Star in the making…
20-year-old alt-pop singer-songwriter Mvlholland (real name Grace Mulholland) is everything you’d want in a young singer-songwriter. She’s introspective, talented, obsessed with telling stories and most importantly, she has a vision. She seems to be able to do it all, and despite the crazy life she’s lived (how many people can say that Divinyls frontwoman Chrissy Amphlett taught them to sing ‘I Touch Myself’ at five), she’s totally down to Earth, the type of singer-songwriter producers would be begging to get into the studio with.
Her debut track ’83’ sees her landing on the scene with a hard-hitting pop heater that doubles as a folk gem-and-a-half. The accompanying video is totally badass as well: the young Byron resident putting to work her extensive acting prowess for a visual that plays like a total movie, cinematic in execution and striking in reception. It’s a total home run, and considering that this is only her first release, it’s clear the possibilities are endless for the young singer-songwriter.
We caught up with Mvlholland to get deep on her debut, pick her brain on growing up across the world and the journey so far. Check it below.
How did you come up with the name Mvlholland? And before we go forward, how do you actually pronounce it?
It’s pronounced Mull-holland. My family and I jokingly say Mu-Poland, but it’s Mull-holland. My name’s Grace Tinkerbell Mulholland Morley. And we were all tossing out different names to use because there are so many Graces in Australia, in the world really. So that seemed unavailable and with Tinker, we had a feeling we’d get sued by Disney [laughs]. I didn’t want to come across as a Disney character.
But with Mvlholland, I just love it. It’s my mum’s last name and it reminds me of Mulholland Drive, especially because I lived in LA when I was younger, so it reminds me of that. And we couldn’t use Mulholland either because there was someone else already called Mulholland. So we just changed the ‘u’ to a ‘v’ and it was all good!
I read that you have lived in a lot of different places growing up, from New York to London to Bali and so on. What was that like? And what’s it like living in Byron now?
It was pretty crazy. We moved every few years when I was younger. We lived in Bali pretty consistently. That was always our base place that we went to. So we would move to New York for like a year and then go back to Bali. We moved to London for a year as well, then back to Bali, all that kind of stuff. And then I moved here when I was 13. but I’ve moved to Europe two or three times since then. But Byron feels very much like home. Byron and Bali are two very equal places to me in my heart.
But also it’s weird because everyone would ask what it was like, being like “Was it crazy?” But to me, that’s how I grew up. That was my normal. I can’t imagine living in one place my whole life, which a lot of my friends have done and that’s just great like I wish I had that. I do have quite a few friends that I’ve known since I was little, but no childhood friends that I went to primary and school with, and that I’m still in touch with. It’s very much as you go along and meeting new people, which I’m so grateful for. But yeah, it is what it is, but it was amazing.
Now to dig into your debut ’83,’ it’s a pretty powerful song to start your career off with. I understand you’ve got a bunch of tunes in the tank waiting, why was ’83’ first?
It was the first one I wrote out of all of them. That was also the first one that me and my team were very definite on and had a really strong feeling about. And it sounded like the start of the story. So the whole idea is… it’s like a cinematic sequence. They all carry on through each other. Every song is connected to the last or written with or produced by the same person. So, it just felt like a good beginning.
The tune is about “a girl and her partner on the run down highway 83 in America.” I’m guessing you’ve never been chased down a highway, so was there a specific experience that inspired that for you?
We started writing it not knowing what we were writing about. And then as we went on, I kept saying ’83’ and I didn’t know what it was. We were going to change it to another word. But it fitted really well with the song. And then I was like, “Okay, wait, let’s Google it and figure out what that could mean and see if we can create a story out of that.” And then we realized there was a highway that ran straight through America and I was like, “That’s perfect. Let’s build a story around it and let’s make it something memorable and different.”
And I guess that’s where the music video really brought it to life because you expect me to ride off into the sunset with this gorgeous guy, in this amazing car and have this crazy life. But I kill him or he dies and it’s up to everyone’s interpretation. But I just love twisting that narrative. And I just felt like it gave the song an edge and a little bit of a difference to every other song that I’ve written.
For the songs that you’ve still got planned to come out, is that the specific style of songwriting you took? What process did you take with this upcoming body of work?
The person I wrote ‘83’ with and pretty much all of the songs at this point with was Lachlan from Mansionair. He and I found it really interesting when we went into the studio and set a task. So for one of our songs we were like “Okay, let’s try to write a song in two time signatures.” And so that was something that we tried to make and bring to life. And it’s one of the singles, which is really cool. And then for another one we were like, “Let’s make a whole song out of just my vocals.” And then that’s another song that we’re releasing.
So every time we’d go into the studio, we’d set a new thing for us to try and achieve. And when we do, it’s usually really cool. But sometimes we don’t, and then usually that song doesn’t make it onto the EP or onto the next stage. So it’s always just trying something new, which has been a success.
That post you made when ’83’ dropped was pretty special. It was clear you had such a solid team behind you for your debut. How did that support network help you tell the story of the tune?
It made everything. From the makeup artist to the assistant photographer to the assistant director to the director to my mum and my dad and my A&R. Every single person that was involved just did the most incredible job. And I had a very clear idea of what I wanted. And the director, Sam Brumby, he really helped me create exactly what I wanted it to be, but also really improved it in ways that I didn’t know needed improving.
I had a very clear idea of every shot that I wanted and every scene i wanted, and then he would take it and turn it into what it was. And my parents are so supportive and are so present in my career. And they traveled to Sydney with me and they were giving everyone drinks and food and made sure everyone was hydrated and happy and rested. And it was just so great. It really couldn’t have gone any better than it did.
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What was the whole experience like just shooting that? And how did your previous acting experience feed into it as well?
When I was 16, I got told I had to choose to pursue music or acting, just because they’re both so full time, which I completely agree with now. At first I was like, “I can do both. I can be successful in both places.” But they’re both 24-hour, seven-day a week jobs. It’s so full time, especially acting. And I did acting more so for a while, but then I figured it’s really hard with acting because you’re auditioning for someone else’s role and someone else’s idea of what they want. And you have to say it in a way that they want it to be said. And you don’t even know what it is, you just have to take a wild guess. And if you get it, you get a job and then you get a good gig. And then you’re successful hopefully.
But with music, you get to sit in the studio and write a story that you want to tell, and you get to be the main character and you get to decide the outcome that you want to have. So that was the winning sequence, for me that sounded like the winner. And when I realized I got to have a hand in my music video and I got to decide what it was going to be and how it was going to go, I wanted to do as much cinematography and make it as much of a movie as it could be. And so that’s why it was very much a storyline and not just shot after shot. And it didn’t really have a beginning and an end. It was designed to be more like a movie and to be more of a story. So that was what it was meant to be like from the beginning.
Was there a specific moment where you were like “Wait, this mode of expression is the way I can really express myself in terms of my own vision”? Was there a specific moment, maybe in the studio or in an audition that you realized that? Or was that a gradual thing?
I think it was very gradual, but there was also… I was auditioning for a really big Hollywood movie, a Fox studios production that was going to be shot in Italy with an amazing lead across from me. And It would’ve been three months shooting in the summertime and it would have been so amazing. And I did my audition scene, I think I did it 18 times or something stupid. And every time it was one little thing different and we just didn’t know which scene to send because I’d been specifically requested, so it was pretty important and pretty special. It was really early on in me doing acting. And then I was just like so, “It’s just not it. This is not it. This is not what I want to do.” and you almost have to train yourself to forget that you’ve done auditions because you won’t hear back. They don’t tell you that they don’t want to use you and they don’t tell you that they’re not going to take you on. So it’s best for you to just be like, “Okay, that didn’t happen. That doesn’t exist.” And if I were to get a call back, then that’d completely out of the blue and you’re almost more shocked at that.
But when I did music, it didn’t feel like a job. It felt like something that I loved. And I was like, “Oh my God, this makes me so happy.” But with acting it felt like something I had to do. And then I flipped it around. But there are moments with music where I’m like, “This is my job. This is difficult,” when I’m recording the same vocals for eight hours straight, but that doesn’t usually happen. And even then when you’re finished, it’s so satisfying because it is a final product and it is something that you have decided.
You’ve had some crazy experiences with some super big creatives, specifically Divinyls front-woman Chrissy Amphlett. What was that like? How did those experiences shape you so early on?
Chrissy was so much a part of my childhood. She was my dad’s best friend. She was my godmother. So it was never something crazy to me until I started doing music. And then I was like, “That’s wild.” And also I’ve never said this, but Bono came and stayed with us when I was really little, in Bali. So I’ve got a photo of Bono holding me up like the Lion King in my bedroom. And it’s just been person after person of people that have made it and have always had belief in themselves.
So, like I’ve said before, it made me feel like it wasn’t out of reach. It was very much a possibility. Like Chrissy, to me she wasn’t a singer, she was a beautiful person and my dad’s best friend and my auntie. So to finally grow into knowing her as a musician has been really beautiful. And it’s been a lot more of a gradual thing. And it’s happened a lot later on in life than early.
Being exposed to so many artists so personally, you must’ve had heaps of influences. Did you ever struggle with tuning it all out and finding your own voice as you’ve become a songwriter?
That hasn’t been as much of a thing with people that I’ve known because that is so their thing. And because I personally know them, if I had adopted their style, I would have felt like I was copying people that I know. Whereas if you copy Taylor Swift or Lorde or someone like that, it doesn’t feel personal. It’s like, they’re not going to hear it anyway. If I use something of theirs, who cares? So I tried my hardest when I first started writing to not adopt someone else’s style. And I was surrounded by the right people.
Like I started writing in London with this amazing songwriter Marlon Roudette who writes lots of big, poppy, massive songs. And he very much guided me in my own direction. He never tried to make me sing something that wasn’t what I wanted. I write probably eight different styles of songs and I’ve found the one I liked the most. But you have to write a little bit of everything to know what is you and what’s going to take you forward personally and within your career.
I saw that you got your own billboard in Melbourne. What was it like when your mate texted you that picture?
It was really crazy. She actually FaceTimed me. So she was messaging me, like harassing me. And I was like, “Why is she messaging me so much?” So I picked up and she was like, “Look at this!” And it was an Audi commercial and this massive billboard. And I was like, “Well, I don’t want an Audi” [laughs] and then it switched over and it was me. She was screaming and everyone in the street was looking at her. And it’s been… that was the first time and that was really special. Her name’s Jala, she’s one of my closest and dearest friends and one of my biggest supporters.
So having her to be the one to show me the first snippet of it, was really crazy and really beautiful. But since then, so many people, friends of friends, my dad’s clients and family friends have been sending me photos and videos. Because there was, I think three big billboards around Melbourne and I obviously didn’t go. But I felt like I saw them all.
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In terms of your artistic journey up till now and that billboard, how would you describe your transformation as a musician?
It’s really weird because as a musician, I think a lot of us, we’re constantly trying to get to the next step and to the next point that you are aiming towards. But if you stop and think like “Okay, what if myself three years ago saw me now and everything that I’ve accomplished?” And it’s just the weirdest feeling because if someone had told me three years ago that I’d be signed by Sony and I was releasing singles and I was planning live shows and that people listen to my music, I would have laughed in their face completely. I also was tone deaf when I was younger. Like I could not sing until I was about 15. I’ve no idea how I figured it out.
But I went to a Steiner school… I went to 12 schools and when I went to a Steiner school, which must’ve been the last school I went to, and they heard me, what I thought was attempting to sing [laughs], they made me do a talent show and really encouraged me to learn different songs, which helped me find the way I could use my voice in a way that worked. So it’s just been crazy.
That’s so crazy that you overcame being tone deaf as a kid. That’s so sick.
I was so not musical as a kid and my mum saw a fortune teller. And she was like, “Your daughter’s going to be a musician.” And my mum was just like, “That kid cannot do music” [laughs]. I couldn’t strum a guitar, couldn’t sing a song, nothing. And my mum’s tone deaf, and my dad loves to think he can sing, well he can sing. If he listens to this, he can sing, but he’s a little bit pitchy [laughs]. So it’s very interesting.
Whats coming up for you? What else can we expect?
I have a few live shows booked, looking at doing a lot more of them later on. I have a few singles I’m planning to release this year. We’re still writing. I honestly can’t even remember what I have planned, but I know there’s a lot. There’s a lot going on, but yeah. It’ll be a great, great 2021.
Mvlholland’s debut release ’83’ is out now. You can buy/stream it here. Be sure to keep up with her on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date on all of her latest projects.
