Kimbra: 'Collabs Are An Awkward Blind Date'

Regular collaborator Kimbra has admitted that the actual act of working with an artist or producer she hasn't met is equivalent to a “super awkward” blind date.

Speaking at the Face The Music conference in Melbourne the New Zealand-born singer, who rose to prominence with her guest vocal on Gotye's Somebody That I Used to Know, agreed with interviewer Dom Alessio that it was a not unlike a 'play date organised by your parents with the kid across the road.'

“It's like a date a lot of the time,” she said. “To write a song with someone is such a vulnerable process. You have to show them your lyrics and be alright with them examining them.”

She continued, “It is a bit like a blind date, but once you move past that point you quickly learn if you have a connection.” Not naming names of collaborative efforts that didn't click she added, “You only know once you try, but you've got to be honest as well.”

The highest profile Q&A of the conference's second day, she also noted that her connection with Gotye's started before the infamous track through producer François Tétaz.

She opted to work with Tétaz on her album Vows because she admired the sound he'd captured on Gotye's Like Drawing Blood. He even found something in the track Settle Down, which she'd penned at 16, and even suggested movies she should check out to finish off the song's lyrics. He's credited with a co-write on the track.