The extremely talented and gifted wife of country sensation Lee Kernahan, Robby X, has released her debut album Obsession and already it’s cracked the iTunes Top 30 Pop Album Chart. Speaking about the album and the process behind it, we caught up with Robby recently and discussed music, her supportive husband, and cocktails among other things.
Obsession is a bold foray into the pop charts for Robby and was partially co-written with Ciaran Gribbin who has written for Madonna and was recently the front man for INXS.
Never Wanna Let You Go is the first single, and is about hope and support- it’s deliciously smooth and showcases Robby’s impressive vocal talent which was honed through her already successful years as a pop artist. But despite being married to one of Australia’s greatest country artists, who lends his full support to his wife’s independent career, this is about as far from country music as you’ll get. She does however, acknowledge the influence of the contrasting styles they have. “When I met Lee I’d never head of him and had little to do with country music at all, but having that exposure to what Lee does has been really beneficial to me as a songwriter. Country music is very lyric orientated and I’ve always produced pop music, so it has really helped me with my songwriting and lyrics.”
Teaming up with Gribbin on the tracks Dirty Mind and Just Another Night, Robby says she wanted the songs on Obsession to take people on a journey. “I bumped into Ciaran at a studio in Sydney where I was mixing Obsession and thought he could bring a great male energy into the album. I sent him these two tracks that were incomplete and he said he’d love to work on them with me. We had a blast and come out with two really ‘poppie’ songs. There are various themes about life and love and some of the songs are quite sexy and sensual. I think I’ve ended up with an album that’s very much me!”
I quiz Robby on the other theme noticeable on some of the tracks, namely cocktails, and suggest that perhaps there’s a running theme appearing. She replies with “Never give up something you’re really good at.” We both laugh but she quickly adds that “..music is a cocktail of emotions, lyrics and feelings. I tried to come up with a couple of songs that really lend themself to cocktails so I got together with a mixologist to come up with something unique to integrate with the music. For example, Dirty Mind is a spin on a Dirty Martini, the Obsession is a champagne cocktail.” It’s a feasible blend of music and liquor that works well and shows a creative flair- ‘music to drink cocktails to’ if you like!
Robby X, who is also an ambassador for The McGrath Foundation, will be donating royalties from the sale of the first single Never Wanna Let You Go to assist the breast cancer foundation’s fundraising efforts. “I’ve met Glen on a couple of occasions and was familiar with the work they do, I was very happy to become an Ambassador for them and with Never Wanna Let You Go it struck me that the song is very similar to what their cause is. It’s about being there for someone during their toughest times, which is exactly what the McGrath Foundation is all about.” Obsession is a great foray into the charts for Robby X and if not just for the fantastic tracks on the album, the support for the McGrath Foundation should encourage you to get out and buy it now!
Obsession is available now on iTunes and in store at JB HiFi and Sanity
Interviewed by Darren Hassan
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