Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with Blake Rose

Australian singer-songwriter Blake Rose is an emerging voice in the world of music. Last November, he introduced the industry to his alt-pop sound and stunning vocals with the single, “Hotel Room”. Building on that success, he dropped “Lost” and “Best of Me”, which collectively have over half a billion streams on Spotify—yes, half a billion! Pop Culturalist spoke with this fast-rising star about his exciting and thriving career.

PC: How did you discover your passion for music?
Blake: I’ve been interested in music and playing it from when I was really young, but it never clicked that I wanted to do it as a career until I was a teenager. I discovered my passion for music when I started playing the guitar, which was when I was about twelve or thirteen. I was obsessive about learning it, and when left to my own devices, it was pretty much the only thing I would do. All of my previous interests, including acting, which I was hell-bent on for a while, went out the window. Music took the limelight. It wasn’t long after picking up that guitar that I started writing songs. Once that happened, that was it.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Blake: Ed Sheeran definitely had a huge influence on me when I first started. I saw him live for the first time in 2015 at Perth Arena, which was the second show I’d ever been to. I was by myself in a seat quite far back and to the side of the venue, but his performance ignited a fire in me that was unabated. After the show, I went home and instantly bought Ed’s X and ÷ albums (the first I’d ever purchased) and listened to them on repeat for a ridiculous amount of time. I also bought a loop pedal and started doing that whole thing for a while until I realized it wasn’t for me long term.

Diving into his music, including old EPs, really got my head around the craft of songwriting more and offered a lot of guidance, in a sense, for getting the bad songs out of me by knowing what to aim for. On top of his music, watching him navigate his way to the top was incredible to witness and infinitely inspiring to myself and probably thousands of other musicians. I went back and saw him again later that year with a friend of mine, but this time I was in the pit. Seeing Ed perform up close and feeling the energy he created with the crowd firsthand was so motivational and cemented how badly I wanted to be up on that stage.

PC: What’s been the biggest lesson you’ve learned being a part of this industry? If you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would it be and why?
Blake: Don’t get your hopes up. This industry is chockablock full of empty promises, so learning to accept that as early on as possible is really important, one, for your mental health, and two, for not getting yourself into bad situations that could’ve been avoided if you knew the types of people to trust.

PC: Tell us about your new single, “Best of Me”. What inspired the track?
Blake: “Best of Me” is inspired by a very personal situation. Someone close to me has been battling with drug addiction for a long time, and watching that unfold and tear apart their life has been devastating. I’ve wanted to address this issue for a long time, but I knew I needed to tackle it from an angle of hope rather than just venting. Something so important for me to convey to people going through a similar situation is to always keep your arms open and offer your love and support, because even when it doesn’t seem like it, they need you more than you may realize.

PC: What does the rest of the year hold for you as we look ahead in 2019?
Blake: At the moment, I’m stuck in Australia whilst trying to sort some visa issues, but once that’s sorted out, I’ll be moving to Los Angeles permanently. I will also be releasing a lot more music and hopefully playing some shows!

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: Guilty pleasure TV show?
Blake: Riverdale

PC: Guilty pleasure movie?
Blake: I’m not one to watch movies more than once except for the Harry Potter series, so I don’t really have a guilty pleasure movie.

PC: Favorite book?
Blake: The Hobbit

PC: Favorite play or musical?
Blake: The Lion King

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
Blake: Stromae

PC: First album you bought?
Blake: Ed Sheeran’s ÷

PC: First concert you attended?
Blake: Katy Perry’s Prismatic World Tour

PC: An album that you changed your life and why?
Blake: Ed Sheeran’s ÷ and X. They were pretty much the first albums that I really listened to and absorbed.

PC: A venue on your bucket list to perform at?
Blake: Perth Arena

To keep up with Blake, follow him on Twitter and Instagram, and pick up “Best of Me” on Amazon Music, iTunes, or stream it on Spotify.

Photo Credit: Cameron Postforoosh