Why Wallace Is Raffling Roses

Raffled Roses is a "mosaic of soul, hip hop and jazz" with a healthy dose of electronic, built on neo soul singer Wallace Gollan's ear-snatching pipes. Think The Seatbelts working with Erykah Badu. It's an impressively sophisticated sound, but then, Gollan started young.

"They couldn't shut me up as a kid," says the singer, "and [they] couldn't keep me off the stage. Dad's blues mad and always had me dancing around to soul. Since moving to Sydney four years ago I've focused on developing my own sound."

Gollan earned some genuine jazz chops in between. She's won multiple awards at the National Youth Jazz Competition in Tauranga and Best Vocalist at the Queenstown International Jazz Festival. Factor in the collaborative talent she attracts - credits include Sampa The Great and producers Kraak & Smaak - and you're looking at young artist on a very interesting trajectory.

"I wrote Raffled Roses with the incredible beat maker and friend, Godriguez. Then I hopped into the studio with absolute boss engineer and producer of all my tracks to date, Simon Cohen," adds Gollan. "Simon and I are both very pedantic but we also do lots of takes where I go a bit nuts and those moments often make the cut." It's a process made possible by the golden combination of instinct, ability and training.

The inspiration for the track, part of an upcoming EP, was a "family friend back in NZ", says Gollan. "A botanist who's breeding a flower for every song I release. Needless to say he's one of my favourite people! He's always joked that I'm a little bit of a heartbreaker, hence the idea of raffling off roses."