The Sit Down with Tori Darke
Regarded as one of the most compelling and dynamic female voices in the Australian country music scene today, Tori Darke is finally set to perform in the UK for the first time at Country Calling Festival in Chelmsford. Known for her powerhouse vocals, fearless lyrics, and magnetic stage presence, Tori has carved out a space as both a hitmaker and a fan favourite through a career spanning over fifteen years which has taken her to Nashville multiple times and saw her join Team LeAnn Rimes on The Voice Australia in 2024. Ahead of her first ever show in the British Isles, we caught up with Tori in London to talk about the trip and her plans for more new music on the way.
Welcome to London.
“Thank you so much.”
You've been over here for a little bit, I've seen. You haven't literally just dropped straight in, because you've had time to get over that jet lag because you came from America as well.
“I needed that time to get over that jetlag, it was rough. We flew through the night and I thought, we'll land in the morning and I'll be sweet but It kicked my ass for a good couple of days. It was definitely brutal and I am so glad to be on the other end of it but and I'm not looking forward to the jet lag when I go home and I’m going home to winter too, so I’m not looking forward to that either.”
But it's nice and warm here.
“Yeah, it's beautiful.”
Tomorrow's meant to be really hot though.
“Yeah, I'm not looking forward to that, especially with the no aircon factor.”
That’s the thing that people don’t get until they come here. Yes, other places are hotter but all our buildings are old anddesigned to keep heat in, then the only place you find aircon are shopping centres and pubs, not that we need an excuse to go to the pub.
“Cold beer and aircon is a great selling point, right?”
On that, while you've been exploring, I saw went to Jeremy Clarkson's pub.
“I had to.”
Is The farmer’s dog worth the visit? Everyone says it's sobusy, but does it live up to it and what was the Tori Darkedrink of choice?
“Yeah, I would absolutely say that it is worth a visit. We were lucky enough to stay literally a two minute drive from there in a really cute Airbnb, in old stables that'vebeen refurbished into little flats, which was amazing. My favourite drink at The Farmer's Dog was the strawberry cider though.”
Oooh, you’re a cider girly?
“Yeah, I'm not a beer girl, I really wish I was, however, my husband and brother in law both raved about Hawkstone. Both the boys said it was the best beer they have ever had and they downed a lot of them.”
Welcome to London.
“Thank you so much.”
You've been over here for a little bit, I've seen. You haven't literally just dropped straight in, because you've had time to get over that jet lag because you came from America as well.
“I needed that time to get over that jetlag, it was rough. We flew through the night and I thought, we'll land in the morning and I'll be sweet but It kicked my ass for a good couple of days. It was definitely brutal and I am so glad to be on the other end of it but and I'm not looking forward to the jet lag when I go home and I’m going home to winter too, so I’m not looking forward to that either.”
But it's nice and warm here.
“Yeah, it's beautiful.”
Tomorrow's meant to be really hot though.
“Yeah, I'm not looking forward to that, especially with the no aircon factor.”
That’s the thing that people don’t get until they come here. Yes, other places are hotter but all our buildings are old anddesigned to keep heat in, then the only place you find aircon are shopping centres and pubs, not that we need an excuse to go to the pub.
“Cold beer and aircon is a great selling point, right?”
On that, while you've been exploring, I saw went to Jeremy Clarkson's pub.
“I had to.”
Is The farmer’s dog worth the visit? Everyone says it's sobusy, but does it live up to it and what was the Tori Darkedrink of choice?
“Yeah, I would absolutely say that it is worth a visit. We were lucky enough to stay literally a two minute drive from there in a really cute Airbnb, in old stables that'vebeen refurbished into little flats, which was amazing. My favourite drink at The Farmer's Dog was the strawberry cider though.”
Oooh, you’re a cider girly?
“Yeah, I'm not a beer girl, I really wish I was, however, my husband and brother in law both raved about Hawkstone. Both the boys said it was the best beer they have ever had and they downed a lot of them.”
Well, I’m sure we can have some more ciders this weekend but this is your first time coming over to play shows and it's been a long time coming. I was actually quite surprised how long ago you started putting things out because your first EP came out seventeen years ago. Why has it taken you half of your life for you to come over here and play?
“I just don't think the opportunity has come up before now and I think country music is in the strongest position it possibly could be, as well. It feels like the right time for country music to be exporting all over the world, not just in the UK, but it's at a time where I feel like it's very inclusive, that the whole genre is just booming. I think even with Australia as well, we've really noticed a really big change in the market and country music is now at the forefront of music, like, the Billboard charts at the moment is all country music and the top five songs arecountry music. To be in the UK, when country music is atthe absolute highest it's ever been, it feels just like all the stars aligned and was the right time for me to be here. I do feel like I'm at the most solid point in my career as well, it's taken a long time to get here and we've had things like COVID, I'd taken a break from music, and I've had a new team where I've got a really great support network now, so I feel like anything I do in music now is because it's the right time. I feel like if I had have done this maybe seventeen years ago, I wouldn't have been ready for it and fully embraced that experience of being in the UK and what that means.”
I think the interesting thing about you is you've pretty much always done country or around that sort of lane really, where a few other guys have kind of jumped in and jumped back out, but for you, when you were very young and started singing, what was the draw for you that this is the type of music youwanted to do?
“Country music for me has always been about the stories and I love that about country music because you can listen to it and you feel like it was a song that was written for you, or you feel like you're living that song. I try to do that with my own music as well, like my current single “Prettiest Wreck” and I'm not heartbroken anymore, though there was a time where I was completely heartbroken, but this song to me now, is everybody else's song. It's now their heartbreak anthem and I wrote that at a time in my life where I needed that song but now it's that time for me to give that song away and go this is your song now. I think that's what I love about country music, I grew up listening to Shania Twain and LeAnn Rimes, they were my two biggest idols where I'm lucky enough to have spent time with LeAnn, sung with her and been on her team on The Voice. I feel like with country music, you just connect with it so well, whether it's a song that you feel like is written about you, a song that relates to a family member, a friend or a point in your life where you just need that. We've all been through a breakup and we've all been in love, so you can listen to a song on repeat and go, oh, I feel like they wrote this song for me. I think that's been why I've fallen in love with country music but also stayed in country music and I haven't swayed. I know, like you say, a lot of people do dip in and out of country music and I am on the more country-pop genre side, but it still hasn't changed that my love for country music and my foot in country music.”
Looking at things back home, you said how, similar to what it is here, there's a massive boom with the genre worldwide at the minute and yes it is driven by the Morgan Wallen’s, Luke Combs, Zach Bryan’s and Ella Langley’s of the world but domestically, is it translating for homegrown artists as well?
“Yeah, I absolutely think it is because I grew up in a place called Camden, in New South Wales and I played a festival there a couple of weeks back with James Johnston but I grew up there and I was the kid that probably got picked on for playing country music and the, oh, you sing that Country and Western crap was something I heard a lot when I was a kid. Now it's people that I went to school with coming up to me at a show going, Tori, I love what you're doing, I'm so supportive, I'm a huge fan and I'm like, really? It blows my mind, so I definitely think that the growth has boomed in Australia as well because country music now is cool to everybody, people that I grew up with that were in DCs, baseball hats and baseball t shirts are now in Ariat boots and Akubra’s. It's this whole new world that you kind of feel like you're in a time warp of going, what era am I in and how did this happen? You almost feel like you're living in a country music world now, because people will be at the shops in a pair of cowboy boots and that's not out of the ordinary, whereas you'd get stared at ten years ago or five years ago, even. I definitely think for those domestic artists, it has changed a lot because there's country music events all throughout Australia now. All throughout the year there's country music nights that just your normal pubs will put on now too, where everyone dresses up and they get amongst it. It's not just a fad anymore, if that makes sense, so I think it's helped a lot of the artists to gain a following and a fan base.”
“I just don't think the opportunity has come up before now and I think country music is in the strongest position it possibly could be, as well. It feels like the right time for country music to be exporting all over the world, not just in the UK, but it's at a time where I feel like it's very inclusive, that the whole genre is just booming. I think even with Australia as well, we've really noticed a really big change in the market and country music is now at the forefront of music, like, the Billboard charts at the moment is all country music and the top five songs arecountry music. To be in the UK, when country music is atthe absolute highest it's ever been, it feels just like all the stars aligned and was the right time for me to be here. I do feel like I'm at the most solid point in my career as well, it's taken a long time to get here and we've had things like COVID, I'd taken a break from music, and I've had a new team where I've got a really great support network now, so I feel like anything I do in music now is because it's the right time. I feel like if I had have done this maybe seventeen years ago, I wouldn't have been ready for it and fully embraced that experience of being in the UK and what that means.”
I think the interesting thing about you is you've pretty much always done country or around that sort of lane really, where a few other guys have kind of jumped in and jumped back out, but for you, when you were very young and started singing, what was the draw for you that this is the type of music youwanted to do?
“Country music for me has always been about the stories and I love that about country music because you can listen to it and you feel like it was a song that was written for you, or you feel like you're living that song. I try to do that with my own music as well, like my current single “Prettiest Wreck” and I'm not heartbroken anymore, though there was a time where I was completely heartbroken, but this song to me now, is everybody else's song. It's now their heartbreak anthem and I wrote that at a time in my life where I needed that song but now it's that time for me to give that song away and go this is your song now. I think that's what I love about country music, I grew up listening to Shania Twain and LeAnn Rimes, they were my two biggest idols where I'm lucky enough to have spent time with LeAnn, sung with her and been on her team on The Voice. I feel like with country music, you just connect with it so well, whether it's a song that you feel like is written about you, a song that relates to a family member, a friend or a point in your life where you just need that. We've all been through a breakup and we've all been in love, so you can listen to a song on repeat and go, oh, I feel like they wrote this song for me. I think that's been why I've fallen in love with country music but also stayed in country music and I haven't swayed. I know, like you say, a lot of people do dip in and out of country music and I am on the more country-pop genre side, but it still hasn't changed that my love for country music and my foot in country music.”
Looking at things back home, you said how, similar to what it is here, there's a massive boom with the genre worldwide at the minute and yes it is driven by the Morgan Wallen’s, Luke Combs, Zach Bryan’s and Ella Langley’s of the world but domestically, is it translating for homegrown artists as well?
“Yeah, I absolutely think it is because I grew up in a place called Camden, in New South Wales and I played a festival there a couple of weeks back with James Johnston but I grew up there and I was the kid that probably got picked on for playing country music and the, oh, you sing that Country and Western crap was something I heard a lot when I was a kid. Now it's people that I went to school with coming up to me at a show going, Tori, I love what you're doing, I'm so supportive, I'm a huge fan and I'm like, really? It blows my mind, so I definitely think that the growth has boomed in Australia as well because country music now is cool to everybody, people that I grew up with that were in DCs, baseball hats and baseball t shirts are now in Ariat boots and Akubra’s. It's this whole new world that you kind of feel like you're in a time warp of going, what era am I in and how did this happen? You almost feel like you're living in a country music world now, because people will be at the shops in a pair of cowboy boots and that's not out of the ordinary, whereas you'd get stared at ten years ago or five years ago, even. I definitely think for those domestic artists, it has changed a lot because there's country music events all throughout Australia now. All throughout the year there's country music nights that just your normal pubs will put on now too, where everyone dresses up and they get amongst it. It's not just a fad anymore, if that makes sense, so I think it's helped a lot of the artists to gain a following and a fan base.”
Well, you're gonna see plenty of hats and boots over the weekend! We’ve seen a lot of guys and girls from down under playing here and you’ve also spent a lot of time in Nashville so I’m sure people have talked about the UK audience. What have you heard and what excites you most about getting to play for the fans over here.
“I have heard many things about the UK audience, but the one thing that has stuck out for me is how loyal they areand that's really exciting because as an artist, the one thing that we always wish for and hope for is that you gain a loyal following and people that are gonna be with you on the journey from the beginning to the end or jump on halfway and stay with you right through every era of music. I've been told that they will be singing along to the songs by the end of it, they will get into it, they are diehard fans and even if they don't know it, they will give it a good crack to line dance to it or to sing along to it by the end.People who just have a good time, embrace it and be present which I think that's really important, because we are living in a world where country music is thriving, but it's also still so new to people. Things that I grew up on like Brooks & Dunn and George Jones, I know all those songs, but a lot of these people don't and I think they're all trying to learn really quickly. I think that's really exciting, because it is such a broad genre and had such a lifetime, that there's still so much for these new fans to catch up on and it's great that they're trying to embrace that, trying to learn and get amongst it rather than only learning just the new stuff. I'm really intrigued to see this UK audience from my perspective and see what it's like, but from what I've heard, I will not be going home disappointed.”
In terms of the festival itself, I know your good friends with Kaylee Bell, who headlined last year so what did you hearfrom Kaylee along what Donna and Pete sold to you to makeyou think this was going to be a great first opportunity to play in the UK?
“I think diving back into that fan base is just that how loyal the UK fan base has been. I've spoken to Max(Jackson), Tyla (Rodrigues), Kaylee, Sinead (Burgess) and other people who have just said that the UK is one of their favourite places to play. That the audiences have been amazing, attentive, having fun and getting amongst it, I think that's all any of us ever hoped for, when you play show, there's people that are enjoying it, having a good time and they're having as good a time as what you are. I think that's what's gonna be really special to see over the weekend and I want to get out in the crowd, I want to go support some of my mates that are playing too and I'm so excited to meet some new people.”
You mentioned “Prettiest Wreck” earlier, which is the newestsong out and you wrote that with Tom and Nick from The Wolfe Brothers. How did that song come about and why did you decide that was the one to be putting out now?
“So, “Prettiest Wreck” was a song that I wrote with Tom,Nick and Brodie (Rainbird) who plays in the band and it's so funny, you got all the way to Nashville to write with people and you always end up writing with Aussies at some time. I was going through probably the toughest point in my life, I was going through a pretty solid breakup of an eight year relationship and I was just a young girl trying to find my way, find my feet again and figure out what life looked like in this new single kind of world. I brought the idea to the boys because I'd seen a saying on social media that day and it said I'll be the prettiest wreck you've ever seen. That really struck a chord with me because I was like, that's exactly how I feel right now, I'm putting on a pretty dress, a full face of makeup and nobody knows that I'm a total hot mess on the inside. I might not look it, but, you know, if I'm gonnabe a mess, I'll be the prettiest damn one that you've ever seen. I know myself, there were definitely those moments where I still had to see my ex at different things, but I was like, okay, cool, I have to wear the hottest dress I can find,I have to look like the best looking chick at the party, or whatever it may be. It took me a long time to release this song, because I just wasn't ready to, I guess, give that relationship the satisfaction of that I probably was a mess at a point in my life and now that I am at the best point in my life ever, I'm happily married, I have really solid life, I have the best husband anyone could ask for and I'm very lucky to have someone that's so supportive and invested in my music, which I never had before.”
“I have heard many things about the UK audience, but the one thing that has stuck out for me is how loyal they areand that's really exciting because as an artist, the one thing that we always wish for and hope for is that you gain a loyal following and people that are gonna be with you on the journey from the beginning to the end or jump on halfway and stay with you right through every era of music. I've been told that they will be singing along to the songs by the end of it, they will get into it, they are diehard fans and even if they don't know it, they will give it a good crack to line dance to it or to sing along to it by the end.People who just have a good time, embrace it and be present which I think that's really important, because we are living in a world where country music is thriving, but it's also still so new to people. Things that I grew up on like Brooks & Dunn and George Jones, I know all those songs, but a lot of these people don't and I think they're all trying to learn really quickly. I think that's really exciting, because it is such a broad genre and had such a lifetime, that there's still so much for these new fans to catch up on and it's great that they're trying to embrace that, trying to learn and get amongst it rather than only learning just the new stuff. I'm really intrigued to see this UK audience from my perspective and see what it's like, but from what I've heard, I will not be going home disappointed.”
In terms of the festival itself, I know your good friends with Kaylee Bell, who headlined last year so what did you hearfrom Kaylee along what Donna and Pete sold to you to makeyou think this was going to be a great first opportunity to play in the UK?
“I think diving back into that fan base is just that how loyal the UK fan base has been. I've spoken to Max(Jackson), Tyla (Rodrigues), Kaylee, Sinead (Burgess) and other people who have just said that the UK is one of their favourite places to play. That the audiences have been amazing, attentive, having fun and getting amongst it, I think that's all any of us ever hoped for, when you play show, there's people that are enjoying it, having a good time and they're having as good a time as what you are. I think that's what's gonna be really special to see over the weekend and I want to get out in the crowd, I want to go support some of my mates that are playing too and I'm so excited to meet some new people.”
You mentioned “Prettiest Wreck” earlier, which is the newestsong out and you wrote that with Tom and Nick from The Wolfe Brothers. How did that song come about and why did you decide that was the one to be putting out now?
“So, “Prettiest Wreck” was a song that I wrote with Tom,Nick and Brodie (Rainbird) who plays in the band and it's so funny, you got all the way to Nashville to write with people and you always end up writing with Aussies at some time. I was going through probably the toughest point in my life, I was going through a pretty solid breakup of an eight year relationship and I was just a young girl trying to find my way, find my feet again and figure out what life looked like in this new single kind of world. I brought the idea to the boys because I'd seen a saying on social media that day and it said I'll be the prettiest wreck you've ever seen. That really struck a chord with me because I was like, that's exactly how I feel right now, I'm putting on a pretty dress, a full face of makeup and nobody knows that I'm a total hot mess on the inside. I might not look it, but, you know, if I'm gonnabe a mess, I'll be the prettiest damn one that you've ever seen. I know myself, there were definitely those moments where I still had to see my ex at different things, but I was like, okay, cool, I have to wear the hottest dress I can find,I have to look like the best looking chick at the party, or whatever it may be. It took me a long time to release this song, because I just wasn't ready to, I guess, give that relationship the satisfaction of that I probably was a mess at a point in my life and now that I am at the best point in my life ever, I'm happily married, I have really solid life, I have the best husband anyone could ask for and I'm very lucky to have someone that's so supportive and invested in my music, which I never had before.”
“Now be able to release these songs and like I was saying before give them back now and go, yep, this was a song that I needed to write at that time in my life. I wasn't ready to share it but now I am in this era where I want to share all of the different parts of my life, the good, the bad and the ugly, then the follow-up single that we've got coming out very shortly is a really good follow-up to “Prettiest Wreck” called “Who I Am Without You” because it's that next chapter of, OK, cool, this girl's like got her smile back, she's got her sparkle back and that wouldn't have happened without going through that heartbreak in that relationship. I love that writing music can really take you on a journey and have people a part of that, but also with this song, I played a show a couple of weeks back and there was someone that I knew in the audience that had just gone through a breakup that day and she was in the front row screaming this song at me. It was like, I feel this song so much right now and I could tell she was really hating on this ex-boyfriend of hers andthat's what makes these kind of songs so cool, because you just go, oh, wow, this really touched someone else. At the time, it was a song I needed and now this is your song, please go and scream this, sing it at the top of your lungs and I want this to be your song now.”
You said we've got another track coming out soon and you’vebeen spending plenty of time over in the States, so have we got lots of new stuff on the way then?
“There's new singer coming in a couple of weeks and there will be another project coming out around October to November, then another one in February or March and more in July, so there is lots and lots and lots of music coming. There will be so many songs so that people will be able to stream me for days!”
Then the hope is to be able to come and play all these new songs over here as often as you can.
“Absolutely, I would love to get back as often as possible and I think this is just the beginning of Tori Darke in the UK!”
The new single “Prettiest Wreck” from Tori Darke is out now and available HERE. You can find details of all of Tori’s upcoming dates back home in Australia on her WEBSITE and you can keep up to date with all that Tori is up to by following along socially on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK & FACEBOOK.
Country Calling will take place at Kings Farm in Chelmsford over the weekend of August 14th to 16th and you can find more details, along with ticket information on their WEBSITE whilst you can keep up to date with all of the latest news on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK or FACEBOOK.
You said we've got another track coming out soon and you’vebeen spending plenty of time over in the States, so have we got lots of new stuff on the way then?
“There's new singer coming in a couple of weeks and there will be another project coming out around October to November, then another one in February or March and more in July, so there is lots and lots and lots of music coming. There will be so many songs so that people will be able to stream me for days!”
Then the hope is to be able to come and play all these new songs over here as often as you can.
“Absolutely, I would love to get back as often as possible and I think this is just the beginning of Tori Darke in the UK!”
The new single “Prettiest Wreck” from Tori Darke is out now and available HERE. You can find details of all of Tori’s upcoming dates back home in Australia on her WEBSITE and you can keep up to date with all that Tori is up to by following along socially on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK & FACEBOOK.
Country Calling will take place at Kings Farm in Chelmsford over the weekend of August 14th to 16th and you can find more details, along with ticket information on their WEBSITE whilst you can keep up to date with all of the latest news on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK or FACEBOOK.