New Zealander Molly Payton moved to London at the age of 16 to pursue her dreams and those dreams sound like pure heaven.

It takes someone with a lot of guts to move all the way from New Zealand to London when you’re just a super sweet 16 year old. That’s exactly what Molly Payton did just two years ago – following in the footsteps of many before her. One thing Molly definitely has on top of sheer talent is a lotta guts.

 

An old soul at heart, it’s clear to see (and hear) that Molly is wise beyond years. With witty and prolific lyricism that is equal parts sharp as it is cutting, there’s definitely something special about this Kiwi. With an air of mystery surrounding her, we just had to meet this chick from across the globe.

 

Citing her references as Joni Mitchell, Leonard Cohen and Jeff Buckley – Payton is an old school storyteller at heart, and we are here for it. ‘1972’ by the singer/songwriter is a just a taster of the craftsmanship behind the artist. Payton’s talent lies in the form of observing life around her and telling it in a way that could only come from her heart. With lyrics that take you by the hand, Molly’s personality shines through with her straight up and sometimes humourous observations of love and life in the 21st century.

 

With her debut EP, ‘Mess’, just hiding around the corner, we wait with bated breath for more of this talented artist and can only thank her for uprooting and moving to London to share her talents with us.

 

Dive into our latest Internet Crush below and let Molly Payton tell you her stories, you won’t regret it.

If you could summarise it, what would be the story of how you became a musician?

Growing up in New Zealand music was always a huge part of my life – my parents started me off on the piano when I was 3 – but I never really considered seriously pursuing it. When I moved to London from New Zealand two years ago I met my friend Oscar Lang at school, he was kinda the first person who encouraged me to try. He helped me record a demo of an old song of mine and put it up on Soundcloud. My manager found me through that and he helped me start doing gigs here and there and then at the end of 2018 Oscar and I managed to get into a few studios and record this first EP.

How would you describe your sound?

My sound in this first EP is all about comfort and nostalgic. Nice and raw and personal.

What are some of your first memories of music?

Well if we’re talking performing I remember my first ever piano recital when I was about 5, I insisted on wearing this wedding veil because I was convinced it would make me look like a Serious Musician. Bridal rocknroll. I also remember that me and my brother Will used to fucking BANG out the Shrek soundtrack on a loop on long car journeys. I’m pretty sure I can still play that entire soundtrack from memory.

What’s the best part of being an artist? The worst?

I mean the music’s always been the thing I enjoy the most in the world. It makes me happy. Being able to do your favourite thing as a job is very exciting. I’m still a pretty small artist so I can honestly say there aren’t really any cons to it at the moment, but I think if I do well there are things I might find hard. For example, I have mates that are doing well and are away from the people they love for like over 6 months of the year which is nuts.

 

What is something that not many people would know about you?

I have two nasty scars on my right thigh that look like I got attacked by something big so sometimes I convince drunk people at parties that I got bitten by a shark. Works way too often.

What energy do you want to give off when you perform live?

When I’m playing with the band I wanna take people on the emotional ride of their lives haha. We usually throw in a couple of songs from the second EP which is a lot heavier so hopefully, if we play well we have people crying and dancing and generally having a mad old time.

What are you most looking forward to in life right now?

I’m looking forward to the coronavirus stuff to calm down so I can get back into the studio and start doing gigs again. I’ve been very lucky to be able to be isolating with the people I care about and we have it a lot easier than a lot of people do but I have found it hard putting my entire life on hold.

What does being in love feel like for you?

I mean, I’m young and haven’t experienced a lot of life yet so love for me now is probably very different from what it will be in a few years time. I guess so far being in love is just being willing to put up with all the weird and unpleasant stuff that you find out about a person when they come into your life because something about them makes it worth it. It’s the pros outweighing the cons until they don’t anymore.

What is the best piece of advice you have been given?

As a musician, I think the best advice I’ve ever gotten is from my manager. I wrote this first EP when I was about 16 so I’ve had times where I’ve gotten sick of the songs and wanted to just move on to the second EP. Ferdy sat me down one time and told me that people are always going to be at least a year behind where I am with my songs because of how long it takes to put things out, but there’s no rush and allowing people to watch you grow as an artist is what helps them connect with and understand you and feel like they’re involved.

Do you have a favourite lyric you’ve written right now?

My first single no one else is one of my favourites because it was the first time that I said exactly what I wanted to without worrying about hurting someone’s feelings. “If there was no one else around I’d be the one for you, but at this point, girls and cocaine are all you want to do. When I’m with him you go out of your mind – if I say I don’t want you would that make us alright?”

If you could say one thing to baby Molly, what would it be?

Stop being an asshole about going to piano lessons the wiggles will still be there when you get home.

What do you miss the most right now?

I’m always a little homesick for New Zealand. It’s the best place in the world.

Dive into '1972' by Molly Payton as we wait for more music around the corner.