Phoebe Sinclair

Like a best friend can comfort you and build you up when you’re down, Phoebe Sinclair’s debut EP, Sentiment, is an honest and empowering record that unpacks the woes of love with a wise understanding.

Opening track This Isn’t Love has a wonderful ebb and flow you could run to – in fact if you’re looking to run away from an unsatisfactory ‘this isn’t love’ type relationship this is your song. Here Phoebe conveys raw emotion reminiscent of her idol Adele but through the sweet, somewhat naïve lens of youth.

Next in line is Mine – a song you can imagine echoing off the walls of a quaint underground bar or coffee shop. The stripped back instrumentals allow Phoebe’s voice to take centre stage. Her voice is captivating, drawing you into her world and emotions. It’s like watching a movie or reading a book and empathising with a character. Her voice lingers in your mind even after the last chord.

Final tracks I’m Still Here and I’ll Be The One take things up a notch, addressing the painful insecurities relationships can incite. I’m Still Here is particularly powerful. Although it contains lyrics like “I’m fading inside,” there is a level of detachment in the storytelling that suggests the author is recounting their issues after already moving on. One word: inspiring.

Rounding out the record is a slightly more upbeat remix of Mine, which shows the different shades and meanings the song embodies.

Overall, Sentiment is a solid debut that lovers of soulful vocals, heartfelt storytelling and ambient soundscapes will adore. - Music Is My Muse

It’s an electrifying time for hypnotic Gold Coast songbird and Griffith SEED artist Phoebe Sinclair, with a single release happening in early June followed by the launch of her very first EP Sentiment. Her ambient, electronic tunes and haunting vocals have struck a chord with listeners and the industry alike. Natalie O’Driscoll had a quick Q+A with the delightful diva about the exciting month ahead.
You must be excited about your EP release. Tell us all about it!
Yes! I am absolutely brimming with excitement for the EP launch... I’m very excited for the little tour, but I think, since this is my first EP, I am most excited to finally have it released and out there in the world! To think that a stranger who happens to come along to a show and pick up a CD, or download a track, might be listening to my music in their car at any particular moment is a terribly exciting thought!
The EP is called Sentiment, it’s from one of my favourite lines in the first track and I think it sums up the meaning behind the whole EP. The tracks discuss the wrong-doings of love and are my opportunity to express self-indulgent feelings of tenderness, sadness, and nostalgia. It’s a bit naughty honestly, but when I’m onstage I can say exactly what I want to say, especially the things I might be too scared to admit in reality.
Who else was involved in the EP?
I was incredibly lucky to work with an amazing team in producing this EP. Caleb James was brilliant and mentored me through the whole process, whilst leading the production. The team comprised of Caleb and myself, Liam Malby, Jessica Kirkham, Fletcher Babb and the occasional input of Keelan Mak. The team were incredible, playing most of the parts between us and making the EP come to life!
From where do you draw your lyrical inspiration?
I suppose I draw mostly from what I know, Sentiment is incredibly self-indulgent in that it discusses my side of the story and doesn’t tiptoe around anyone else’s feelings. It is passionate and heated, and in order for me to feel that way each and every time I perform these songs the lyrics needed to come from somewhere real. - Blank GC

Emotional. Instinctive. Honest. Self-described singer Phoebe Sinclair plays original music inspired by songstresses such as Adele, Sia, Lorde, Ellie Goulding and Thelma Plum.

"The single I'm about the release is called 'This Isn't Love' [4 June] and I wrote it while I was in a relationship with a person and it really wasn't working, and we both knew it, but it was just kind of tearing us apart. I'm not really sure if it was a good idea in hindsight, because of course he knew it was about him.

"I worked with [producer] Caleb James, and he was the one who pretty much helped me put together my team of wonderful people who all helped and contributed to the album, whether it be on production ideas, on beats, on strange instruments... on 'This Isn't Love'.”


Phoebe has been working her way around the Brisbane music scene for the last 18 months having previously studied at the Queensland Conservatorium. "I've always sung and love to write my own music, and I finally got a great team of people around me and put together this single and this EP that's coming out ['Sentiment'].

"So I've had this all in the works since the beginning of last year and… I've been waiting until I did everything properly and the songs and everything have been a process, definitely. They grew from little ditties I wrote on my guitar to the electronic-pop-diva type. "A lot of my music comes from my inability to do well in relationships apparently; it's an outlet for me to say 'I was right, you were wrong!' In real life I'm quite quiet and reserved… but when I'm singing I can start as many fights as I like and no one really minds.


“[However] I'm struggling to define what genre it is. When anyone asks I have to round it off as ambient pop, but on the four-track there is a kind of electronic ballad. And it's a really odd sort of jazz… It means that every time I play the song I get to do different things, and show different types of emotion."

Phoebe says the album promises to have a few upbeat pop songs and that she likes to channel Adele while performing. "With the album... I find it great singing such emotive. power-ballad-type songs, so when you play a whole half-hour set of it, or a 45-minute set of it, you don't want the crowd to be in tears.

“My whole persona on stage is very real. I love how Adele is when you see her perform. She's got all these big, amazing, power-ballad-epic songs, and then… you realise she's just [a] person. I really like that."

Phoebe recently played at the Milton Markets grand re-opening show. "I've got to admit it's one of the longest gigs I've played. It's a five-hour gig they had me do, which is tough on the fingers… but it was wonderful. The night crawlers were out, which meant I had a different audience, which was really cool.


“[Performing on stage] is empowering: I'm quiet in general. I'm one of four siblings and I've kind of got the third-child syndrome, so it's nice being on stage [as] everybody listens to me. It's my opportunity to have my voice heard and get all my emotions out."

Phoebe has a run a shows to promote the EP release. "They're music events where there are other bands, which is cool because it means I get to work with other [musicians]. I suppose in the long-run, I'm looking to potentially move over to the UK... I was raised in the UK, so it would be good to see what's going on over there." - Scenestr