Q&A: meet Marigolden, neo-soul artist drops debut single

Earlier in the year Mel O’Neill, aka Marigolden, released her debut track Taking It Back. The jazz and soul inspired song is an open letter of self-reflection that embraces feminine power and energy. This track is an intoxicating first single that highlights Marigolden’s multifaceted approach to music.

The Tassie local draws from several genres and vocal styles to create a unique sound that emulates strength and vulnerability. The song talks to those painful post break-up moments when you’re not too sure if you’ll ever get over that hunk or hunkess. She sings “Fuck it, I will live”, spreading the message that growth will come over time and it’s time to take back your power. Sigh, sometimes that “fuck it” moment takes it sweet ass time to come around. 

The neo-soul singer exudes passion and flair through her music expression. Music has always been apart of Marigolden’s life. From an early age she was drenched in the sounds of her fathers classical music, playing her nursery rhymes on the piano and organ. Pretty epic stuff! My parents could maybe play the recorder and the triangle at best. 

We caught up our slice Marigolden to talk about her debut track, her tattoos and her favourite bar in Melbourne. 

Check out all the feels below through a snippet of our conversation:

Hey Mel, so talk us through how you got into music.

Hello! My dad is a classical musician so I grew up sitting next to him while he played piano and organ. He would ask me to pick a nursery rhyme and turn the simple melodies into huge dramatic pieces on pipe organ. I loved it. When I was a teenager he would accompany my singing on piano and teach me music theory while we listened to ABC Classic FM during the car ride to school. 

Let’s talk about your debut track ‘Taking it back’, what’s it like to finally have it released into the world?

I've been sitting with this song for almost three years now, since the very first lyric was written, and it's taken me through so many different emotions. Something that started as an outlet of anger and frustration now sits with me as a signifier of joy and strength. When I hear the song now I think of my community, the strength in people and especially woman, the stories that have been shared and the love that's been realised, despite whatever is thrown at us. I'm elated to have it out in the world. Not only is this my debut single, marking a milestone in my musical career with its release, It also marks an emotional release for me, from the personal holds represented in the song. 

You have such a fun and unique sound, where do you draw your inspiration from?

As any artist would probably say, it comes from a lot of different places. In terms of vocal delivery, I like playing with subtlety and sort of letting the lyrics and message speak for itself. I think that comes from listening to a lot of bossa nova music which is so emotionally upfront, from pure joy to absolute tragedy, and complex in its rhythm and harmony, but also has such a beautiful softness and subtlety to it that really draws you in. I also love spoken word, hip-hop and rap. Artists like Noname, Biig Piig, Okenyo, I find especially inspiring. I think going from studying classical to jazz, from growing up in Tassie that is so folk centered to living in Melbourne that has such a diverse musical scene, it's allowed me to have a really open mind (and ears) in terms of what I can learn from and draw on musically.

Living in Melbourne, what’s been the hardest part of the past few months living in an on again off again lockdown?

For me, the hardest part has probably been not knowing when I can see my family. They live in Tasmania and in NSW, and I find great comfort in times of stress or sadness knowing that I could fairly easily jump on a plane to see them if I really needed that. From what I've heard, the Tassie borders are going to be closed at least until December so I'm holding out hope that I will be able to see them for Christmas. Having said that, I'm in a pretty privileged position, in terms of my living situation and access to support networks, and remain super grateful throughout these ups and downs of lockdown. We're all experiencing this simultaneously as a collective and in our own individual ways, so I'm trying my best to be kind to myself while also being aware that I'm super lucky to be where I am. To whoever is reading this, I hope you're taking care of yourself and remember to reach out to friends, fam, or healthcare professionals whenever you need to!

Take me to your favourite bar in Melbourne, where are we going and why?!

The first bar that pops to mind is the Edi Castle on Sydney Rd. It used to be my local and when I think of it, I think of drinking beer with my best mates in the sunshine, or red wine by the fire, playing pool or table tennis, breakups, tinder dates, personal revelations, political conversations, and of course listening to whatever incredible artist is making music in the courtyard. They also have the most amazing vegan eggplant parma literally in the world, no big deal. 

If you could only eat one cuisine for the rest of your life what would it be and why?

Mmm... Vietnamese. Because phở but also because bánh mì and also because rice paper rolls. 

Can you tell us a bit about your tattoos?

"I cover myself in flowers to help this garden grow."

Those are lyrics from an unreleased song of mine that sums it up pretty well (I have a fair few floral tattoos). Tattoos have been a really important way for me to reconnect to my body. I guess it's a way to feel like I'm reclaiming autonomy over my own body by choosing what beautiful images I want to make a part of me. Some have more meaning than others, but they've all been a really important part of learning to not only accept my skin, but to embrace it. A lesson that is ongoing and challenging but definitely being learned. 

What’s next for you, are we going to be blessed with another song this year?

I am working on my second single right now! It will be out in a couple of months and is basically the yin to the yang of my first single, Taking It Back. Still straight up, honest, and personal, but a bit more of a light, feel good vibe. I'll be emotionally oversharing throughout the whole process via my socials so jump on to keep up with all the deets and find out when it's available to pre-save!

When I discovered bánh mì it really did change the game so I would almost agree with Marigolden on this one! We are so stoked with this debut release though and can’t wait to hear her second release that is set to compliment Taking It Back.

Listen to her new release below and follow our ASSEMBLY LABEL X FTM playlist to discover more tracks like this one.

By Samuel Seedsman.