"Ballerina Jewellery Box": Kaylah Jordyn on the Upcoming Release, Childhood Nostalgia and Artistry

Ahead of her upcoming release, titled "Ballerina Jewellery Box”, I was lucky enough to meet with Naarm musician Kaylah Jordyn over Zoom for a quick chat re: the new single, musicianship and artistry. Aptly adorning a tiara, Kaylah kindly shared the process behind writing and producing the track, alongside the soundtrack to her childhood and all things whimsy. Enjoy the transcript below. 

Upcoming Naarm Star Kaylah Jordyn

Image supplied by Kaylah Jordyn

Claire: “Ballerina Jewellery Box” is a beautifully warm and nostalgic song; tell me about the new single! If you could talk me through the writing process, or coming up with a theme, exploring/fleshing it out. 

Kaylah Jordyn: I sort of write in a bit of an odd way, but I always start with one idea, or image, or theme, and then - normal people would grab their guitar and then, you know, strum along and write with that. I don’t work that way, ‘cause I was not trained with music theory knowledge, so I, a lot of the time, will literally make a Pinterest board of what I envision in my head. 

For this song, ‘Ballerina Jewellery Box’ was the thing that came to me. It’s a symbol of my childhood - I’m pretty certain that my older sister had one. I thought of this jewellery box, and it took me to her childhood room, which was so gorgeous. It was pink, and had fairy stuff everywhere, and it was just so pretty, and that was how I want my life to be right now - pink and pretty everywhere. 

The idea sort of revolved around that jewellery box and also the tune of the jewellery box as well. I love how particular smells, or things you hear, can bring you straight back to a memory. So, that’s what I was working with at first. 

Ballerina Jewellery Box Album Cover: Kaylah Jordyn

And then I pretty much started making a demo. After coming up with an idea, I always go to the actual music and production of a song, and then once I have a chord progression, then I move on to writing a melody and the lyrics based on my Pinterest boards or whatever other ideas I’ve written down. That’s how it sort of went down with the song. 

I did actually start writing it about two years ago; It’s taken a while! I was originally writing it for a uni project, for my songwriting portfolio, and then it’s taken me this long to decide that it’s something really special to me and that I wanted to finish it, so yeah, now I’ve gotten around to finally finishing it and making it how I imagined it in my head, ‘cause my production skills two years ago were not great. 

So, you said that you developed the song over two years. Were there any tangible items, or whatnot, etc., that you picked up along the way that have rehashed this childhood whimsy/nostalgia that refuelled the flame for the song? 

I would say there were so many things. I just think that in the media at the moment, whimsy is everywhere. I love it because I’ve always struggled with wanting to always feel mature and responsible, and having my shit together. But definitely more recently, I’ve tried to explore;

I think the way that I dress, I love glitter on my eyes! Expressing my way in how I dress has also been a huge part of that. I think my style has evolved a lot, and I used to be a little scared, for example, wearing glitter every day - it’s not really the usual thing, but, yeah, I think I’ve gotten to a point where I’m like, ‘this makes me happy’. Obviously, no one ever comments on it, and when they do, it’s like, ‘That’s super cute! Where’d you get that?’, you know? 

I think those sorts of things- how I dress, the environments I surround myself in and where I’m writing as well. I used to just write on my bed, but that was never inspiring, so now I try to go outside and write literally at the park. I love taking my dog to the park and sitting down on a picnic blanket and writing, that’s really fun for me. 

Switching it to the production aspect, is there anything on the record production-wise that listeners might not pick up on during the first listen? Is there anything you added for an extra touch of whimsy? 

I worked with a lecturer on this song, and his name is Nick - he’s so amazing, and he completely saw my vision and took it and went, ‘let’s try this, let’s try this’. He was really adamant on me having a sound in there that sounded like a jewellery box, so it wasn’t a straight sample of a jewellery box, but we sort of worked on editing some different synth sounds to find something that we thought was what I envisioned in my head. I think that’s one really special thing, the sort of synth-sounding jewellery box sound that comes in and out of the choruses. 

I don’t know if there’s heaps of ad-libs in this song, but more importantly, I’d say the lyrics are the thing for me. There’s lots of imagery when it comes to the lyrics. There’s definitely part of the lyrics where you might have to have them and read them, and ask, ‘How can I relate that to my life?’ Yeah, the lyrics are where the whimsy and meaningfulness come in for sure. 

A bit more on the recording and production process, what would you say has been the most gratifying and/or the most challenging part when piecing the record together?

As I said, I started writing this two years ago, so I think at first, I didn’t have much experience at all working with a DAW/production, and I was doing it as best as I could by myself, so the demo was actually just my voice, piano and hi-hat drums. I was listening to it the other day, and it was super raw and super slow as well. 

So I’d say the most challenging part was trying to get my ideas down, ‘cause I was learning as I was going, for sure, and I still am, and I think most people are. But trying to learn how to make my own sounds and the synth sound, getting that right where I wanted it to be. Also, vocal production. Again, I didn’t know how to do that before, and I think it’s so easy to chuck a bunch of reverb and be like, ‘mmm, that sounds better.’

I think getting used to hearing my own voice in the recording process - this song was recorded three separate times - the first time in my bedroom for that first assignment, and then another time at the studios at uni, and then my final time, which was what’s in the release, was with my cousin, who’s an audio engineer. We did that together, and that’s the take that we have in the end of the song. But definitely getting used to hearing myself, and then trying to get people who are working with me to understand how I wanted the vocal editing to be like. As I said, it’s so easy to chuck a bunch of this and that in it, but my voice is what I've been working on since I was really young - that’s the most important thing when it comes to my songs, so I didn’t want to drown that out with reverb like I definitely did when I made the demo. 

A lot of the song is about nostalgia and wanting to revisit when you had these rose-tinted glasses on the world, what would you say was the soundtrack to your childhood? And maybe, if any of those influenced the final product? 

When I think about this song, my first thing that comes to mind is the Aquamarine soundtrack. I don’t know if you’ve seen that movie, but it’s a mermaid movie. My sisters and I, as I sort of mentioned quickly before, a lot of it is also about my sisters and about my connection with my sisters. We used to watch this movie over and over and over again, and we could all sing to you the soundtrack of that whole movie, unintentionally. That is, I think, definitely given me inspiration. It's always in the back of my mind, it’s very cheery and pretty, and the vocals just sound super happy. I think my song is more like a ballad, but that would be 100% the soundtrack to my childhood. Or the Barbie movies - Barbie in the Mermaid Tale was my favourite movie for sure when I was younger, and they always have some bangers in them as well. I think a lot of my music taste came from the movies that I watched, for sure. 

On the complete opposite end of the spectrum was my dad’s music taste, ‘cause he used to take me to my singing lessons every week when I was younger. He’d just put on the most inappropriate music, like ACDC, Guns ‘n’ Roses, that I definitely shouldn’t have been singing at that age. That doesn’t so much influence my writing, but I think it’s influenced my confidence and my love for music as well, so yeah. 

On to a bit more of the songwriting aspect, ‘cause I know in your email you talked about connecting listeners who really like emotionally driven music, but then also finding a balance between that and telling your own personal story. If we could talk about how you find a balance between writing about your specific situation and transferring that to find a common ground to provide relatability? 

I’d say for me, there’s two levels to this song. There’s the part where it’s reflecting on my childhood and how lucky I definitely was when I was younger, but also a big part of this song for me was that I was on a bit of a healing journey. My parents got divorced when I was younger, which is something that I think a lot of people can relate to, and that can sometimes put this little grey cloud over the beautiful things that I did experience. So writing this song for me as well was definitely a healing thing; I had to put these lyrics and turn that into something quite beautiful for me to move on, ‘cause I felt I lost a lot of that childhood and I was really proud of the fact that I was so mature, and I got to a point where I was like, ‘Where did I go?’ 

I didn’t get to experience a lot of the things that my peers got to experience, and I took on a lot of stress from the things that I went through in childhood. I think lots of people can relate to that. So, for me, I always want my songs to sort of be accessible to everyone, or as many people who want to hear them, I guess. I will write down explicitly what I’m thinking, and what I think the song is about, but using that metaphor to sort of, broaden that, so that other people can interpret that in different ways is really important as well, and I think it keeps the songs interesting and emotional, but, with a lot of my favourite music, you can listen to the song, or read the lyrics, and look up exactly what that writer was maybe thinking, but you could interpret that in a completely different way, and it can touch you from a completely different way as well, and I think that’s really important. So yeah, I’d say using metaphor and keeping it broad in those terms, so that people can interpret those things the best that they can, or however they want to. 

Beautiful. Moving in the same vein as that, we can talk about your gigs, or I saw on your Instagram that you went to 15 or so gigs last year as well. What would you say has been the best moment where you’ve realised music transcends beyond audiovisual stuff, and human connection? A favourite gig/audience moment from either perspective? 

My favourite gig that I’ve been to was Lola Young. She came at I think it was Max Watts, which I had never been to, and it’s a very small, but awesome venue - it was really, really cool. This was just before she sort of blew up, so I had went to this gig, and then pretty much just after that, I think she won a Grammy, and then she was huge, and I will never be able to see her that close again, I don’t think. She signed my shirt, and I got her setlist, and it was just so cool. I was so excited. That experience was just so amazing because it was- her music is so her music. No one writes the way that Lola Young does, I don’t think. I think to look around and see all those people singing back to her, and me also, singing it back, and being like, ‘Oh, these people get what I’m saying, and these people get where I’m coming from’, and literally looking at Lola and her band on stage and her making direct eye contact with me while I’m singing her lyrics. Her songs, a lot of them, mean a lot to me. Some of them are just fun, so fun to sing, but a lot of her songs mean so much to me. To lock eyes with her and sing them together was just amazing, and I’ll always remember that moment. 

And, yeah. I think for my personal gigs, my most recent gig, I was singing one of my songs, and my gorgeous little cousin was in the audience. She was so cute, and she brought these teddies, and she had them waving. It was so so cute, and I think that’s again what this song is about - you know, we probably wouldn’t normally see a twenty-year-old, or a thirty-year-old with their teddies in the audience, you know, waving their arms in the air, but why not? It was so cute to see that, and she was having fun. Yeah, that was a really special moment for me as well. 

That’s so beautiful! Expanding on the whimsiness, I saw on your Instagram that you compiled a handful of side quests that, in the middle of your portfolio of careers, help you engage with yourself and stay whimsical. When writing “Ballerina Jewellery Box”, did you uncover anything new, or kind of do anything to replenish your inner child? 

I think a big- this is a whole other level, but I adopted a dog. 

Oh my gosh! 

I think it would’ve been around a similar time. She’s my whole world, so I think she’s helped me to sort of bring out the silliness ‘cause she’s so goofy, she’s a little cavalier, and she’s super energetic, and she’s so goofy, and she just runs around everywhere. So, I think- not so much a side quest, ‘cause a dog is a huge responsibility, but, yeah, taking care of her and playing with her definitely helps. 

What else was there when I was writing the song? It started off so long ago, so I’m trying to remember. 

I’ve always loved doing my makeup in fun, different ways. I don’t [do it] a heap anymore, right now I sort of just put glitter on my face and call it a day, ‘cause I love that, but, I definitely, probably around the time of writing this, I definitely think I would’ve been playing around with makeup a lot. I think it’s sort of just like painting, but I get to wear it out, so, yeah, fun makeup is definitely like a bit of a side quest that I had around that time. 

Yay, I love that! I also saw on your Instagram that you talk a lot about your career as a music teacher.

Yeah!

Is there any sense of childhood whimsy you tie into your work as a teacher, or do you reckon they give you some childhood whimsy back? Tying that into the songwriting process, or if not, just like your daily life, and reminding yourself to be a little bit kinder to yourself and whatnot? 

Yep! I work with a lot of children. I love working with children ‘cause they’re just, they’re so fun, and I also think growing up I had so many amazing music teachers, and I would not be where I am right now without them, so if I get to be that for like a couple of young kids, that’s so huge to me. A lot of them are so silly, but more importantly, they allow me to also be silly, so, there will be times where I have a student and they feel too shy to sing, nice and loud or whatever, and then I get to take on that, and I get to, you know, start to really free myself to show them that it’s okay, so making silly noises, or doing silly movements and stuff to open up their body and make them feel more comfortable in the space has definitely been something that I have also started to take on in my own personal practice now. Especially now that I am performing a lot more, and trying to build my own sort of, not character, but build my own artist brand, I guess. That definitely helps! 

I also work with very, very little children, like only months-old little children. 

Awh!! 

We play instruments together, and yeah, I get to teach them how to sing and play instruments, and move and dance, and lots of nursery rhymes, and I think that’s helped me to sort of bring out that child-like play with myself as well, because, when they’re engaged, it’s the best for me, ‘cause I always feed off of other peoples’ emotions, so if they’re engaged and having fun, then I’m having fun as well. 

Love! You mentioned building your character on stage. Maybe talk me through a bit of that process. I know that I’ve been trying to build that character [as a musician], personally, but a lot of that, especially with original music, it’s hard to find the balance between ‘this is me pushing my vulnerability, giving them a heart-to-heart’, but it’s also [presenting] an elevated version of that. How do you go about figuring out that balance? 

I’d say I haven’t worked that out just yet. I am an extremely open person, I think, if people know me, they know I can be an oversharer, and I do the same on my social media, ‘cause I really enjoy it, and that’s the content that I enjoy. 

Definitely, and interact with the most as well. If someone is saying a funny story about their day, I love that sort of stuff and I find that really engaging, and if they’re just completely- you can tell when someone’s being themselves and on the camera, so I try my best to, sort of, be that way, and a lot of times I feel more like myself when I’m just talking to a camera, than if I’m with a group of people that I maybe don’t feel as comfortable with. 

I’d say the harder balance for me is sort of, balancing my more ‘feminine’ side and my more ‘tomboy’/’masculine’ side, ‘cause a lot of the times, with images when it comes to pop stars and things, you think of Sabrina Carpenter and she’s very feminine, and then you think of someone, who, like Lola Young, and they both inspire me a lot. She’s not as feminine, so for me, I’m sort of at a war between choosing if I wanna be this feminine artist, or do I wanna be this other person, ‘cause I’d say more in my personal life, I’m a bit more edgy, I guess. On stage and when it comes to my music, my music is very feminine, so trying to balance those two things has been difficult, and I sort of lean towards having two separate ‘me’s, I guess, like a stage me/a social media me, and my own self. One day, I would like that to be a cohesive thing, but, yeah, as I said, I think especially when you’re trying to sort of make yourself known in this sort of area, you have to have something that is like, ‘oh yeah, that’s that person’. 

And I remember them ‘cause they look like this. Yeah, I find that a little bit challenging. 

More on the music and being an artist kind of thing, what would you say is maybe one or a couple of things you wish you knew before everything started, or before you fully delved into becoming a recording artist? 

I wish I knew how expensive it was.

[Laughs]

It’s so unbelievably rewarding because I see- I’m very proud of what I get to make, but, at the same time, there’s so much time and a lot of money that goes into- especially as a small artist, there’s a lot of time and money that goes into literally just making this one song. It’s taken me two years to finish this one song. People definitely don’t realise how, first of all, expensive it is, but also the return on investment isn’t great either. And as I was saying, it’s important to me, and I don’t need to be- I don’t need to have all these fans and make all this money from my music because I do it for myself. That makes it this next level of difficulty to continue because a lot of us work multiple jobs, and then having to pay to live, and then also paying to support our own personal projects and artist projects, it can be a lot. And there’s obviously grants and things out there, but, you know, not everyone’s able to get a grant, and that’s just how that sort of works. But yeah, I’d say that’s something, like people always tell you ‘it’s a really difficult industry to get into’, but I always thought that was like an ‘are you talented enough to do this?’ I think people can be extremely talented, but if they don’t have the resilience to keep going when they have a setback or when they can’t afford something, or, you know, if they have to- you have to sort of gain all these skills in other areas, like the social media, or- I DIYed the photoshoot for this song. If you don’t have these skills, then that’s just money that you have to spend on other people to do them for you, which can be a lot. 

Moving on, was there anything you wanted to mention re: the upcoming release? 

Sure, this release, I think, I love it so much, but it’s definitely a stepping stone. I know I have another couple songs on the way as well. I think with every release they get a bit more professional and a bit more exciting, so, yeah, this one’s definitely a bit of a stepping stone. I just wanted my music to be out there, and just wanted to share this with, yeah, like I said, this lands hopefully with the right people, the people who sort of get where I’m coming from. 

Beautiful! My last question: If there was anything you had to say to the little girl who had her older sister’s jewellery box, what would your little message be? 

I’d say that little girl absolutely knew what she wanted to do from that day. I’ve always known what I wanted to do. People would ask me, and I’d be like, ‘I want to be a vet!’ I never wanted to be a vet. That was a lie! 

I was just always caught up in ‘what are other people gonna think?’, and are other people gonna support me in this artist journey? And I would definitely tell that little girl that I’m capable of a lot more than I think, and as long as I keep that passion and that love for music, and I do it for myself, then I’ll do amazing things that I never thought I’d be able to do. 

That’s so beautiful! That’s so inspiring; I feel so inspired after that. Thank you so much for your time. 

Thank you! 

To keep up with Kaylah Jordyn and her upcoming “Ballerina Jewellery Box”release (and more!), You can find her on Instagram and TikTok under @kaylahjordyn.music.