Originally from western New South Wales in Australia, singer-songwriter Fanny Lumsden has rapidly become renowned for her high energy, entertaining live performances with her live band The Prawn Stars.
She scooped ARIA, AIR and Golden Guitar Awards in her home country for her fourth album, ‘Hey Dawn’, released in 2023, and made her UK debut at Glastonbury in the same year. Since then she’s been back over here four times, including opening for Paul Kelly on his UK tour earlier this year, before embarking on 21 headline dates of her own across the UK and Ireland.
Laura Cooney catches up with with Fanny recently to chat about the tour – including her set at The Long Road festival later this month and her Country Halls shows – her recently released cover of Gotye’s worldwide hit ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’, plans for new music and more.
How’s the tour going so far?
Oh, it's been amazing. I think we're in week three, but I can't actually remember [laughs] because it's been frantic. But it's been so incredible. We started in England and we've done some festivals and shows there. Then we went up to Scotland and did our Country Halls tour through Scotland and the Highlands, as well as playing Belladrum [festival], which was really amazing. So yeah, it's going very well.
Is there anywhere you’ve particularly enjoyed visiting on this trip? Or anywhere you’re looking forward to seeing?
Absolutely. We loved Scotland. We had a lot of fun there. We were over on the West Coast for the first of the Country Halls and then Balquhidder, which we really loved. We all swam in the lochs and we've been really trying to get into it when we can, which has been lovely. Absolutely love it. It's been great.
We’ve talked a bit about the Country Halls show already – tell us about those and how they came about…
Yeah, basically they started in about 2012 back in Australia. I went out and put on some shows in three halls across regional New South Wales and they just went so well. And everybody was trying to tell us about their hall and wanted us to come and play, so it kind of just has evolved into like a never-ending tour where halls apply to host. Then we go through all the applications and we go and put on full production, full band shows in places that don't usually get touring acts.
We really do try and work with the local communities as much as possible. And they're just so much fun. We just try and create something that says people can come in, have a lot of fun, have a lot of joy for a moment, and not have to go to the city for a full production show. And we get to see so much of the countryside as well, which is really fun.
Have you got plans to expand those shows any further? I know when you’ve done them here they’ve mostly been in Scotland, but would you go elsewhere in the UK – or even the world?
Oh yeah, absolutely. Basically, if you've got a hall in a community and you want to get involved, we'll come and play. We'll put on a show. If you've got a hall and a community that's willing to offer a few volunteers to help out, we'll be there. Anywhere.
This is your fourth trip to the UK in two years – what is it that keeps you coming back over here?
Oh, it's definitely the people. The audiences are so amazing. We just find that they're so open and excited and curious. And yeah, it's just been a really amazing experience over the last two years, and four trips. So I think that it has to be the people.
You’ll be wrapping up these shows at The Long Road festival at the end of August. What can people expect from that show and from the rest of the tour?
Oh, you better add that one to what I'm looking forward to as well, because we're so stoked to be playing that festival. Basically, the show is a lot of energy. It's a lot of fun. We try to make it as relaxed as possible as well. So it's just kind of like we're having a yarn, having a yap. And then kind of mixed up with lots of dance moves and silly moments, high kicks and cartwheels.
Sounds great! You were out on tour in the UK with Paul Kelly just before this tour as well – how was that?
Yeah, that was a really amazing experience actually. I went out solo, which I haven't done for many, many years. So it was very different from having to look after lots of people and just look after myself [laughs]. But it was really lovely. His audiences were beautiful, of course, and just hanging out with Paul in the van, he’s such an interesting guy. And going to all these cities. It was a really special experience.
You’ve also just released your version of ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’ by Gotye featuring Kimbra. What was it that drew you to that song in particular?
Well, it is an Australian banger, you know. Everybody knows that it's such a good song. You know, it's like basically when you boil it down, it's like it's a great song. And we went on a television show in Australia called Spicks and Specks, where we were asked to perform our version ourselves. And then we started playing it live and the audience response was awesome. Everyone always loves to sing that chorus really loud. And so we were like, why not record it? We'd never recorded a cover before. And it just felt like the right time.
This is your first time recording with your live band The Prawn Stars as well. How was the shift from the live performance to a studio? Did it feel any different?
No, it felt pretty seamless, actually. It felt like we'd been doing it forever. It was a fun collaborative process. Usually some of them will play on the records, but it's a very different, very separate process to our live process. But converting something that we'd arranged for live [shows] and then just getting that down and recording it, it felt quite simple, to be honest.
Did you feel any kind of pressure with recording it given it was such a big song?
Not really. Actually, I didn't really pay attention to the pressure because we just knew that we loved our version and we knew that our fans that we’d played it to, they loved it. And so I don't really mind. People are going to hate it anyway. Like everyone has an opinion. And no matter what you do, someone's going to be annoyed [laughs]. So you’ve just got to do what you think is good and what you love, I think.
You also worked with William Bowden on the song who was the original producer. How was it to work with him?
Oh, he's amazing. He's actually mastered all our records for us, except for one of them. But yeah, we regularly work with him. He's a lovely guy and he's really honest with us, too. When we asked him if he would master this particular track, before he'd heard it, he goes, “I'll do it only if it's good” [laughs]. So I’ll take that as his stamp of approval.
Tell us a bit more about the video you made for the song as well…
So we went up onto a hill where we live in the Snowy Mountains of Australia, very early in the morning after a gig. We got the band up and dragged them up this big hill and then recorded up there. And basically the hill and the scenery did all the heavy lifting for that clip. It's so spectacular there. And we'd never done that kind of clip either. Dan, my husband, and I spend a lot of time on videos and we've made many, many, many videos over the years. But we'd never done this kind of style with our band playing. So it was fun.
Is that one of the songs you’re particularly enjoying playing live at the moment? Or are there any others?
We always have fun with ‘Dig' which is just so much fun. We've been doing it since 2020 and having everyone in the audience all sing together, it's just such a kind of unifying moment. It's always a good time. So we love playing that. And yeah, definitely love playing ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’. Yeah, the set feels really fun. I don't hate any of them, which is a bonus. Always a good sign [laughs].
You grew up on a sheep farm and still live on a farm now. How has that influenced your writing and the way you approach your music? And as a follow up to that, does it then feel like a double life in a way when you’re out on the road and performing?
[laughs] It definitely influences how I write my songs. I would say that the type of country music I write is because I write from the perspective of someone who grew up and lives in the country. But that's why I tell country stories. That is what country music means for me personally. So it directly impacts how I see the world – growing up on a farm and in a small community and then still living there and writing stories that feel authentic and legitimate for me. So, yes, 100 percent it makes a difference.
And does it feel like I'm living a double life? Yes [laughs]. But it's really great. When I go home after touring, I feel like the luckiest person in the world because I feel like I'm living my dream. To get to go out and tour and then go home and ride a horse and move some cows just feels perfect to me.
What’s the song that you’re proudest of that you’ve written?
Gosh. Probably a song from my album called ‘Fallow.' I don't really play it live very much, actually, but I remember writing it when I was sitting on the floor with my kids when they were just playing with their toys. It's like this deep song, and I wrote the chorus sitting there amongst all these plastic coloured toys. It doesn't really reflect the song at all, but it's just a really special song.
It really reflects my childhood and the struggles of rural communities and farms and what they go through emotionally. I think farmers often get a very bad rap about, especially from an environmental concern, but really they really, really care for the land. And so, yeah, I think that that’s probably one of my favourites.
And is there a song that you wish you could have written?
Oh, I hate this question! Because there’s so many good answers. I do love that Alison Krauss song, ‘Baby, Now That I Found You.' It's one of my faves. Completely love it. There's so many. I don't know if I can answer that question. I mean, ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’, that's a banger. We could just keep it there. Keep it local [laughs].
What’s still on the bucket list for you in terms of places you want to play, people you’d want to work with and so on?
Yeah, absolutely. I think it's endless. I mean, definitely expand the Country Halls tour, like you're saying, and keep coming over here and just putting on shows. We just absolutely love travelling through the UK and Ireland and playing shows and meeting other people. So definitely [want] to continue to do that.
[In terms of people to work with], I mean, Dolly Parton said my name when I won an award, but I'd love to hang out with her. I would like to record a song with her. Like, that's pure love. She is the coolest. She's purely the coolest. So maybe collab with Dolly Parton. Let's make that a thing.
Actually, can I just change that to being with Dolly Parton and Kylie Minogue? Fanny Lumsden, Dolly Parton, Kylie Minogue collab. That's it.
What’s next for you? I know you’re touring with Paul Kelly at the end of the year and then the tour as well…
Yeah, we literally land off the plane and start the Paul Kelly and Lucinda Williams tour the next day, and that's in arenas around Australia. We've got a bunch of festivals. We're just working behind the scenes at the moment, creating a whole bunch of new music. And we’ll be entering a whole new era. So a lot of stuff is about to happen, but we are still working on it at the moment.
Can you give us any hints of what the new music will be like? Is it similar to the previous records or will it be completely different?
I don't think it'll ever be totally different because I'll continue to be the songwriter, so that keeps the common thread going. I always want to say – it doesn't sound like a revolutionary thing, but I really think there's elements of my first record and elements of ‘Fallow,' which is my third record. I like drawing from some of my original roots, but then bringing that into a new context. So we'll see what happens. There'll definitely be some country music in there.
And lastly – have you got plans to come back to the UK after this trip?
Of course we do! [laughs] We're just inventing the plans for when exactly that will be, but we'll definitely be back in 2026 at some point.
I mean, I feel like you’re basically an honorary Brit at this point anyway…
Oh my gosh, thank you so much. Yeah, we'll take dual citizenship, that'll be fine. It'll help with the visas! [laughs]
See Fanny Lumsden live in the UK this August:
Tues Aug 12 YES (PINK ROOM), Manchester
Wed Aug 13 Oslo, London
Thurs Aug 14 The Exchange, Bristol
Fri Aug 15 Beautiful Days Festival, Devon
Sat Aug 16 Country Calling Festival, Essex
Sun Aug 17 Komedia Studio, Brighton
Wed Aug 20 Vinyl Café, York (acoustic show)
Thurs Aug 21 Solfest, Cumbria
Fri Aug 22 Greenbelt Festival, Kettering
Sat Aug 23 The Long Road Festival, Lutterworth
Interview conducted by Laura Cooney for Entertainment Focus Country
