We chat with Christian Lo Russo from Amy Meredith.
Their hits Pornstar and Lying have been all over our radios, and Australia just can’t stop talking about the boys from Amy Meredith. After touring with Grinspoon, the boys have just returned from a quick trip to New York City where they met with very important peeps, shopped and drank coffee in SoHo. Amongst the madness we managed to chat with Christian Lo Russo, and asked him questions submitted by you dear readers on the DOLLY Facebook and via email.
"Amy Meredith was actually the name of a babysitter I had when I was five years old, and had a bit of a crush on. She was the first girl I ever liked like that, and a lot of our songs are about girls so i feel like it fits."
Where do you get your inspiration for songs? – Ashleigh, via Facebook
"Just life experience really. Things that happen to me or my friends, stories I hear, movies I watch or books I read, everywhere."
Can you tell us what the inspiration behind ‘Lying’ was? – Katie, via Facebook
"It’s actually about my ex-girlfriend, and stuff I went through when I was in that relationship. Lying is about being convinced inside your head that your girlfriend is lying to you, even if you don’t actually know for sure."
Have you ever been in love? – Keira, via Facebook
"Yes, for sure. Probably twice. But it’s a really big notion that means different things to different people, but yeah I would say twice for me."
What was your first kiss like? – Mahalia, via Facebook
"It was really good actually! I was 12, at the movies with my friend Gemma, who I’m still friends with now. We were watching Titanic and just got bored, I mean it was three hours long – in a dark room for that long we were just like ‘Why not?’ We’re still really good friends, she’s awesome."
Do you get recognised by strangers on the street? – Marie, via email
"Yes, it’s starting to happen a lot actually. It just happened now as I’m talking on the phone...these girls walking past saw me and started pointing, but I just gave a quick wave because I’m on the phone!"
What’s the weirdest thing a fan has said to you or asked you? – Montana, via Facebook
"Our fans aren’t usually too weird, but I guess Twitter opens you up to a lot of contact and communication with total strangers. Like if I Tweet something about being in bed and being freezing cold, you get a thousand Tweets back at you saying "Oh, I’ll come and warm you up" with winking faces and stuff. That’s a bit weird."
What’s the craziest thing you ever did as a teenager? – Katie, via Facebook
"Oh wow, um, I did a fair bit of crazy stuff...some of it would not be appropriate for this interview! But one thing I can admit is locking a teacher in a classroom when I was at school. My friends and I were the last ones to walk out of the room so we held the door closed so he couldn’t get out. It’s not as bad as it sounds, but I guess it’s still pretty crazy!"
What’s your advice to up-and-coming musicians trying to get signed? – Siahn, via email
"Be ambitious, and it sounds cliche but just don’t give up. It’s a lot about committing and just saying ‘never die’. Write songs, get better at it, meet people and just absorb everything you can."
Are you going to do an Australian tour? – Eliscia, via email
"We sure are! It kicks off this month and goes through October. We’re so excited to do our own tour – supporting Grinspoon was amazing, but it is exciting to headline our own tour as well. We’re going to cities but some regional places too, which is awesome."
Amy Meredith's national tour kicks off on 22 September.
