Q&A: WIRI DONNA

The project of Pōneke based creative and indie riff rock darling Bianca Bailey, she’s supported heavy hitters on tour such as The Beths, Mild Orange and Soaked Oats and now she’s released her long awaited debut EP ‘Being Alone’.

HEY BIANCA! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR TAKING THE TIME TO CHAT TO US! HOW DID YOU GET STARTED IN SINGING AND CREATING MUSIC, AND HOW DID YOU LAND ON THE NAME WIRI DONNA FOR YOUR SOLO ARTIST PROJECT?

I've been playing music since was a kid - music was a huge part of my childhood and high school years. I started out as a drummer and it's only been in the past 4 years that I've picked up a guitar. I wanted to switch gears and start songwriting from a different perspective, so the guitar felt like the natural place to go. The name came about from the time I spent working in a plant centre towards the end of my high school years. It's the name of a red Mānuka with pink flowers.

YOUR DEBUT EP 'BEING ALONE' IS INCREDIBLE - WE'RE BLOWN AWAY BY YOUR UNIQUE SOUND AND AMAZING VOCAL PERFORMANCE! WHAT'S THE CONCEPT OF THE EP AND WHAT ARE THE MAIN THEMES YOU'VE WRITTEN ABOUT?

I've spoken about the EP a lot calling it a coming of age record, which I suppose is true. It's mostly about things I learnt going it alone for the first time in my life. The title track ‘Being Alone’ is probably the most important track on the record to me, I talk about a series of events which threatened my bodily autonomy and it's really about me processing that those things took away my power over time, hitting a point of realisation and wanting to be able to claim it back. I think the rest of EP follows suit - it's really just about a girl who's trying to find her place in the world, but's just battling every step of the way. A balance between the eternal optimist and pure devastation.

'NO FOLLOW THROUGH' IS AN ABSOLUTE ANTHEM AND OUR FAVOURITE TRACK ON THE EP! WHAT WAS THE INSPIRATION BEHIND THIS SONG?

Ahh the year of 2020. I started the year with a plan to achieve EVERYTHING and accomplished nothing - I was constantly trying to keep up with expectations that proceeded me. It's kinda awesome being able to hear that song now with the EP out, feeling like I've got something under my belt, but at the time I really felt like a little bit of a failure. It took me a long time to realise that it was actually okay to go at everything a your own pace, not to rush things and also no one else seemed to care that I was meeting the deadlines I'd set for myself. I mean there was also a pandemic, so I think people had bigger fish to fry than worrying about what I was up to!

2020 WAS DEFINITELY A TOUGH YEAR FOR CREATIVES, AND AS YOU MENTIONED, THERE WAS A REALISATION THAT IT IS OKAY TO TAKE YOUR TIME AND NOT FEEL PRESSURE TO RUSH - AND NOW YOU’VE RELEASED AN AMAZING EP! ANOTHER TRACK WE REALLY LOVE AND CONNECT WITH ‘LAST CALL’ WHICH TAKES US ON A BEAUTIFUL JOURNEY, GRADUALLY BUILDING UP TO END ON MASSIVE VOCALS AND FULL INSTRUMENTAL BREAKS INCLUDING MAGICAL STRINGS! WHAT WAS THE WRITING PROCESS FOR THIS SONG?

‘Last Call’ touches on a point in my life where I was so incredibly burnt out but I was still pushing full steam ahead with all of my social engagements, and feeling like I needed to make sure that I was constantly making time for everyone else. I finally hit a bit of a wall at one point and ended up writing this song alone in my bedroom. When I brought it to the band and we played it together for the first time, I knew that we had to really give it space to just keep chugging along slowly building until that breaking point. I am so stoked with how the track came out it. When we were in the studio, we immediately knew that we'd need to put strings on it - they lift up the track so well.

WHAT WERE SOME OF YOUR MAIN HIGHLIGHTS WORKING ON THE EP?

The people involved in the project have been so important to me. These songs are so close to my heart, so to have some of my best friends in the room working on it has been pretty special. There’s been huge levels of trust and they've all had my back every step of the way.

THAT’S AWESOME TO HAVE SUCH A SUPPORTIVE TEAM BEHIND YOU! WHO WOULD YOU SAY ARE YOUR BIGGEST INSPIRATIONS IN MUSIC?

The kind of music I love is music with a story with the sonics to accurately reflect those feelings. I've always been inspired by Julia Jacklin, Courtney Barnett, Lucy Dacus, and Phoebe Bridgers more recently. I've also been really into Black Country New Road, Anthonie Tonnon and Wet Leg.

SOME GREAT PICKS! WHO ARE SOME OF YOUR FAVOURITE NZ ARTISTS RIGHT NOW AND ARE THERE ANY SONGS IN PARTICULAR THAT YOU ESPECIALLY LOVE?

Ooohhhh in celebration on NZ Music Month I'm going to have to give you a very long list. ‘CEO’ - Elliott Dawson, ‘Day Job’ - Soft Plastics, ‘Stop Pulling On My (Hair)’ - Revulva, ‘Lay With Me in Barns’ - Violet Hirst, ‘How Do You Know?’ - Daffodils, ‘Girl At Night’ - There's A Tuesday, and ‘Tongue’ - Recitals.

NICE! WHAT DO YOU LOVE MOST ABOUT NEW ZEALAND? DO YOU HAVE ANY FAVOURITE PLACES TO TRAVEL TO OR LOCAL SPOTS THAT YOU LIKE TO VISIT?

I love our venues - they're had a rough couple of years, so shout out to the live music venues in Aotearoa. I'm looking forward to going to a couple across the motu in June/July.

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE BIGGEST LESSONS YOU’VE LEARNT IN YOUR CAREER SO FAR, AND WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR OTHER ARTISTS OUT THERE?

Take your time and always do what feels right for you. I think when you're just starting out, there's a lot people who will give you a cookie cutter run down of how you should be doing things, but at the end of the day, your music/art should always be at the centre of it all.

ABSOLUTELY! LASTLY, WE END EVERY INTERVIEW WITH THIS QUESTION - IF YOU COULD SAY ONE THING TO EVERY PERSON IN THE WORLD, WHAT WOULD IT BE?

Look after each other <3

THANKS SO MUCH! MAKE SURE YOU KEEP UP WITH WIRI DONNA ON INSTAGRAM, FACEBOOK, SPOTIFY & APPLE MUSIC.