Juice Webster is peeling back the layers of identity, self-perception and the pressure to be someone you’re not on her new album, Kind of Fantasy.
Across the record, the singer-songwriter explores the exhaustion of trying to live up to expectations, both real and imagined, while searching for a more authentic sense of self. Described as a deeply personal collection of songs, they move between frustration, uncertainty and vulnerability, with moments of love and connection offering some much-needed relief.
But while Kind of Fantasy isn’t afraid to sit with uncomfortable emotions, Webster ultimately finds hope in the everyday. Whether it’s showing up for the people you love or finding comfort in life’s smallest routines, the album serves as a reminder that even when everything feels overwhelming, there’s meaning to be found in caring for what’s right in front of you.
Webster will take the new album on the road next month, with shows in Brisbane, Sydney, Wollongong, and Melbourne. See full dates below. Tickets are on sale now here.
Below, Webster takes Rolling Stone AU/NZ through Kind of Fantasy, track by track, sharing the stories, emotions and creative decisions behind each song.
“Kissing”
“Kissing” is about the discomfort of being placed on a pedestal and the pressure of trying to live up to a version of myself that I don’t really relate to. There are moments of connection that feel real and grounding, and those moments mean a lot to me. They help me realise that most of the pressure I feel is actually coming from myself, rather than anyone else.
It’s the only song I’ve ever made that didn’t have lyrics until after we’d recorded it. I had the melody and chords, so we recorded all the parts together, but it took a while for the words to come. There’s an almost celestial quality to the instrumentation, which ended up informing the lyrics. It’s one of those tracks where the meaning and feeling revealed themselves to me long after the song came together.
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“Kind of Fantasy”
“Kind of Fantasy” is about coming to terms with the realisation that I’ve spent a lot of my life observing myself from the outside, adjusting and tweaking parts of who I am in an effort to present a certain way. I’d been noticing a concerning lack of understanding around my own desires. Through writing this song, I started to feel like I was completely losing sight of myself in the pursuit of trying to be something that isn’t actually real.
Lyrically, I needed the song to be very direct as a way of challenging the discomfort I feel around this admission. I wanted the instrumentation to feel tense, dark and powerful, and it took a while to get right. There are lots of textures woven throughout the song, like little ghosts, and it builds to a climax that I hope people find satisfying.
After writing this song, I knew immediately that I wanted the album to be called Kind of Fantasy too. It felt like I’d really gotten to the crux of something that lies at the root of many of the thoughts and feelings I explore throughout the record.
“Care Yeah”
“Care Yeah” is about overcomplicating a simple situation because I don’t know myself well enough to decipher what I’m really feeling. It’s about chasing my tail, trying to get to the bottom of broader feelings of dissociation and irritability that sometimes linger for long periods, before ultimately realising that it all comes back to a simple desire for connection.
“Wind Me Up”
“Wind Me Up” is a love song for my long-term partner. It’s about allowing someone to seep into everything you do and being genuinely willing to do anything for them. It’s about those feelings prevailing even when you’re not the best version of yourself, and knowing they’re reciprocated. I really love this song. It might even be my favourite on the album.
“Keep Warm”
“Keep Warm” is the oldest song on the record. I wrote it shortly after releasing my first album in 2023, and it hasn’t changed much since the very first demo. It’s one of those rare songs that kind of just fell out of me, and I still relate to the feeling of it very deeply.
It’s about taking on too much and losing sight of what’s most important. It’s about desperately needing to make a change but feeling stuck and afraid. It’s about missing the people who are right in front of you and hating that you’ll probably always fall a little short.
“Long Drive”
“Long Drive” is a fantasy. It’s about wanting to take off without warning but ultimately feeling too guilty to go through with it. I started writing this song a long time ago and couldn’t find a way to finish it, but there was something about it that kept drawing me back.
I wanted the recording to sound joyful and triumphant to offset the quiet devastation of the lyrics. The push and pull between how it sounds and what it’s saying mirrors that conflict between wanting to take off and needing to stay.
“Pretty Please”
I’ve always described “Pretty Please” as a miscommunication diss track. It’s about the frustration of people talking around the truth and sharing their opinions without knowing the full picture.
It was really fun to write because I just leaned into the brattiness of it. I didn’t feel the need to overcomplicate or intellectualise anything, which is something that can sometimes trip me up when I’m writing songs.
“Blue”
I wrote “Blue” during a time when I was feeling really depressed. I was grappling with wanting people to understand where I was at but finding it difficult to express myself clearly. It’s cheesy, but writing this song really helped me get through that period.
I wanted it to have an underlying sense of hope because, when you’re in a dark place, it can be hard to remember that everything is temporary. Looking up and out is one way to get through, and I really wanted the song to express that. Producing this one was tough. It nearly drove us crazy. We went through so many different versions before eventually landing on the final recording, but when I listen back to it now, I wouldn’t change a thing.
“Spite”
“Spite” is about trying to find purpose and joy despite how crushing the world can be. It’s about taking care of those around you, tending to the garden and looking after each other. It felt important to end the album on this note, with a sense of hope and a mantra of showing up for others.
Juice Webster’s Kind of Fantasy is out now. For complete tour and ticket information, see here.
JUICE WEBSTER AUSTRALIA TOUR 2027
Friday, November 20th
Junk Bar, Brisbane, QLD
Saturday, November 21st
Lord Gladstone, Sydney, NSW
Sunday, November 22nd
La La La’s, Wollongong, NSW
Saturday, November 28th
Northcote Social Club, Melbourne, VIC
