Congratulations on the release of ‘Pretty Girl’ – how does it feel to have the track out?

It’s always a mixture of excitement and relief, so there is a lot of that going on right now. I am just super proud of the song and am so glad people can finally hear it.

What is the meaning behind the track?

The song talks about falling in love for the first time and the fear and vulnerabilities that come with that experience, particularly the feelings and emotions that people experience inside their own heads. I tend to write a lot of songs about mental health, even if it’s a song about love in this instance, I often link it back to how I was feeling mentally at the time and get kind of personal with it. This particular song has a bit of a contradictory theme to it where in the verses I find myself in denial about the whole situation and the chorus is where I completely succumb to my feelings.

How was the process of writing and recording the song?

It was probably the most enjoyable recording experience I have ever had. Working for the first time with my producer Tobias Priddle, we kind of just clicked straight away and were on the same page. This song in particular only took a few sessions to finish, it was a really seamless process and we still had so much time to experiment with things and get it sounding exactly how we wanted it. We have been working on quite a few songs as of late.

The video you made for the track is incredible! Talk us through how it came to be?

Thank you so much! Yeah, it was a really fun and spontaneous kind of thing. Brandon and I have been making videos together since 2020 and we usually plan quite a lot before we get together and film. For this one however, we kind of just sat down, had some drinks and started filming with no real idea on a concept or direction. We shot and edited the video all in one day and I think what came out was really cool given the fact we started the day with nothing. A fair portion of the filming process was just Brandon and I trying to make each other laugh to be completely honest haha.

What can fans expect next from your music?

I have some exciting things planned for the rest of this year and going into next year. I cannot wait to share them with everyone. For now though, you have ‘Pretty Girl’, but I don’t think people will have to wait too long for more music.

Is there anything else you’d like to mention before we go?

I have some shows coming up in Frankston on May 13th at Singing Bird Studios and in Melbourne at The Workers Club on May 27th, tickets are still available so I would love to see you down there <3

Finally, I see you’re a big Richmond supporter. Did you manage to get to any of the Grand Finals in ’17, ’19 or ’20?

Unfortunately, I couldn’t get to 2017 or 2020, but was lucky enough to go to 2019 with my dad, brother, and uncle, which was one of the best days of my life. Swan St afterwards was crazy – 2017 more so, but 2019 as well!

A QUICK WITH ZACHARY LEO