Katie Noonan is the latest guest on Making Music, Making Ends Meet, a series focused on Australian and New Zealand musicians during the cost-of-living crisis.
From her time in George to her work as a soloist, Noonan is one of Australian music’s most enduring singer-songwriters, but even she isn’t immune to the perils of the music industry.
While there was a lot of negative things to discuss about the music industry, past and present, Noonan retained a sense of hope.
“The thing to remember is that you, the consumer, have the power — and I think we’ve forgotten that,” she said.
“At every gig, I do my Spotify spiel, and I’ve had so many people say they left Spotify and joined Tidal. That’s already 300% more in royalties for the music you’re streaming. Then go to the artist’s website and buy a t-shirt or a tote bag or anything.
“Buying a ticket to a show is the main thing — but I know people can’t always afford that right now.”
As for the way forward, Noonan said she thinks “we’re going to return to community.”
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“House concerts, community halls, bring it back to what really matters,” she continued. “The way we all survived COVID was through the arts — we read books, listened to albums, watched films, watched livestreams. The arts give us hope — and that is what the world desperately needs right now.”
“Life without music is not a life worth living. So yeah — we keep fighting.”
Noonan also discussed her work with Eumundi School of Music and AVÉ, “two legacy projects I want to live beyond me.”
“There’s got to be youth engagement. There’s got to be First Nations storytelling. There’s got to be an attempt at gender parity. Otherwise we’re going to lose a whole generation of storytellers,” she said.
Read her full feature here.
Noonan will release her new album — her 30th, showing remarkable consistency — Alone but all one later this month — pre-order here.
The ARIA Award-winning artist says the album “is for anyone who’s gone through a life shift — not just separation, but grief, uncertainty, or quiet reinvention. It’s music for sitting with things. For remembering we’re not alone, even in solitude. It’s personal, but I hope it will resonate in a way that becomes collective.”
Noonan will embark on an Australian tour in celebration of Alone but all one next month — check out her tour dates here.
