A Quick Chat with harrykirby

‘Written On My Brain’ is such a vivid title. What does it represent, and why did it feel like the right name for your debut EP?

The ‘Written On My Brain’ project is a collection of chapters in my life, each song is about a different time period, I think with all the experiences I have have they will always be ‘Written On My Brain’.

You've built a really passionate community online before even releasing a full project. How has that connection with fans influenced the way you make music?

For the longest time all I have ever wanted was for people to really feel an impact from my music and seeing how my own emotions and stories can help someone else is such a blessing. I love my community with my whole heart! It’s beautiful.

Is there one lyric or moment on the EP that you're especially proud of, or that still hits you every time you hear it?

In the title track, ‘Written On My Brain’, there is a lyric that says, “I’m trying to find a reason to love myself, I wanna feel that again, I wanna feel that again”. I wrote this in a time period of forgetting how to care for myself, and I was so dependent on someone else’s love that I forgot how to love myself. ‘

If someone was hearing harrykirby for the very first time, which track from the EP would you tell them to start with, and why?

Start with ‘Written On My Brain’! It’s the first song, and the reason I put this project together.

The production on this record feels like a step up. What did working with collaborators like Thomas Porter, Josh King and Tyron Hapi bring out in your music?

They are all such incredible and talented artists, everyone I worked with on this project I really clicked with. I was making music with people I was comfortable with, which meant every emotion came into the music.

Your music has a way of turning really personal moments into songs people can see themselves in. Why do you think vulnerability connects so strongly with listeners?

I think there are many ways to connect with listeners, I’m quite an emotional guy myself, so when I hear emotional and personal music I instantly fall in love with the stories they share. Naturally I just gravitate towards making music that makes you feel something. I need to lay my emotions out there, on the paper, on the track. I’m grateful so many others connect with it.

When you're not writing music, what usually helps you reset or find inspiration again?

I love to watch movies, they give me a lot of inspiration, I’m in love with story telling. Also spending time with my friends and family always gives me inspiration and motivation, they keep me grounded and make me who I am.