“I cannot wait. It’s going to be warm and Australia’s one of my most favourite places in the world,” Miller says. “We’re doing a couple of festivals before the New Year, then we bring in the New Year in Australia. I’m really excited to do my own shows and see what the crowds are like. I did a show before [in Melbourne] with Snoop and the crowd went crazy. It was awesome.
“I’m not all the way sure what we’re going to be able to bring, but it’s going to be intimate. I’m not trying to be arrogant, but the centre point of the show is me so we don’t do too much crazy production. It’s just based around the interaction between me and the fans.”
With the release of his first full-length album Blue Slide Park in 2011, Miller attracted a massive following, helping him maintain a successful career as an independent artist. For GO:OD AM however, he diverted from this modus operandi, deciding to sign with major label Warner Music as a way of reaching a wider global fanbase.
“I think I just wanted to try something different,” he says. “I’m 23 now, I’m getting ready to settle down and it was time to link up with a company that could give me more of a global presence, and do things worldwide.”
While signing to a major label can often be a death sentence for an independent artist, Miller says his fans were extremely supportive of the transition, and that he was granted essential creative control over the project.
“I thought that when I signed I was going to get a bunch of angry fans saying, ‘Why would do you do this?’, but instead my fans seem to really care about me so I think they were just happy to see me up on my feet and doing things.
“I didn’t have anyone from the label set foot in the studio, which was awesome. So I really got lucky there and I got the chance to run my own project, because I wouldn’t have signed if it was any other way.”
Across three albums and a handful of mixtapes, Miller has accumulated an extensive catalogue of eclectic rap, hip hop, soul and R&B tracks. Released in September, GO:OD AM sees the young artist coming into his own, writing and producing from a more optimistic perspective compared to previous releases.
“I think there was a time when I was making a lot more melancholy records, just like mixtapes and my last album [Watching Movies with the Sound Off] before this one. So I think this one functions a little more in the light – getting there and the journey there – rather than dwelling on any sense of darkness.
“Also, as far as stylistically and conceptually, I’m pretty nomadic in that sense where I don’t like to stay in one place a long time creatively. Maybe it’s because I’m young and I’m still finding my comfort zone, but I think it just keeps it exciting for me.”
With the Australian tour just a few weeks away, Miller is clearly excited to get back here and party with his fans. “Just come ready and bring your energy. Get a good night’s sleep before and make sure you’re ready to have an experience.”
BY MATT INNES
