Aussie Pop Goes Indie: Meet Jacob Lee & Blake Rose

The Australian pop scene has come a long way, with some of Australia's biggest new stars turning their backs on major labels and using social platforms to build audiences that label-signed acts would kill for. In a seismic shift for music most would label mainstream, some of Australia's biggest pop stars are now making their own way. 

Sheppard were one of the first to prove that you didn't need a major label to hit the top of the charts, with their mega hit 'Geronimo' a self-funded, self-promoted global megahit, but there's a new generation of Aussie pop stars carving out their own career paths without the help, budgets or constraints of the big three labels. From Cody Simpson to The Jungle Giants, Australian pop is making its way to ears across the globe on its own terms and shrugging off the shackles of what pop 'should' be.

This week, two of the biggest breakout social media stars have dropped new singles and it's time to be introduced to the biggest Aussie pop stars you've never heard. 

The Gold Coast's Jacob Lee not only lists himself as a pop artist, but also an entrepreneur. Completely in control of his own career, Lee has amassed over 250 million YouTube views, 200 million Spotify streams and an ever-growing legion of global fans. With over 140 YouTube videos, it's hard to list Lee as a new artist, but his star continues to rise as he harnesses the power of video and music to engage his audience. He is currently putting the finishing touches on his third album 'Lowly Lyricist'. 

The new single 'Jealousy' is a banging pop tune and Lee counts it as his favourite clip yet. 

“For the first time ever, I actually didn’t come up with the creative concept. Ever since I started my (YouTube) channel in 2012 I’ve always written the scripts and co-directed my music videos, however this time I decided to leave it all up to Colin, my cinematographer. Colin approached me with an idea which incorporated a dystopian future. Where I hire an unreliable, dodgy service to erase romantic memories from my past. The themes are Blade Runner-esque, and the entire clip was filmed on the Gold Coast. I love narrative visuals like this because even though my team and I have a clear vision as to what the storyline is, the audience generally finds things we didn’t even know existed”.

Meanwhile on the other side of the country, Perth's Blake Rose has been quietly amassing a global following with over 270 million streams on Spotify. With the help of indie distributor AWAL, Rose is now one of the top fifty most streamed Australian artists in the world and is touring the world, hitting the US in support of Girl In Red in September, before heading home to piggy back on the upcoming Dean Lewis tour. 

The new single 'Magazine' is a personal story for Rose, showing that pop can move the heart as well as the feet.

“‘Magazine’ is about my sister who has been suffering with drug addiction for a long time. Luckily she made it through the other side and is doing really well but I learned that my parents put a lot of blame on themselves for how her life played out. This was baffling to me because they are amazing parents but I came to realize that that's a very natural response for parents of addicts and really, anyone who has any relation to an addict. It was important to me to write a song to remind them that even if they changed every little thing about the way they raised their daughter, it probably wouldn’t have made a difference in the choices she made.”

One thing is for sure, Australian pop has never been in a healthier place... Radio might ignore it and the majors may be busy focusing on American hits, but the fans want it and we're here for it.