As the ten months of “ten people or less” continues, music lovers around the world would do anything to sweatily stand shoulder-to-shoulder with some strangers and sing along to their favorite songs. While most countries are preparing for the upcoming holidays with mounting Covid cases and increased restrictions, life in New Zealand has essentially returned to normal — even concerts are allowed. Tom Verberne, a 20-year-old artist from Auckland, NZ, is grateful for the green light on live shows and recently opened for break-out indie artist Benee.
On stage sporting a gaudy Ed Hardy tee, baggy jeans, and shaggy haircut, it’s no wonder Tom Verberne’s songs sound straight out of an early 2000s movie. The Y2K era, he explains, heavily inspires his style, music, and visuals. Tom’s discography is an eclectic mix of pop, punk, and electronic beats that we can’t get enough of. As a young artist, he has yet to hone in on his specific sound but is continuing to explore and express emotions through music.
Sheesh Magazine was lucky enough to chat with Tom Verberne about his single “It Shows Heaps,” his growing international fan base, and hopes for the future.
Do you want to tell us a bit about your latest release?
Yeah, it’s called “It Shows Heaps” and I’m pretty happy to have it out. I feel like it’s different from most of my other music because this is the first time I’ve made a song with predominantly live drums and other live instruments. It’s been really cool because we’ve been doing a lot of shows recently and this song has been my favorite to play.
As an artist do you enjoy doing live shows?
Yes, it’s super fun. It’s kinda just like having a party on stage, while also getting to share my songs that I love and have worked on so much by myself. But it’s also quite hard, I know how good and meaningful live performances can be, and I want my live show to be that as well. I find it stressful because I’m not the best singer. It’s really just a practice thing, though, the more you do it the easier it gets.
Do most of your new listeners come from doing live shows and opening up for people?
At this point, not really. I haven’t really played a lot here, I’ve only recently started doing more gigging. So most of my audience is online and last year a majority of my audience was from America, actually. But it’s started to increase in NZ I think because of the shows I have been playing, which is great because I want to play more and more.
How did you go from making music only your friends and family knew about to having fans around the world?
Honestly, there was this one day where one of my songs got on Discover Weekly and instantly had a crazy spike — the most streams I’ve ever had in one day. I had a little bit of growth before that, I would get occasional messages and people reposting to their stories, but I still feel like I’m working towards getting there for sure. It’s weird releasing songs and having people who actually know you know what and who you’re singing about <laughs> , I wish I could make it so that just people I don’t know could listen.
I see Clairo follows you on Instagram, what was your reaction to that happening?
Oh yeah that was pretty wild when I saw that! I don’t know if she remembers me but I met her at Laneway Festival. She’s friends with my flatmate Maxwell Young so we briefly met, but that was like two years before she followed me, so not even sure if that’s related. We kinda have a lot of mutual friends in America and stuff but it was still pretty crazy! I’m a big fan, it was definitely a wow moment.
Did you ever go to school for music?
I studied music in college for a year, which was sick because I met a bunch of cool people, but I wasn’t really learning anything. On top of that I was not keen to get a big loan, so I boosted.
You frequently describe your music as ‘emo,’ are there any other words you would characterize it as?
I think pretty is a word I’d want to describe my music as. I’m always trying to make bops, but they usually just end up being pretty and delicate most of the time.
What’s your favorite song that you’ve made?
I honestly don’t know. I feel like each song is special to me for different reasons so I’ve never really thought about it that way. Maybe “You Last Night” is my favorite at the moment, I kinda really like that song. But, generally, I’m always just excited to put out new songs so the old ones fade away fast for me. If I had to have an all time one, maybe No Contest, but already second guessing that answer.
What have you been listening to lately?
The new Harry Teardrop song “Ryley,” that’s so great.
What’s the best fan interaction you’ve had so far?
In general, all of the support has been so great. Sometimes it’s so hard to stay motivated making music because of self-doubt and everything that entails, so every time someone sends you a message it’s great. It just keeps pushing you along. Specifically, after the Benee shows having people tell me they didn’t know my music before but have now been listening to it a lot, that is so sick.
When you put out your first album two years ago, did you expect to be where you are now?
I feel like every year of my life if I travelled back to the previous year to tell myself what I did in the future, I’d always be pretty stoked. So I don’t know if I would really say I expected this, but I am pretty stoked. I still have a lot of work to be done though!
Where are you hoping to be in another two years from now?
The big one for me is just to make a living off my music. Just making money so that I don’t have to work anymore is the goal for next year, I hate my job so much <laughs>. Apart from that as long as I keep making music that I like and I’m enjoying doing it, I’m good.
Any message you want to tell your fans and listeners?
I appreciate anyone that listens to my music, it’s still pretty crazy to think people actually enjoy it. Life’s crazy, especially this year, and music sometimes does wonders to help. If my music is helping anyone, that’s the best news ever. Hope everyone out there is doing alright.
Do you want to tell us a bit about your upcoming single “Tangled”?
I’m very excited for Tangled! It’s pretty pop-punky and probably my most Y2K song yet. It’s really just about thinking that you could make someone’s life a bit better and open them up to new stuff if they just got to know you a little bit, as kinda cocky as that sounds. It also has a feature from a cool friend of mine!
Follow Tom Verberne on Instagram and Spotify to stay up do date with the release of “Tangled” and more new music.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
