Brisbane’s music landscape is forever growing. And Jaguar Jonze is at the forefront of it.
That’s why we’re stoked to bring you Positive Developments – a collaborative photo project with Brisbane photographer Stewart Munro.
Our Positive Developments project is set to shine a spotlight on Brisbane’s flourishing local music scene, one artist at a time. For our very first instalment, we kicked things off by having a chat with multi-instrumental singer-songwriter, producer and multimedia artist, Deena Lynch, more commonly known as Jaguar Jonze.
We knew that Jonze derives inspiration from artists like The Last Shadow Puppets and Nick Cave, but we wanted to dig a little deeper.
Yes, things got a little retrospective, but if one thing’s for sure, Jonze learnt a lot over the course of the pandemic, about both herself and the industry. That’s why she’s taken centre stage of our very first Positive Developments feature.
What is one unexpected thing you have discovered about yourself as a result of the pandemic?
I think the pandemic helped me to discover two things, how the person I neglected the most was myself and I needed that forced time to recover from burnout, change my unsustainable habits and learn to love myself more.
And secondly, how pushing through difficult circumstances and testing my resilience has actually brought about an extremely fruitful year.
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What has this challenging time taught you in terms of business?
That although sometimes things won’t go to plan, it doesn’t mean it isn’t a success. Even though nothing I had planned and prepared for this year really happened, I wouldn’t trade it at all, as it still brought about as many opportunities and experiences as it did misfortunes.
What positives have come out of this situation?
It forced me to think outside of the box and to continue innovating. I created a series of colouring-in books when I was sick with COVID-19 and couldn’t sing, I created an AR world commissioned by Adobe for one of my singles Rising Sun to be included in their virtual Festival of the Impossible exhibition.
And I got to play mini gigs all around Brisbane on a stage built on the back of a 2-tonne van so that we could bring live music to the community safely. They’re all just examples, little or big, of ideas that sprung out of a restrictive time.
Do you have any advice for music industry workers on how to tweak their business for COVID-19?
We’re all so different in our careers, goals and business models, but I think it’s a good time for reflection. Think about how you can be more malleable, understand what skills you can equip to allow you to be more resilient and don’t be afraid of exploring new ideas and structures.
Check out the gallery of images here.
