also working on an EP that will hopefully come out in September.
What is your biggest goal with your music? What would be the “I Made It” moment for you?
GG Magree: For me, it’s just to make people happy. I just wanna see people listen to my music, cry, love, have sex, do whatever the fuck they want. But, my aim in my entire career is to be able to share what I feel so passionate about and happy about. And I want other people to feel how I feel about it.
Then what advice would you have for your fans who want to play on the stages your playing and make music that they’re passionate and happy about?
GG Magree: Just be true to who you are. Write about shit that you like. Make music that you like. Don’t ever make music for other people. Make music for yourself. If it’s true and it’s from your heart, then it translates.
Make sure to check out GG Magree’s latest single “I Wanna Lose You” below.