G Flip on the song they wrote for Chrishell Stause, meeting Chappell Roan and playing Reading and Leeds
Exclusive: "All the queers are out to play at the moment - pop music is thriving" says the Aussie singer-songwriter and drummer as they talk Selling Sunset and Renee Rapp
Hi G Flip – how are you, where are you, and how’s the weather?
“It’s Monday night, it’s 6pm, and it’s dark outside. It’s pretty miserable and gloomy – it’s winter here! I’m in Melbourne, where it gets pretty cold.”
Have you been to Reading and Leeds before?
“I haven’t. I’m pretty stoked. It’s gonna be great. My set will be high energy. I’ll be on earlier in the day, so I’ll need to get everyone going for the awesome acts on later! I’m excited for the whole vibe. Backstage, getting to meet people, hang out. I’ll probably get in some crowds myself.”
Are there other artists you want to catch?
“Whenever you do an interview for a festival, the question ‘who else on the line up are you looking to see’ always comes up! I re-looked at the line-up, and it’s insane. There are so many good acts. The Beaches, The Bleachers, Renee Rapp, Raye, Prodigy, Pendulum, blink-182, Confidence Man., Fred again… So many!”
Do you know any of them? Have you met Renee?
“I have, a couple of times. She’s great. I just played a few people before her at the [Governors Ball Music Festival] in New York City. We caught up there. It’s currently the Lesbian Renaissance! You’ve got Renee, Chappell Roan – all the queers are out to play at the moment. Pop music is thriving.”
Have you met Chappell?
“I have. I’ve met Chappell twice. She’s awesome. She’s super humble and super cute! I was giving her all the praise in the world, telling her how amazing she was. She was really sweet; she was like; ‘Aww! Thank you!’ She’s honestly my favourite musician. So, I was very honoured to be in her presence during Pride month in the USA. I played before her at a lot of festivals. Her fans are super lovely as well.”
Will Chrishell be joining you at Reading and Leeds?
“I’m hoping so. We were looking at our schedules last night. She might be filming around that time. We’ll see. She gets her schedule in a couple of weeks.”
Will you be cameoing in the next season of Selling Sunset?
“Yeah. The next season coming out was filmed at the end of last year and the start of this year. They’re putting that together, doing all the editing. I think I’m in that. You film scenes, and sometimes you don’t even get put in the final cut! I’m not in it much – maybe one scene. I’m not too sure.”
If someone told you years ago that you’d be appearing in a real estate-themed reality show, would you have believed them?
“Absolutely not [laughs]. It’s nice just to be there for Chrishell. She finds it a breath of fresh air to film with me. Obviously, there’s no cattiness or bitchiness – it’s easygoing.”
If your life was a reality show, what would the storyline be this week?
“A lot of me and Chrishell hanging out with my Aussie family. Chrishell trying Aussie food and discovering new Aussie lingo! Us doing Aussie things. We went to an Aussie football game. We’ve been babysitting my eight-month-old niece. We had a rat day – a day where we do absolutely nothing. We’ve been working so much, and finally had a rat day on the weekend where we just lay on the couch and did nothing!”
What three G Flip songs would you recommend to someone who’s new to your music?
‘Worst Person Alive’ – it’s my best-written song, the strongest song that I have. It’s euphoric, but also you want scream, cry and yell it in the car. You feel all the emotions. Sonically, I tried to make the song all the emotions you feel in a break-up. You still feel love, but you feel anger and hurt. It’s a cathartic song, and it’s also really fun to play. Number two, let’s go ‘Be Your Man’. It’s like a power ballad. Scream at the top of your lungs. I wrote it about my partner and how she had never been with anyone who wasn’t a man before. I’m confessing my love for her and saying, I can be your man. It’s pretty cute. Number three, ‘Gay 4 Me’ is a horny belter. It slaps hard, and it’s super gay.”
Is there a G Flip song you’d recommend to an LGBTQ coming to terms with their identity?
“My song ‘Waste of Space’. That’s my personal journal entry of what I went through of discovering my gender identity at a young age, feeling ostracised, and like a waste of space.”
You’re one of the world’s most prominent non-binary people. How do you deal with being misgendered, particularly by the media?
“I feel like in media and headlines, it’s pretty good. It’s more waiters and stuff. Or people on a flight, who will misgender me and say ‘maam’ or something. I correct where I feel it’s safe and appropriate. I go about my day and try and educate people. Family members who are still coming to terms with it. People on set. Sometimes I’ll address it, so everyone knows, ‘pronouns are they/them – if you slip it up, that’s totally fine, just quickly correct yourself and keep going.’ There’s a lot of putting it out there, saying what my pronouns are before working with people.”
Have you and Chrishell had many talks about representation, when it comes to the two of you being public figures in a queer relationship?
“At the start of our relationship – it’s reality TV, and I’m part of the reality, once I was dating Chrishell. We had a talk about me being on the show, and the meaning of that. That’s it’s more than just another couple on the show. We’re representing the non-binary community, the queer community, the lesbian community. Representing a healthy couple dynamic in reality. We’ve definitely spoken about that. We knew we’d get a lot of backlash for that, but in the end, it’s good for the world. It’s good to push the needle in the world and get conversations happening, educating people. We thought it was a good thing to do that. I’m glad we did.”
Congratulations on your wedding renewal. Are you still on cloud nine?
“It was so fun. We had the best time. Chrishell and I both love a party. When we did get married a couple of years ago, my family were pretty bummed, because they weren’t there. We knew at some stage when we were both in Australia next, we should do another cheeky little wedding, and invite my Aussie family.”
You’re from Australia but spend a of time in the US. How does the state of play compare in each regarding queerphobia?
“I feel like now social media is so prevalent and everyone has the ability to message you… Back in the day, if people had a problem with my gender, they couldn’t just direct message me on Instagram and get directly to me. That wasn’t possible. But now that is available to everyone. Definitely, once my name was more spread across America from dating Chrishell, I did get a wave of hate from Middle America. People who are very much against the trans community, against the queer community. It was very much heightened. The sheer population difference between the two countries comes heavily into it. In Australia we have less people than California. My name being in the headlines here, it’s pretty quiet. My name being in headlines in the US brought on a whole new audience of hate for me.”
You seem like such a happy and chilled person – to anyone reading who might be struggling with that sort of treatment, how do you deal with it?
“I have days where I struggle. Where I’m so tired and stressed out, where just a little more hate can push me over the edge and make me feel flat. But in the end, I just look at the positives in my life. I’ve got a roof over my head. I’m personally living my dreams, doing this as a career. For anyone struggling, there’s going to be hate in the world, but you’ve got to find your tribe and your people. If you can’t find them in your closest family, your chosen family. There are people out there who love you and care for you. There are online resources. People to talk to. You might be young, but if you search, you’ll find them. There’s always a place for you in this world.”
Catch G Flip at Reading and Leeds Festivals, which take place from 21-25 August 2024.