Watch the full interview on YouTube
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The first time Tom Mac was a guest on the Sunburnt Country Music podcast, we had a long chat – so long that it grew gradually darker in his car (he’d pulled over in order to do the interview) to the point where he was barely visible! This time around he was indoors, with a light, and we had another long chat, because he has stories to tell.
The reason for the interview was his latest single, ‘Brave’, which he wrote about falling in love with his partner, Erin, who has two children. It’s a song about loving someone when you know you can’t be their number one, because the children necessarily come first. Mac had been fairly nomadic to that point – the first interview was, in fact, about his song ‘Nomadic’ – so committing to this new life required some decisions, including being brave. He wrote two songs about it, and released the first, ‘Never Gonna Be’, in 2024, and he waited to release ‘Brave’, as he talks about in the interview, saying it ‘went that little bit further’ into the story.
Mac also talks about the single before this one, ‘Larrakia Sunset’, which was written during the time he spent in Darwin during the pandemic, and which he recently performed in the NT capital. And he goes into his songwriting process – usually a solo writer, he is opening up to collaborations and contemplating what that means when the subject matter is more personal.
Towards the end Mac talks about his background in acting, and even though that hasn’t been his main professional pursuit, he’s had some interesting experiences … and reveals a near-miss role on a reality TV show!
Listen to ‘Brave’ on Apple Music
Listen to ‘Brave’ on YouTube
