'I Wanted To Capture What It Felt Like To Rediscover Myself': Forest Claudette On New 'Jupiter' EP

Today is a special day for rising Australian alt R&B singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Forest Claudette, who’s just dropped their new EP, the intergalactically adventurous yet intimately personal Jupiter.

In just four songs, Claudette lays plenty bare, ruminating on love, identity, empowerment, and artistic expression.

Jupiter follows Claudette’s recent collaboration with Cosmo’s Midnight on Borrowed Time and their cover of the Red Hot Chili Peppers classic Can’t Stop. The EP was preceded by the release of their acclaimed Everything Was Green EP, which included Mess Around featuring EARTHGANG, which earned an ARIA Award for Best Soul/R&B Release.

To celebrate the release of Jupiter, Forest Claudette has shared an exclusive track-by-track of the EP for Purple Sneakers before he goes on tour. Check out the tour dates below.

KOBE BEEF

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Kobe Beef is the first song I’ve written about being nonbinary. It’s centred around the questions and conversations I had to have with myself before I could feel comfortable and safe making this project. Like, “Why share so much? Why expose yourself? Can’t some things be private? Why is it so important to speak about?” That’s where the lyric “Why the heck are you bringing up my Kobe Beef?” comes from.

I felt most of the questions were based in fear. Fear that people wouldn’t believe how I felt - as if that matters. Fear that it would make my life more difficult or complicated - as if it weren’t already. Fear that I wouldn’t be ready for the questions and comments that would follow.

So I waited. I did my best to settle into my new reality. I read and listened to highly educated people in the world of gender queerness. I talked to my family, my friends, my partner, and my team. I did my best to make sure I had the infrastructure to address all those fears. Then, I was given the idea of Jupiter, and I was ready.

I wanted to capture some of what it felt like to rediscover myself.

GOLD

Gold is a song that was revealed to me sometime after I wrote it.

Or I should say the meaning of “This weight is gold” has changed for me since. It's hard to remember if I was actually sad, even though it feels so heavy.

I’m sure I was partly thinking about “success”. What it looks like, what sacrifices are made to obtain it, and what the ramifications of that are. But in the context of Jupiter, I see things so differently. The line “catacombs to who I was” sticks out to me, and the weight I’m referring to is now the weight of honesty. Choosing to share who I am with people because I know I’m not unique in my experiences so there must be people in the world that feel like I’ve felt when it comes to their identity.

Now, the song is about growing, shedding skin and evolving. Letting go of the fear I had of making this project. Paying respect to the weight I have been given, the burdens of life. And the sense that that feeling is invaluable.

ONLY HUMAN

I feel like if you read the lyrics of Only Human without the music, it would not feel as fun as it sounds. The instrumentation helps it feel like the celebration it is. A celebration of newfound confidence in who I am, comfortable to reject gender norms in a way that doesn’t feel so overthought and weighed down.

I often think, “Oh God, I hope it's OK that I'm doing this or saying that. I don't wanna be annoying or preachy,” you know? All the little dialogues I have with myself are full of self-doubt. So this is a real moment of clarity—this is how I feel, this is what it is. I am only human.

I wrote Only Human with Wyatt Burnard. I hadn't worked with him before, which is a testament to him and the environment that he is able to create. Really beautiful studio space, too.

Poor Wyatt. We only had about an hour left in our session when I confessed I wasn’t feeling it at all. I said mute everything but the vocals, and without hesitation, he obliged. I fiddled for a minute and found a chord progression we both liked. Wyatt threw down the bass line and drums in literally 10 minutes. It turned into something joyous and silly, and the song arrived at this beautiful place of balance.

BIG WIGS

Big Wigs is a boiling point I reach every now and again. The sensation of becoming overwhelmed by everything in my life and the questions that follow. What is the purpose of this? What am I trying to accomplish? What are my priorities? Who and what do I put above everything else?

It’s about the pressure I feel to honour the privilege of my position. I have a lot of support around me, which is a wonderful thing. But at the same time, I see it as my responsibility to live up to the expectations I’ve placed on myself and the ones placed on me by others.

I feel like it’s a continuation of Creaming Soda, of the thoughts in Don't Worry and even a bit of Pool Boy.

Jupiter is out now via Sony Music Australia. You can buy/stream the EP here.