PREMIERE: H3rizon - Serious (Single) + 10 Questions
RnB sensation H3rizon are a force to be reckoned with and are carving their own path to stardom. The Australian R&B girl group are pushing boundaries with their own unique style and have amassed over 1.7 million followers on TikTok through their stunning three-part harmonies.
Born in Australia, with Filipino and Mauritian heritage, Bernie, Taya and Gabby are on a mission to empower and encourage other Women, especially Women of Colour who have previously been so poorly represented in western media. Inspired by the female groups who they’ve looked up to since they first discovered music, the like of Spice Girls, TLC and Destiny’s Child, it is now H3rizon’s time to divide and conquer and they’re forging a legacy of sisterhood, inclusivity and positive mental health along the way.
When it came to developing a concept for the music video the girls wanted to create a fun and playful visual that would also showcase the bold side of their personalities. Playing with the song’s light-hearted sentiment of not taking life too seriously, they worked with upcoming director Rowena Rasmussen and choreographer Cassie Bartho to bring their vision to life. They each embody a different character with their own playful twist, Taya a cook, Gabby a weather girl, and Bernie an aerobics instructor, to invite us into the infectious visual universe of Serious.
H3rizon sat down with Wordplay Magazine to answer our infamous 10 Questions:
1. So tell me, how did it all begin? What sparked your love for music?
We all met through mutual gigs and really enjoyed every chance we had to jam together.
It always seemed like the universe was conspiring to bring us together!
The more we talked, the more we seemed to have in common. We knew that we could make more of an impact as a girl group, so here we are!
I think we can all say that our families & culture had a lot to do with having music be such a big part of our lives from childhood. Both Mauritian & Filo cultures love to entertain & be entertained - so it worked out perfectly for us - always an audience to practice in front of!
2. Who are some artists that influence you and that you want to work with in the future?
We all LOVE Chloe X Halle, where they’ve come from musically & how they have always stayed true to themselves. It’s a message that we always share with younger artists - there’s literally nothing more important in music than being REAL, staying true to your sound and manifesting your artistry.
Bernie’s into production & great beats, so producers who can make a DOPE BEAT to sing to like Timbaland, Pharrell… We’re ready for a MISSY Beat next, right?! Haha.. TBH - we’re actually so blessed to have such a great in-house production team!
3. What are some of the problems you have faced making and releasing the music during the corona virus pandemic?
The first time around- last year- the pandemic cost us an international record deal. But we decided that there was a reason & it just wasn’t meant to be working with our own team over the last 18 months has allowed us to continue to shape ourselves individually & as a group. We have more creative control over what we sound like & how we look. In hindsight, we probably needed it all to fall this way!
Now- we’re releasing our second single, again during the pandemic and we’re just looking ahead! We can’t let these things stop us or let it stop us from connecting with our fans and followers.
Not being in the same room to CREATE is HARD! But our team have really helped to make this as easy a transition as possible. We’re on facetime planning in the mornings, shooting separately during the day and zoom meeting a few times a week with our international team.
We even have green screens at home.. I mean GREEN SCREENS - we can look like we’re sitting on top of the Eiffel tower or on a Caribbean beach if we want!
The harsher (not so positive) reality is that we’ve had major interviews have to cancel or postpone ( so they won’t line up with our release), we can’t get out there to perform or do a single tour like we’d hoped & we can’t create the marketing/promo content we’d already pre-planned due to not being able to be in the same room together.
Either way- it is what it is - our fans have been asking for the follow up single. We filmed the video earlier in the year and we just didn’t want to make anyone wait any longer.. We got plans that don’t involve sitting around waiting for a virus to go away!
4. How would you describe your sound?
With 3 girls with different musical backgrounds coming together, our sound was always going to have some sort of fusion.
In terms of genre - I think it’s easy to say Pop/RnB, but please help us find a genre name for “dope harmonies, solid arrangements, fresh beats & loads of fun!”
5. What's your proudest moment to date so far as an artist?
As a group, we’ve had quite a few proud moments. If we had to choose our proudest moment, it would definitely be the fact we were lucky enough to do a cover of “Arcade” by Duncan Laurence x Fletcher on Tik Tok and go viral. It was such a crazy and overwhelming experience to wake up to millions of likes and views. Tik Tok is such a big platform and being able to share your music with others globally gives us the chance to show others what we have to offer. We were all in contact that morning, screaming and had tears of joy being recognised and we knew from that moment, we had to create an official release of the full song “Arcade”. The creative process was loads of fun and we were so excited to be able to put out a full version of our cover for the fans who were so eager for a full version.
6. Do you have any advice for our readers who may be trying to play the mad game of music?
Please BE YOURSELF and remain true to where music takes you!
There is no ‘wrong’ in creativity!
Take advice with gratitude & an open heart- There is always room to grow and improve.
Work hard & most importantly.. Be PATIENT & TRUST THE PROCESS. A door closing means that wasn’t the door for you.
7. Are there any artists on your radar at the moment that we should check out?
Absolutely! There is so much talent out there! I think we would’ve definitely collabed a whole lot more this past year if it weren’t for the pandemic.
Artists we love who you need to check out - Larissa Lambert , Keiynan Lonsdale, Courtney Govan.. You can check out more of our collaborations on our Tik Tok page @h3rizonmusic.
8. What albums are on heavy rotation on your Spotify playlist currently?
On H3rizon Radio right now ~ Nova Miller, Citizen Queen, Chloe x Halle, H.E.R, Jazmine Sullivan… but we always mix it up with our fave old skool divas too!
9. What do you like to do when you're not making music?
“FREE TIME” is actually an important part of our weekly calendar.. Keeping mentally healthy is important, especially during these times. So, spending time with family, our dogs, exercising & just laying around binging on our fave series while making home-made bubble-tea is high on the priority list!
10. Name Three things you can't live without when in the studio?
Sushi with extra wasabi for Bernie
Comfy clothes + a change of clothes/makeup in case we need to quickly create some content
Bubble Tea when we’re writing (energy!) + Hot Herbal Teas when we’re recording (good for our throats!)